I'm actually thinking about getting one of these for my class and having the kids design laser-cut cams for it. Maybe they could also redesign the gears so it runs faster.
Vantablack really is an interesting product. It would make a great coating for a solar collector for one. I'm sure it would have many other applications if it could be produced at a reasonable cost.
@Heater
Using it as a teaching tool for mechanical systems would be a good application for it. Gears, cams, levers, geometry, etc., and a visible result. What more could you ask for?
Want one of these... I think erco made one though...
Very curious it's demonstrated (and sold?) only as a tabletop plotter. What they actually have here is a combination plotter/laser engraver/caketop decorator/whatever.
One use of these is creating "personalized" handwritten ad mailer pieces. It's a big business (I'm not in it), with fairly expensive machines, and software that varies the handwriting to avoid having it look mechanically reproduced. The ink looks just like it was written by hand, and it fools just about everyone that you really got an autographed photo signed by Sir Isaac "Izzy" Newton.
One use of these is creating "personalized" handwritten ad mailer pieces. It's a big business (I'm not in it), with fairly expensive machines, and software that varies the handwriting to avoid having it look mechanically reproduced. The ink looks just like it was written by hand, and it fools just about everyone that you really got an autographed photo signed by Sir Isaac "Izzy" Newton.
Yep, that Handwriting Machine is pretty much what these guys who do direct mailings use. And they charge a *fortune* for creating those mail pieces.
I encountered something like the Autopen when I had a meeting in the Black Tower at Universal back in 1977. The security guys would send down what amounted to a "hall pass." The receiving machine was in the lobby on the first floor, and it would write out your name, who you were visiting, and the floor you could visit. A guard at the elevator pushed the floor number for you. I guess they didn't want anybody barging in on a production meeting for that hot new TV show, Battlestar Galactica. (Okay, that was 1978; I just can't think of another show I want to poke fun at...)
AxiDraw could do well for cake decorating or stencil cutting using a blue laser. Probably more people wanting those than a basic pen plotter, since you can get a 24" roll plotter that's 10X as fast for about the same money.
The device itself isn't all that special, but the fact that it's open and potentially hackable is what'll sell it. I can totally see putting a laser on it.
Yep, that Handwriting Machine is pretty much what these guys who do direct mailings use. And they charge a *fortune* for creating those mail pieces.
My BS2 printer is more affordably priced and accepting appointments for birthdays, bar mitzvahs, and car dealership openings. Or buy outright for a great business opportunity. First $10K takes. Hurry, won't last!
I just bought this Dexas Slimcase2 storage clipboard at Walmart ($6.88), which would be boss for making a self-contained robot arm printer. The top clipboard clamps your paper down, the writing surface is fairly flat & stiff for writing and mounting a servo, and the inside volume is plenty to hold circuitry, batteries, flamethrower, paper & pens.
Comments
See also
Much depends on the paint: http://forums.parallax.com/discussion/163753/here-s-what-happens-when-you-shine-a-laser-on-the-blackest-material-ever-made#latest
-Phil
Vantablack really is an interesting product. It would make a great coating for a solar collector for one. I'm sure it would have many other applications if it could be produced at a reasonable cost.
@Heater
Using it as a teaching tool for mechanical systems would be a good application for it. Gears, cams, levers, geometry, etc., and a visible result. What more could you ask for?
Very curious it's demonstrated (and sold?) only as a tabletop plotter. What they actually have here is a combination plotter/laser engraver/caketop decorator/whatever.
One use of these is creating "personalized" handwritten ad mailer pieces. It's a big business (I'm not in it), with fairly expensive machines, and software that varies the handwriting to avoid having it look mechanically reproduced. The ink looks just like it was written by hand, and it fools just about everyone that you really got an autographed photo signed by Sir Isaac "Izzy" Newton.
I encountered something like the Autopen when I had a meeting in the Black Tower at Universal back in 1977. The security guys would send down what amounted to a "hall pass." The receiving machine was in the lobby on the first floor, and it would write out your name, who you were visiting, and the floor you could visit. A guard at the elevator pushed the floor number for you. I guess they didn't want anybody barging in on a production meeting for that hot new TV show, Battlestar Galactica. (Okay, that was 1978; I just can't think of another show I want to poke fun at...)
AxiDraw could do well for cake decorating or stencil cutting using a blue laser. Probably more people wanting those than a basic pen plotter, since you can get a 24" roll plotter that's 10X as fast for about the same money.
How about putting it on a shark and then putting a laser on it?
My BS2 printer is more affordably priced and accepting appointments for birthdays, bar mitzvahs, and car dealership openings. Or buy outright for a great business opportunity. First $10K takes. Hurry, won't last!