BZap! Toys - Index

From Artist's Concept to 3D Print

I can work with you to go from the first set of concepts, through revisions, to a 3D-printed prototype.

For this robot, the artist created the concepts in Illustrator, then provided a vector version of the selected concept. It was brought into Fusion 360, turned into a 3D model, and printed for a first prototype.

About Jeff

I have years of experience in three related areas which can help bring your toy design to life!

3D Printing and Electronics

I build and program small-scale electronics and have a 3D printer - so I can work with you to turn your sketches into 3D designs and prototype them fast!

Video Game Production

I was a game producer at Electronic Arts for about ten years. After EA I was in a few mobile gaming startups. I know how to design interaction that is fun, and what the trade-offs are when you go from a full-powered Playstation to a smartphone.

Magic

And finally, I've been performing stage magic since I was a kid, and I can keep an audience of up to 350 kids and parents engaged and laughing. Magic is all about the effect, so I can help you figure out the best, simplest, and most reliable way to do something.

3D Printing and Electronics

I got a 3D printer in 2019 and learned to design in Fusion 360. I focus on functional prints - mechanisms, boxes, and so on.

I've been programming electronics for about 15 years. I started with Halloween animatronics, and now do robots and other entertainment effects.

I can work with:

LED lights (regular and multicolor)
MP3 playback for sounds
IR transmitters and receivers
Small motors
Microphones
Touch sensors
Tilt sensors
Electromagnets

I also design my own circuit boards in Autodesk Eagle and have my own quick prototyping boards, so I can grab one, plug in a bunch of off-the-shelf components, and start programming quickly.

The combination of Fusion 360 and Eagle is a big jump forward in designing a circuit board to fit into a product!

Look at the Project Gallery for some examples!

Video Games

I was one of the first 200 employees of Electronic Arts. It was an interesting time, the lifecycle of video games was much shorter, and a lot of innovations were happening - the first 3D graphics, the first "god games" such as Sim City (I worked on its competitor, Populous), and the business went from this unknown little niche into a part of pop culture.

I worked on games in most genres - arcade, adventure, puzzles, strategy, role-playing, racing, flight simulation, and sports. I started off testing and eventually became a game producer.

Eagle Eye Mysteries

I'm most proud of the Eagle Eye Mysteries games (the first two game covers). EA was attempting to get into the edu market - one of their biggest competitors at the time was Broderbund, who published Carmen Sandiego.

Eagle Eye featured Jake and Jennifer Eagle, a pair of twins who solved mysteries in their hometown. The sequel took them to London. You could select either one to be your in-game partner.

I have a big interest in mystery stories, and designed the way that you solved the crimes. Up until then, all detective games worked like traditional adventure games...if you had all the parts of the broken teacup, you knew who the villain was. I had the player visit locations, talk to people and collect clues. At the end, when it was time to solve the mystery, you had to pick out the correct clues to prove that you understood the solution.

I thought these were forgotten...then one day I looked on YouTube. There are several people who played through EVERY case and posted a video for each one! See the Project Gallery below for a couple.

There's also a very flattering review here, on a website that archives old software: Eagle Eye Mysteries

Magic

I've perform family magic shows for years. It's a tremendous amount of fun to get a roomful of kids and their parents laughing! I play "straight man" to the kids, and write my show to encourage silliness and controlled chaos.

Recently I've been working on a complete reboot of my show - I'm creating electronic props and robot assistants that will cause problems and have a mind of their own...which will give me more "unexpected" things to be surprised by.

Top picture: Show for the neighbors during lockdown. We made sure everyone was seated in family groups.

Small pictures, lower right: Audience reactions during different shows.

Lower left: Reproduction of a famous magic magazine cover at a convention for magicians. Part of the cover is seen on the left.