Over the past several years, instant coffee machines have taken the java industry by storm and it’s easy to see why — the convenience a Nespresso or Keurig machine affords its owners is unparalleled.
But while pod coffee lovers the world over enjoy their standard-issue pod machines, a creative team by the name of Astonishing Studios decided to make their own — constructed almost entirely out of Legos. The so-called Lego Coffee Maker shows just how far you can take the popular building toy with enough imagination.
While its exterior and many of its moving parts are comprised of the popular construction toy, Astonishing Studios leaned on several DC motors and switches to power the intricately designed interior. What’s perhaps the most interesting feature is the fact the machine requires actual currency (in coin form) to produce a piping hot cup of fresh coffee.
After a coin is inserted, the machine’s interior sensors immediately begins preparing your cup off coffee — though it isn’t brewing it, per se. The machine dumps an instant coffee of choice — in this case, it’s Starbucks — into a cup underneath the device’s dispenser, funnels water from an interior water bottle into the cup, then lowers a heat coil into the concocted beverage to zap the liquid. Just like that, a fresh cup of instant coffee is ready for consumption.
An utterly incredible achievement in engineering, Astonishing Studios’ Lego Coffee Maker should no doubt satisfy the kid and coffee lover in everyone. If you’re feeling inspired, the team even makes build videos for many of its similar projects — made of Legos, of course — available for people to have their crack at building. Though they don’t share explicit build instructions, the videos feature enough relevant information that any clever creative type certainly wouldn’t have a tough time replicating any of the machines.
