It doesn’t exactly print photos, however. It prints sculptures! Of you! It can be found at MakerBot’s retail store in Brooklyn, NY.
Team MakerBot has combined their Replicator 3D printing technology with ShapeShot 3D capture software into a booth setup to provide a true 3D printing “photo booth”. The ShapeShot involves several fixed cameras pointing at a subject. The ShapeShot software quickly interprets images from the cameras into a true 3D model, which then presumably is automatically sent through MakerBot’s slicing software for immediate production on an attached Replicator 3D printer.
It’s not free – visitors to the MakerBot store can pay a mere USD$5 to obtain a 3D scan. If they wish to have the scan 3D printed, it will cost a bit more. MakerBot says the price varies depending on “the item”. We suspect it’s not very expensive and would be fun to do.
Prints of one’s self seem to be hugely interesting to people, so we can see why MakerBot would want one of these in their store just before the holiday season: Traffic is important.
Perhaps MakerBot should consider producing the “MakerBooth” for purchase? We think it could be a big draw in any retail location.
Via MakerBot
