Imagine being able to draw a solid 3D object in the air, the way you might draw signs in the air with your finger. That’s exactly the idea behind the London-based LIX 3D pen, which can draw solid lines through the air with no need for paper. They launched a Kickstarter campaign to get their product off of the ground and have gathered almost 20 times their initial funding goal.
The developers say the super compact design is smaller than any other pen on the market and it can even be powered by the electricity from a USB port. After turning it on the LIX takes less than a minute to heat up and you’re ready to start creating vertical illustrations.
As high-tech as the Lix pen seems, the technology behind it is relatively simple. After plugging it into a power source and waiting for it to heat up, the artist or inventor inserts a thin plastic filament through the back that melts as it progresses through the pen – much like a hot glue gun. This melted plastic is cooled the moment it exits the pen, meaning that it can create lines of plastic rising up from their initial flat surface.
The Lix pen is just the latest contender in the rapidly developing field of 3D printing technologies. Whether through 3D pens like Lix or table-top 3D printers, this technology has exciting prospects for creative and inventive types who want to be able to create anything from simple prototypes to complete market-ready products quickly and easily.
With a bit of practice, the pen’s creators have been able to create mind-bending works of art illustrating the pen’s versatility and capability in different fields. Check out this pre-Kickstarter video:
LIX WORLD’S SMALLEST 3D PRINTING PEN
lixpen.com twitter.com/lixpen facebook.com/lixpen The world smallest 3D printing pen enables you to doodle in the air! Thank’s a lot to /musicbymarcus
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Source: Kickstarter | lixpen.com
