We use printers mainly for printing documents and images. Let us now see some other unique printers and the ways you can use them. Many of these printers use the latest 3D printing technology to create new things, which were beyond imagination even a couple of decades ago.
1. Coffee Printing Machine
If you are in Taiwan and go to a coffee shop to order a latte, then you can take picture of yourself on your smart phone and then send it to the machine. After the coffee is ready, the machine prints the photo over the foam with the help of edible brown powder. Apart from picture, you can also add texts to your coffee.
2. Pen for 3D Printing
This is an innovative pen using which people can make 3D objects and functions like 3D printers. Pen ejects heated plastic and it solidifies as soon as it comes out. It can be used for drawing on any kind of surface and you can lift in air as well to make actual 3D objects.
3. A Printer made out of paper
Samsung electronics has designed one origami printer with the objective of making the structure simple instead of the usual complex design of printers. Printer’s exteriors are as durable as any plastic body and it is made using assembly method of origami for housing the printer engine.
4. Photobooth for 3D Printing
Photobooth or a Shashinkan in Japanese lets people in Japan purchase their own models in different sizes ranging from 20cm to 15cm and 10 cm. the procedure involves scanning the customer with 3D scanner that takes as much as fifteen minutes. After that 3D model is made from scanned data and then with the help of 3D color printer a figurine in a size as requested by customer is printed.
5. Printer made from Legos
LegoBot is a 3D printer made using Legos. However, it is still a basic prototype with presently movements are required to be programmed manually and currently can print over sugar sticks or glue only.
6. Food Printer
This 3D printer uses a syringe for printing objects and its movements are calculated with the help of computer models. It makes use of solid freeform fabrication to create the object in a layered manner. These printers are being used now for printing cookies and chocolates.
7. Waterfall Printer
It is a kind of fountain that can print time as well as images similar to how it is printed on paper. Instead of paper, it prints on vertical plane of water. Due to gravity, everything comes together and designs start to appear.
8. Chromatic Typewriter
In the US, one painter has transformed a 1930s typewriter into one printer that can print colors. The characters on the typewriter have been replaced by colors in type bars. Now anyone can type a drawing using this innovative color typewriter.
Summary:
There are no limits to imagination and here are some printers that are not just models for exhibitions, but they are actual working prototypes, which can be used by people in their day-to-day lives.