ORLANDO, Fla. – NASA engineer Mark Rober's Halloween costume creation went viral last year after he used two iPads to create the illusion of a hole in his torso, and now his new app brings the costume to smart phone users.
Rober has turned the simple idea he developed last year into a business, and fans of his creative costume and use their own smart phones to create their own.
"I'm a huge fan of creative and simple design," Rober says, "So my favorite thing is to hear 'Why didn't someone this of this earlier?' That tells me it's really simple and really cool."
To create the costume, smart phone-users can download the free "Digital Dudz" app onto their phone to use any of the available 20 designs, including "Clown Psychopath" and "Zombie." Then, buyers can cut a hole in a shirt and tape the smart phone inside to create the costume's illusion.
"You don't want to go to the party and be that guy who doesn't participate, you know, like you're too cool for the party, you know," Rober said. "So you can have a great costume and still get wear something low key, and still be awesome."
Rober's designs are geared toward "dudes," he says, but female-friendly designs will be available next year.
Rober did not tell Local 6 sales figures for his app, but did say that he made back all of the money that he invested within seven hours of the store being open. The shirts cost between $20 and $30.