Chilean company Thinker Thing just created the world’s first 3d printed object modeled using brain waves. The company’s Emotiv EPOC brain-computer headset allowed CTO George Lakowsky to 3D print an object just by thinking about it. The government-funded project uses virtual “evolutionary mutations” from the user’s mind to print 3D objects.
Lakowsky says the Thinker Thing interface works by detecting small electrical impulses in the brain and converting them to a design readable by a 3D printer like the Makerbot. The first object successfully printed using the device was a cluster of orange plastic polygons.
Although the first printed object is simple, it opens up the fantastical possibility of 3D printing without the need for a design program in the future – users may eventually be able to “dream” objects into reality. The program is still in its infancy, but its initial success marks a huge step forward for the technology.
To take the project even further, Thinker Thing wants to extend its mind-controlled design program to kids. The project, which has conducted an IndieGogo campaign, wants to invite disadvantaged children in rural parts of Chile to be the first kids to print 3D objects with their minds. The objects created will then be featured in a traveling exhibition.