h a l f b a k e r yAssume a hemispherical cow.
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Like normal office stamps, the Dynamic Stamp makes its mark in the traditional way: by means of applying ink to a shaped surface which is then applied to a sheet of paper or similar.
But the Dynamic stamp can stamp any message you need, saving you hours of tedious and cramping handwriting. Simply
use the bundled, easy-to-use software to create whatever stamp you need and the design will be sent to your stamp, which is sitting in its stylish USB cradle.
The stamp surface is made up of a matrix of very many moveable pins (rather like those novelties into which idiots press their germy faces) which are reconfigured to create the matrix of the design.
Thereafter, use the stamp as normal to (a) save time (b) give your form filling a pleasingly retro 80s dot matrix appearance (c) render the rest of your stamps obsolete.
a handheld printer
http://www.printdre...om/inside/rmpt.html
[xclamp, Oct 05 2004]
[link]
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Would it be less dot-matrix-y if covered with a thin flexible rubber membrane? |
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I was seriously tempted to buy some Silly Putty at my last job, as I had to pencil in the same sentence on dozens of papers every year. |
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I think at the least, the pins would need to be spring loaded so that they could all contact the surface of the paper. |
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(Thinking on it further, if covered with a membrane, the membrane would have to be firmly attached to the tip of each pin. And, yes, it'd probably wear/punch through fairly quickly) |
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Thinking even further, it might be a difficult thing to build. How do you suppose that the pins might be locked in to place? |
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why not avoid all the pin mess and just make a small usb driven inkjet printer, the size of a stamp, that you hold over the paper to "stamp" it? |
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<edit>someone already has<edit> |
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//How do you suppose that the pins might be locked in to place?//
I was originally thinking of Hippo's Elecromagnet Mattress, but I felt sure that there were drawbacks - having an electromagnet array on your desk, for one.
Hang on. If there was, hidden away in the top of the pin array, a delicate series of combs with thin rubber strips that could, when activated, lock onto the pins holding them in place. I don't know if such a lock mechanism could hold the pins sufficiently strongly but as the points of printing contact are small and precise, heavy pressure shouldn't be necessary to transfer your message. Seems a wee bit fragile, though. |
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Another thought: the small size of the points of contact mean that the user will require a lesser amount of ink, heralding big cash savings in the long run. |
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With a tightly packed matrix of very small pins, there would likely be a larger mechanism required for each pin. Given the typical design of a stamp, I figured that the mechanical bits that move the pins would have to separate from the pins when the stamp was in use. Maybe some sort of mechanical scanner that positions and locks the pins. |
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It's the locking that has me the most stumped. Actually, I asked because I've been kicking around an idea that could use similar technology and was hoping you'd give me a clue. |
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Good. How does the electrical signal cause the nitinol to heat? An electrode attached near the opposited end of the pin to carry current through the wire? |
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In my case, I'll have comparatively a huge amount of space between the pins (say .25 - .5 mm pin with .5 to 1 mm spacing in between). I suppose a ni-ti wire as an actuator and another as a lock release might get the job done. I'm also considering the ability to pull the pins up out of their housing magnetically. Still need to lock them, but most of the force applied in my application would be perpendicular to the pin at the extended tip (pins may be 2 - 3 mm long) so a good fit in the base and a tiny bit of added mechanical resistance would probably get the job done. |
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I need to see specific examples of how this could be even remotely practical. By the time you get all the logistics worked out, I just don't see how this would be any more helpful than a typewriter. |
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My Casio labelmaker had a kit available to make stamps. Having something more convenient would be nice, but one advantage of stamps over other types of printers is that they can print on arbitrarily-thick objects. |
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In this regard, typewriters have the disadvantages of (a) distorting the paper which, if it's a document signed by someone who is no longer capax, can be problematic and (b) takes longer than applying a stamp. |
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Labelmakers are no use for some official form filling - if there is a possibility that the information could be removed and replaced, then brokers, the public guardian, the courts all will refuse to accept the information thereon. |
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[calum] what did you think of the link? not do matrixy like you want but very slick. |
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Yeah, I liked what I saw. It would have eliminated the problems I had arranging the transfer of a gaga auld dear's massive equities portfolio into our firm's nominee company name, so I'll be seeing if I can work them into our stationery budget this year. The only drawbacks are (a) lack of 80s retrosim and (b) lack of the satisfying sensation of using an ink stamp. Minor quibbles, really. Nice find, Mr(s) Clamp. |
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it does lack that satisfying thump! |
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