Shapeways help

[a-maze-ing]

Did anyone ever consider having a self-designed Revomaze shaft produced at shapeways?
Apart from the design/drawing tools and competence required, would it be feasible (tolerances?) and affordable (price based on volume of the item?)
I have no clue about it, I am just curious.
I guess if one is ever made successfully then it may be relatively simple to reproduce with a different maze layout.
Any thoughts?

[Ginger]

Yes, it should be possible, but a full-sized solid revomaze would be pretty expensive...

[adamwest]

And patented!! just putting that out there

[smiteo]

that doesn't stop half the people from putting things on shapeways...

[a-maze-ing]

It does not need to be a complete full size Revomaze (only a shaft), nor solid (metal shafts aren't solid either).
A single unit for private use or as an occasional gift would not cause patent or copyright problems, would it?
Making it publicly available in the shapeways shop is a different thing, that could be a great opportunity for Ashton Pitt.
Of course we would be just ad happy to use any other produce-your-self-designed-maze-service by Ashton Pitt !-)

That said, I still do not have the competence to do such a thing. But I am investigating...

[adamwest]

Making your own maze on a shapeways shaft probably won't be a problem although I am not sure what element Chris used to justify his patent. All that being said if you ask Chris he probably would say you could make one. Chris is just that passionate and likes to share his Passion.

[Ginger]

So far this is only hypothetical. If I were to try to do it, I would definitely ask Chris first.

A hollow plastic shaft would be less expensive, probably around $45, or £28. Of course, you would have to already own a Revomaze in order to use it - better for Chris.

[maztec]

Did Chris actually patent the RevoMaze? I know he claimed copyright at one point, but I've never seen a patent number listed anywhere or any notice of a patent. Also, if he did patent it, in what countries?

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As for would Shapeways work, I talked with Chris once and the Shapeways people. The issue is that the Shapeways materials are fairly brittle. The maze would break down over time if you used a pin and spring system. On the other hand, if it was just a straight pin, many designs on Shapeways already use that, and it would probably be fine.

You could produce something fairly cheap and use a hard plastic leverage spring and come up with an entirely different design if you worked at it.

I think the best thing though would be to come up with your own puzzle or design.