Human Cloning in Akihabara

We've written about various methods of scanning yourself in 3D, then replicating your face, hands or favorite body part on a 3D printer. But what if you didn't need a 3D printer and could simply walk into a retail location and get it done on the spot? That's precisely what's going on in Tokyo's Akihabara at The Clone Factory. 

 

Danny Choo tries out this service, which apparently costs the nearly outrageous sum of 138,000 yen, which is approximately USD$1800. For that you'll get a "sit down" scan of your head, which is then placed on top of a figurine. The resulting facial detail is a little scary, as you'll see in the numerous images in the report. 

 

The process seems pretty straightforward: after your head is 3D scanned from a comfy seat, the Clone Factory operator prepares a 3D model using Autodesk Maya. Choo says, "They need a while to prepare my data", as is almost always the case on real-life scans. Finally the model is printed on a ZCorp Zprinter 650. While the 650 is capable of printing in color, we're thinking there may have been some post-print hand painting to achieve the amazing lifelike finish. Nevertheless, it's a great result!

 

But here's the question: would you partake of this service at that price?

 

Via Culture Japan/Danny Choo (Hat tip to John)