Open Data Kit

Distributors / Implementing Organizations

ODK is a collaboration between Google and the University of Washington. Core ODK development is supported by ongoing research at the University of Washington's Department of Computer Science & Engineering and through donations from users. The latest release can be downloaded on Play Store and GitHub.

Manufacturing/Building Method

N/A

Intellectural Property Type

Open Source

User Provision Model

The tools from Open Data Kit are accessible for download online. ODK Collect is built on the Android platform as an app.

Distributions to Date Status

ODK Collect on Android has been installed by more than 500,000 users, as of July 2018.

Design Specifications

Below are the ODK tools released and supported: - ODK Build enables users to generate forms - called XForms - using a drag-and-drop form designer. Build is implemented as an HTML5 web-based application and targets the common use case of a simple form. - ODK Collect is a phone-based replacement for the paper forms. Collect is built on the Android platform and can collect a variety of form data types: text, location, photos, video, audio, and barcodes. - ODK Aggregate provides a ready to deploy online repository to store, view and export collected data. Aggregate can run on Google's infrastructure as well as on local servers backed by MySQL and PostgreSQL. - ODK Form Uploader uploads a blank form and its media files to ODK Aggregate. - ODK Briefcase transfers data from Collect and Aggregate. - ODK Validate ensures that the users have a OpenRosa compliant form -- one that will also work with all the ODK tools. - ODK XLS2XForm allows XForms to be designed with Excel. [caption id="attachment_20792" align="alignnone" width="300"] ODK Collect interface[/caption]

Technical Support

Technical support is available through online Training Guides, implementer instructions and the developer wiki. For additional help, search the opendatakit@googlegroups.com mailing list (for general questions), and the opendatakit-developers@googlegroups.com (for coding questions) to see if the issue has been answered. If there is no answer available, a new question can be posted to the appropriate list and the ODK team will reply.

Replacement Components

N/A

Lifecycle

N/A

Manufacturer Specified Performance Parameters

To assist in data collection, management, and use in resource-constrained environments using an open source approach.      

Vetted Performance Status

In a study conducted at Columbia University, no hardware problems were encountered, but few software issues such as occasional freezing, slow GPS, suboptimal performance when used in areas without stable network connectivity, and problems with use of accented letters and special symbols in  the French version of the questionnaire. ODK has also been tested by users. The ODK Collect app is rated 4.4/5 by 2,532 users on Android.

Safety

N/A

Complementary Technical Systems

None

Academic Research and References

Compliance with regulations

None

Other Information

F. Jeffrey?Coker, M. Basinger and V.Modi, 2010, Open Data Kit: Implications for the Use of Smartphone Software Technology for Questionnaire Studies in International Development, Columbia University Mechanical Engineering Department.