MAKE calls this a huge XY table. Crunchgear thinks it’s kind of a mouse-controlled Etch-A-Sketch. All I know is, it uses a mouse, three skateboards and an Arduino microcontroller. But for what purpose? I suppose it could be used as an inexact Etch-A-Sketch, using three skateboards for linear movement, but it seems like an awful lot of effort (and space—it must take up an entire garage!) for that. So help me out: What could this thing be used for?

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What in the Hell Is This Thing? A Skateboard Etch-A-Sketch? [Mysteries]