Ask HN: how to effectively open source remote pet treat dispenser

I'm new to software and hardware. How do I effectively open source this remote treat dispenser that I built my girlfriend? Full background is here: www.playwithpickles.com

The dispenser works by emailing a specific address, which triggers the treat machine to dispense treats, take a video and send it back.

It got a really good reception from all of our friends and I've built 4-5 more for friends. I want to share more broadly. What's the right way of doing this and building an active community? How do I appropriately credit the people who wrote the code that helped me get my code in place?

My goals include jump starting people who want to build their own machines, to improve the code reliability, and to see what other accessories people build using this.

See the code on github (https://github.com/bigchewy/PicklesTreatMachine) and more background at http://playwithpickles.com

Thanks