From the files of how-to-make-a-million-bucks-in-two-days on the crowdfunding website Kickstarter, we bring you the 3Doodler, advertised as the world’s first 3D printing pen. The prototype featured on the Kickstarter website shows how the pen, about seven inches long, uses ABS plastic, commonly used with traditional 3D printers, to “draw” three-dimensional plastic objects or models.
How about a 3D version of the Eiffel Tower? Why yes, say Maxwell Bogue (a Purdue University computer science graduate) and Peter Dilworth (a former Massachusetts Institute of Technology Leg Laboratory staffer); the two founders of Boston-based Wobble Works, the self-described “emergent toy company,” invented the pen. And here’s the stencil kit to create that French landmark.
As of today, the project had 13,659 backers who have pledged $1,211,055 to help mass-produce the 3Doodler and bring it to market. We remain confident that the napkin sketch over cocktails will remain a time-honored tradition. But we figure there’s some enterprising young architect out there who may just overlook the unfortunate infomercial-esque sales pitch (“Have you ever just wished you could lift your pen off the paper and see your drawing become a real three dimensional object? Well now you can!”) and, just for kicks, give the 3Doodler a whirl.
