Mini Mobile Robotic Portable Printer Launches on Kickstarter

Israeli company ZUtA Labs has launched the world’s first robotic printer, the Mini Mobile Robotic Printer, on Kickstarter. The Mini Mobile Robotic Printer, which can be had for a pledge of $180 plus delivery, is essentially a battery-powered black-and-white portable inkjet print head set on wheels – there’s no paper input or output trays, or paper-feeding mechanism – that runs left and right across a piece of paper to print. The printer is based on an omni-wheel system that allows it to accurately turn and drive in any direction.

It measures just 4″ high and 4.5″ in diameter, and weighs about 0.6 lbs. It can print on any size media at up to 1.2 ppm (or about 40 seconds for an A4-size page), uses one black ink cartridge, and features wireless connectivity, and Bluetooth and Bluetooth BPP interfaces. It supports Android, iOS, iOX, Linux, and Microsoft Windows operating systems, and there are apps for printing from iOS and Android smartphones and tablets. The printer uses a Lithium battery that can run for up to an hour, and the printer is charged via a USB port. The black ink cartridge is good for about 1,000 pages; ZUtA is planning a model with color inkjet printing for the future.

Using the Mini Mobile Robotic Printer, the user places it on the top left corner of the page (selecting the paper size when they send their print job). What happens when printing several pages? The printer will stop will stop when it gets to the bottom of the first page, and will wait for the user to place it at the top of the next page. Once the printer is placed on the next page, the user taps on the app, and it will continue to print.

Source: Wirth Consulting