A computer peripheral that, through the manipulation of iron filings with electromagnets or the use of the conceptual material "magneclay" (see link) , turns the current virtual 3d object you are working on into a real life, touchable object that can show almost all of the current object at once. For example, if I were to create a cube in my 3d editing software of choice, 5 of the six faces would be visible, allowing me to get an instant "feel" of the proportions and shading of the object. this would also reduce the cost of prototyping, as the need for repeated 3d printing would be reduced.

Another possible use coud be found by reversing the process, if I were to sculpt the object by hand, it would automatically do the same to the on-screen version, allowing for fine details.
-- erenjay, Apr 12 2012

Magneclay http://www.yankodes...omputer-interfaces/
A concept computer interface for the blind [erenjay, Apr 12 2012]

Put this in your Makerbot... http://www.silverclay.co.uk/howi.htm
... and smoke it. [4whom, Apr 13 2012]

pin screen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pin_Art
lots of pins [erenjay, Apr 13 2012]

Clever sand? http://web.mit.edu/...otic-sand-0402.html
Each "grain" manipulates the magnetic field, as opposed to generating a complex field from an outside source. [4whom, Apr 13 2012]

Welcome to the halfbakery!
-- spidermother, Apr 12 2012


...but next comes the ritual humiliation at the hands of your new peers. Try not mentioning cats, or cheese.
-- not_morrison_rm, Apr 12 2012


from the look of the things the magneclay can do surfaces but not objects, ie: the displacement of the clay from its base is rather limited.
-- FlyingToaster, Apr 12 2012


Too bad Magneclay is a "conceptual material", not a material that actually exists. In the discussion below the article, the author responds to some questions making it clear that he does not have a clear idea of how Magneclay could be implemented. Of course there are people working on similar concepts, like "claytronics", but I'm not aware of anything close to actual implementation.
-- scad mientist, Apr 12 2012


If this was somehow magnetic like iron filings, and positioned by magnetic fields, then surely the only shape you would be able to make would be field lines?
-- pocmloc, Apr 12 2012


[spidermother]-thanks, and [not morrison] I will keep that in mind. The idea is the application of something that works as described for the purpose of 3D modeling and designing. Unfortunately, as you have all pointed out, we are kind of lacking the technology to do it... what if you had a kind of pin screen [link], but powered, so that each pin could be controlled? Much less detailed, but probably more realistic.
-- erenjay, Apr 13 2012


we've a relevant post about using that (hexagonal pins iirc) for fibreglass moulds somewhere... not as an input device though.
-- FlyingToaster, Apr 13 2012


Hmm, maybe combination of a pin screen with a thin stretchy layer to even out the surface? Obviously I'm thinking Edam, or maybe mozarella?
-- not_morrison_rm, Apr 13 2012


The process described in [4whom]'s [link] (am I doing the square bracket thing right?) is also a possibility, although those cubes could get a bit messy...
-- erenjay, Apr 13 2012


well I've always preferred the Hague 1892 Convention "<link>" myself, but there are some purists in the crowd; Post-Modernists of course would argue that use of the angle-brackets requires that it be written as "<linked>" or "<link to>".
-- FlyingToaster, Apr 13 2012



random, halfbakery