Ripple Maker 3D Prints Images and Messages Onto Coffee Foam, Now Optimized for Nitro Cold Brew Coffee

If you’re like me, you might find yourself up late at night setting up a project to 3D print overnight, only to wake up to a mess of plastic spaghetti. Even when everything prints well, your reddened, bleary eyes may not recognize it and your sleep deprived brain may not be able able to process it. On days like that it’s nice to perk up with a nice cup of joe. And how much nicer would it be if your hot cup of coffee could congratulate on a job well done (or console you on the latest 3D printing failure)? It’d be pretty damn nice and if your local coffee shop has a Ripple Maker, a funky little coffee printer, you might just get that perfect little pick me up in the form of coffee art.

We last covered Ripple Maker in January, when Match.com used the device for their Espresso Yourself pop-up. It seems the little coffee writer has gotten a bit more espressoive since then (pun intended). Today, Ripples, the company that produces Ripple Maker, unveiled the latest version of their innovative coffee printer, which is now optimized for Nitro Cold Brew Coffee. Ripples has also partnered with JoeTap, a pioneer and leader in on-demand Nitro Cold Brew, to bring best practices in the delivery of Nitro coffee to coffee shops and other coffee serving establishments.

“Already deployed in hundreds of stores, hotels and lounges the Ripple Maker has been delivering proven increase in customer engagement and sales,” says Yossi Meshulam, CEO of Ripples. “Thanks to our new Ripple Maker optimized for Nitro and our partnership with JoeTap, we are excited to offer even broader consumer reach and social media opportunities to our customers looking to differentiate themselves through creative content.”

So how does Ripple Maker create its unique coffee art? Each ripple, as Ripple calls their coffee images and messages, is created using a tiny amount of coffee extract, which is stored within a Ripple Pod, located inside the Ripple Maker. High-resolution images are created within a matter of seconds, enriching the coffee experience with graphics, inspiring statements or personalized messages, without affecting the taste  of the coffee.

The Ripple Maker is easy to use and requires no special training. Its small footprint won’t crowd valuable counter space and it only adds seconds to the coffee delivery process. The touch display is intuitive to use and baristas can simply browse through Ripples content, which is arranged in themes such as greetings, smart quotes, coffee humor, etc. What I find even more exciting is its accompanying app. The Coffee Ripples App enables customers to browse through the catalog themselves or they can send their own images, photos or messages to the establishment’s Ripple Maker for printing.

“Nitro Cold Brew Coffee is already the biggest trend leading the coffee industry. Our partnership with Ripples adds even more opportunity for businesses looking to add a new layer of fun and surprise for their customers, as well as introduce a unique touch of personalization to each Nitro cup served,” explains Charley Kleinrichert, founder and President of AC Beverage, which developed JoeTap. “We brew, tap and pour, but now we are looking forward to the brew, tap, pour and ripple!”

The Ripple Maker is priced at $1,500 and is available to commercial establishments with flexible subscriptions starting at $100/month, paid annually. The subscriptions provide Ripple Maker owners with Ripple Pods, operating service, customer support, free software updates and access to Ripples’ content platform and themes. If you want to get a first hand look at the new Ripple Maker, it is being unveiled at the Global Specialty Coffee Expo, in Seattle through April 23, and demonstrated at the Ripples booth #2436, alongside JoeTap’s barista countertop Nitro dispenser with an integrated nitrogen generator. I’ll be on the lookout for Ripple Makers in my neck of the woods. It might be just the little pickup a weary maker needs.

Below is a video showing the Ripple Maker in action: