Does PancakeBot look familiar? It should! Migeul and his invention were featured on the first season of The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation. You can see his segment below.
What is PancakeBot?
PancakeBot™ is the world’s first pancake printer. It was created as a way to inspire kids and others to learn about programming, technology, robotics and food creation.
What was the inspiration for your project?
It was originally inspired in the late fall of 2010 while I was reading an article written in Make Magazine called Blockheads by Bob Parks that described prototyping with LEGO. While reading the magazine, Lily, my 3 1/2 year old daughter asked what I was doing. I responded that I was reading about a guy named Adrian Marshall from the UK that built a Pancake Stamping Machine out of LEGO for a prototype. I mumbled something else and Lily turned to her sister Maia, who was 1 1/2, at the time and with her eyes opened wide, exclaimed to Maia, “Papa’s going to build a ‘pamcake’ machine out of LEGO.” Maia did a little dance and thus PancakeBot was born.
How does it work?
It uses CNC technology to draw pancakes in any shape or form directly onto the griddle. Using timing, dispensing and heat, it creates different shades of color by caramelizing the sugar in the batter. The patent pending system emulates a ketchup bottle to control dispensing and flow of the batter.
What was the process of designing PancakeBot?
The PancakeBot started off as a LEGO creation and took over 6 months to develop with over 13 different iterations. After taking it to many different Maker Faires around the world, interest grew and I developed an acrylic version that drew more precise pancakes as well as using custom software to draw and design pancakes.
In the fall of 2014, I partnered with StoreBound to bring PancakeBot to Market and in March of 2016 raised over 460K on Kickstarter.
Are there plans to expand into other types of foods?
There are plans to integrate other types of pastries and foods into PancakeBot and we hope to be revealing those soon.
What’s your favorite design?
The most favorite and timeless pancake is of the Eiffel Tower. It’s an iconic landmark that has a complex design but yields a wonderful pancake.
What trends do you see in food technology?
I see PancakeBot as a bridge between technology, food and making as well as a stepping stone to inspire kids and adults alike to get into 3D printing. As more people get interested in combining food with technology, I hope to see improvements in distribution systems, packaging and creation of products and projects that will delight the eye as well as the palate.
