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| p2p Magaz i ne | Spr i ng 2013
01732 759725
World’s first 3D printing pen
Half pen, half 3D printer, the 3Doodler adds an extra dimension to
your drawings. Instead of ink, it uses molten plastic that solidifies
as you write, enabling you to ‘draw’ 3D objects in the air or on a flat
surface.
The 3Doodler caused a sensation when it was launched on the
crowdfunding site Kickstarter in February. Inventor Wobbleworks was
hoping to raise $30,000 of funding to help commercialise the product but
ended up with pledges totalling $2,244,134.
With shipments to backers due in September 2013 and a price tag of
$75, the handheld printing pen is sure to be a huge hit amongst hobbyists,
though not yet children. Because the pen’s metal tip can get as hot as
270°C,Wobbleworks warns that the pen is not a toy.
In every other respect, the 3Doodler is notable for its ease of use and
simplicity. There is no need for software or computers: you just plug in the
the pen’s power cord, wait a few minutes and start drawing.
“If you can scribble, trace or wave a finger in the air you can use a
3Doodler,” explained Maxwell Bogue, co-founder & CTO of WobbleWorks.
“As you draw, plastic comes out of the pen, is cooled by an integrated fan
and solidifies right in front of you. You can draw on any surface and lift it
up into the air to create
your own 3D objects.”
www.the3doodler.
com
Frixion pen is key to e-copier success
Pilot Frixion pens are the cheap stationery items that could
make or break Toshiba’s erasable copier concept.
Due to be launched in June, the e-STUDIO 306LP MFP looks
and operates just like a normal 30 pages per minute MFP,
except for its use of a special blue toner that can be erased
through a combination of heat and pressure – just like the ink in
a Frixion pen.
Toshiba says a sheet of paper can be erased as many as
15 times in the accompanying eraser unit, but because a waxy
ghost of the original print remains it recommends people re-use
each sheet a maximum of 5 times. For the same reason, the
e-copier is not suitable for confidential documents.
What it is good for, says Toshiba, is the 80% of internal print
and copy jobs that are binned within half an hour of being
produced. Instead of throwing the paper away, the e-copier
lets you re-use it, saving money on paper and reducing the
environmental impact of printing: 50% of carbon emissions
associated with the print cycle come from paper.
If the e-STUDIO 306LP MFP is not to be a costly white
elephant – the machines and toner cost more than conventional
MFPs – users must recycle each sheet as many times as
possible. And that means writing notes or doodles with an
erasable Frixion pen. Use any other pen or pencil and the eraser
unit won't be able to remove the marks you make and will
automatically send the paper to the recycling tray rather than
for re-use.
ArjoWiggins Creative Papers, famous for its
Conqueror brand, provides further evidence of
the weakening of barriers between the analogue
and digital worlds, with the launch of a new
paper that makes it easier and cheaper to
integrate electronics with printed graphics.
PowerCoat is an FSC-certified, 100% recyclable
and biodegradable paper-based substrate that
enables passive and interactive circuitry to be
integrated with printed products.
It has numerous applications in the labelling,
packaging, advertising, medical, food, textile and
pharmaceutical industries, including the ability to
embed RFID tags or apply condition-sensitive sell-by
dates to fresh produce.
With roll-to-roll capability, it can also be used
for large scale prints, such as sensor walls and
flexible displays.
ArjoWiggins Creative Papers says that
PowerCoat's paper formulation and coating is
plastic-free, yet still achieves a polymer-like
smoothness (as low as 10 nanometers) and high
thermal stability that prevents the discolouring
that can occur when conductive inks are fused to
substrates, a process known as sintering.
Its fine surface also reduces the consumption of
expensive silver inks and allows high-resolution fine
patterning of any solution-based electronic layer
(down to 5μm).
www.powercoatpaper.com
Plastic-free paper for printed electronics
INNOVATIONS
Where Stationery and Technology Meet