printbrush handheld printer

  ‘printbrush’ handheld printer with built-in camera

designed by swedish engineer alex breton for his company printdreams, the ‘printbrush’ is an 8.8-ounce handheld colour printer, usable on almost any surface with a simple swipe of the device.

to function, ‘printbrush’ continually emits laser beams, while optical sensors measure the scattering of the reflected light to determine the velocity and direction of motion of the device, pinpointing its position relative to the printing surface. a controller matches the location coordinates to a pixel map of the document or image, and runs a series of algorithms to predict which pixel to print next and to formulate the ink combinations required to reproduce 16 million different shades.

because of the high sensitivity of the sensors, ‘printbrush’ can work on almost any material, including paper, wood, and fabric. early prototypes of the device were demoed at various technology fairs as early as 2003, but now, after replacing the LED-based sensors with lasers and adding colour technology, the company predicts the public release of the device for late 2011 or early 2012.

video demo of the device used for instant photo printing

view of bottom of the device

printdreams plans to produce two models of handheld printer: the ‘paintbrush 4×6’, which features a built-in 5-megapixel camera and prints photos and documents of up to 4×6-inches at 600dpi; and the ‘A4’, which features 1200 dpi full-colour for full-size documents. the devices are expected to retail for 99 euros (139 USD) and 149 USD respectively.

it is estimated that global adoption of random movement printing technology (RMPT) like those used in ‘printbrush’ would represent an annual saving of 325,000 metric tons of raw materials and 291 terawatt/hours of electricity. 

printdreams plans to produce two models of handheld printer: the ‘paintbrush 4×6’, which features a built-in 5-megapixel camera and prints photos and documents of up to 4×6-inches at 600dpi; and the ‘A4’, which features 1200 dpi full-colour for full-size documents. the devices are expected to retail for 99 euros (139 USD) and 149 USD respectively. it is estimated that global adoption of random movement printing technology (RMPT) like that used in ‘printbrush’ would represent an annual saving of 325,000 metric tons of raw materials and 291 terawatt/hours of electricity. 

design sketch illustration © bland designs

alex breton, designer of ‘printbrush’, demos the device image © jonathan worth

via popsci