If I understand your distribution plan correctly, you want to sell the PCB and cables only as a means of protecting the intellectual property (IP) while posting the parts list and software source code on a web site. Of course licenses too.

I would caution against this. Its quite easy to reverse engineer a blank pcb to yield schematics or copies, and the parts list and software would give someone reverse engineering your design, everything they'd need.

About the only area that still protects IP is our ability to put secret software into OTP or some FLASH microcontrollers and burn the security fuses so no one can easily extract and copy the machine code, then copy it into another microcontroller or run it through a disassembler and rewrite it until its semi-legal again.

That leads to you maintaining physical security of the source code by selling at least programmed microcontrollers.

While I'd love to be talking about improving the microcode to run on fewer or one 8051 microcontroller, I can talk about the business aspects. I think you'll find it more profitable to take on manufacture yourself. There are production shops that can take your parts list and pcb boards and run them through a production line, some even offer to purchase the components for you (pluses and minuses on that). I can give you some advice offline about how to partition who gets what if you wish to limit the potential of clones appearing.

There are financial houses that offer business fronting for your inventory and they'll manage the sales, collections, shipping etc. for a cut. Unless the product is purely targeted for hobbyists, and ten processors doesn't sound like it, you'd probably do better spending a little time checking alternatives like these.

If your concern is as most engineers see it, that its all that business stuff you don't want to get invovled in, marketing, sales etc., you may find that you can get away with getting some people interested in supporting your project after their normal workday. I suspect you might have to offer royalties on each unit sold up to a cap, to interest them if you don't want to put the money up front.

You could consider getting help through a local university. While they are a good source of smart labor, these students or faculty may end up competitors. Universities often have Business Incubators where they provide the assistance to grow your company for a cost of some percentage of stock.

The Small Business Administration in the U.S. has lots of good programs including one where retired businessmen contribute the time and expertise to help companies struggling through growing pains.

Another possibility is to contact a small OEM house that may have excess labor capacity and could handle your product on the side.

If you find this useful and want to discuss it, use my e-mail above. I'm an EE that went back to school for an MBA in finance so I could open my own OEM house. I understand your desire to separate the business from your R&D. In my opinion the best way to do that is to start a second company based around that product line. This is not dissimilar from my plans though the boundaries between the two companies are defined different than your plan would suggest.

I'm based in North Texas and can recommend companies and people in this region.

aka j