The Bricasso, created by Jason Allemann, is made of Legos. (via jkbrickworks)
In case you didn't get the memo, LEGO bricks are not just for kids. Just Google LEGO sculptures to see larger than life, breath taking LEGO creations. Jason Allemann, whose impressive Lego designs such as gravity powered walking animals and a LEGO computer keyboard, is currently working on Bricasso the world's first LEGO printer. This device scans an image and then prints a mosaic replica using 1x1 tiles. As if that wasn't cool enough, the entire thing is made out of LEGO parts.
The most innovative part of this system in my opinion, the printer uses a Mindstorms EV3 color sensor to scan the original photo, which has the be pixelated from the start, and saves the data allowing it to print multiple copies without needing to rescan the picture. Using a gravity feed system, it then grabs 1x1 tiles and puts them in place. The printer can hold up to 450-plates and is capable of producing designs that contain up to nine different colors.
The first row of the image acts as a key the device uses to know which tile stacks to use. Allemann originally wanted the printer to have the ability to scan any type of image and have the program pixelate it, but he was limited by the EV3 color sensor's hardware. Allemann hopes to expand this project into 3D printing, but for now the Bricasso is pretty amazing. Too bad it isn't on the market yet. For a few hundred dollars, anyone can get a Mindstorm kit or two... build their dream robot.
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