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Prusa Research is a Prague company founded in 2012 by Josef Průša, who came from the open-source RepRap project. It designs and builds the Original Prusa and Prusa CORE printers, makes Prusament filament, develops the PrusaSlicer slicer and runs the Printables model site. Printers are built in Prague and at its US site in Delaware, sold assembled or as kits, and used by hobbyists, schools, businesses and print farms.

Gegründet: 2012 · Hauptsitz: Prague, Czech Republic · Eigentümerschaft: Prusa Research a.s., founded and led by Josef Průša · Personen: More than 1,200 people (company site, 2026) · Website: www.prusa3d.com

Prusa is the most open of the large brands: GPL firmware, an open slicer, full local control without an account and spare parts for everything. Hardware design files now come under Prusa's own Open Community License, which allows personal and in-house business use but not selling machines.

Firmware und angepasste Firmware
●●●●●		 Firmware for current printers is published on GitHub under GPL-3.0 and updated with every release. Official firmware is signed, but Prusa documents how to flash custom firmware by breaking a seal on the board and says this does not void the warranty. Prusa says firmware and printable parts are shared right away and electronics schematics later. [1][2][3]
Lokale Steuerung und Integrationen
●●●●●		 PrusaLink, built into the CORE One, MK4S, MK3.9, MK3.5 and XL, handles monitoring, file uploads and print control on the local network without internet or an account, and printing from USB works offline. Prusa publishes PrusaLink's HTTP API as an OpenAPI specification on GitHub, and its help centre covers OctoPrint setup. Prusa Connect is an optional cloud service for remote access. [4][15]
Filament, Slicer und Teile von Drittanbietern
●●●●●		 Printers are open to any filament; PrusaSlicer is GPL-licensed and other slicers work. Instead of a locked RFID system, Prusa created OpenPrintTag, an NFC spool-tag standard that is free for any brand to use and works offline. [5][6]
Reparaturen und Ersatzteile
●●●●●		 The e-shop sells spare parts for each printer, printable parts are published, and the full CORE One CAD files are released. Prusa's open-source page says its goal is printers that stay moddable and easy to repair for decades, and its licence explicitly allows making spare parts for your own machines. [7][3][5]
Daten und Datenschutz
●●●●●		 No account is needed for local use through PrusaLink or USB. Prusa Connect needs a Prusa account and stores G-codes and telemetry in the cloud. Prusa Research is an EU company and publishes its privacy policy and a Trust Center. [4][8]
Community und Dokumentation
●●●●●		 Large community around Printables and the forum, a detailed knowledge base, and firmware and slicer developed in public on GitHub with open issue trackers. [1][4]
Vorteile
  • GPL firmware with a documented, warranty-safe way to flash custom firmware.
  • Full control on the local network through PrusaLink, with no account needed.
  • Spare parts for every printer, published printable parts and released CAD files.
  • Kits available for people who want to build and understand their printer.
  • Made in Prague, with a second factory in Delaware for US buyers.
  • OpenPrintTag is an open spool-tag standard any brand can use.
Nachteile
  • Hardware files use Prusa's own OCL licence, which bars selling machines built from them; it is not an OSI open-source licence.
  • Electronics schematics are published later than firmware and printable parts.
  • Remote access and cloud storage need Prusa Connect and an account.
Erfolgsbilanz
  • Juli 2026: Printed Solid, the Delaware company Prusa Research bought in 2022, was renamed Prusa USA. Its Wilmington site builds the MK4S and CORE One+, makes filament and is Prusa's US service centre. [9]
  • Dezember 2025: Prusa released the full CAD files of the CORE One under its new Open Community License (OCL). OCL allows modifying, sharing mods and in-house commercial use, and grants patent and repair rights, but bars selling machines built from the files without an agreement, so it is not a standard open-source licence. Prusa said it is also filing patents on its designs. [5]
  • Oktober 2025: Prusa launched OpenPrintTag, a published NFC standard for smart filament spools that any brand can use without licence fees, starting with redesigned Prusament spools. [6]
  • November 2024: Prusa announced the CORE One, its first fully enclosed CoreXY printer with active chamber temperature control. [10]
  • März 2023: Josef Průša wrote that open source in 3D printing was under strain from cloners and licence violations. With the MK4, Prusa released firmware sources and models of the plastic parts but held back the electronics plans, planning to publish them later under a new licence. [11]
Recherchiert anhand von 15 Quellen, zuletzt geprüft am 18. Oktober 2026. Quellen anzeigen
  1. prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware-Buddy on GitHub github.com
  2. Flashing custom firmware (MINI/MINI+) | Prusa Knowledge Base help.prusa3d.com
  3. Open-source at Prusa Research prusa3d.com
  4. Prusa Connect and PrusaLink explained | Prusa Knowledge Base help.prusa3d.com
  5. Open-sourcing CORE One CAD Files Under the New Open Community License (OCL) blog.prusa3d.com
  6. The OpenPrintTag Is Here! The Open-Source Smart Spool Standard blog.prusa3d.com
  7. Spare parts | Original Prusa 3D printers prusa3d.com
  8. Privacy Policy | Original Prusa 3D printers prusa3d.com
  9. Delaware's Printed Solid rebrands to Prusa USA | Tom's Hardware tomshardware.com
  10. Introducing Prusa CORE One: Our new fully-enclosed CoreXY 3D printer blog.prusa3d.com
  11. The state of open-source in 3D printing in 2023 blog.prusa3d.com
  12. About us | Original Prusa 3D printers directly from Josef Prusa prusa3d.com
  13. The Great Recap of 2024 in Prusa Research blog.prusa3d.com
  14. Introducing the INDX: fast and affordable 8-material printing, exclusively on the CORE One blog.prusa3d.com
  15. github.com