3D printing is very cool stuff — a step towards a Star Trek style replicator in every home and bus shelter, essentially — but it’s not exactly the speediest of processes. Right now, if you want a 3D-printed object, you’ve got to find a 3D printer or order your 3D model online. Enter the DreamVendor — a hybrid of 3D printing and vending machines.
The DreamVendor’s inventor, Dr Chris Williams, told Wired:
“We wanted an experience where someone could walk up and use a 3-D printer without having to worry about anything besides loading a file and selecting ‘Print’”
And that’s pretty much the genius of the design; you pop an SD card with a physible design object on it, and the DreamVendor’s four Makerbot Thing-O-Matics get to work making your digital design a physical reality. It’s also, as noted, a great way to protect the Thing-O-Matic machines inside. [DreamVendor]