Heroic man builds Oreo separator machine

A cookie-favoring physicist has created what appears to be the world's first Oreo separator.

David Neevel, an artist and inventor based in Portland, Ore., was commissioned by the popular cookie brand to produce the machine as part of its "Cookies vs. Creme" campaign.

"My Oreo machine is based entirely on my dislike for creme and my preference for cookie," Neevel said in a short video that could easily be mistaken for a "Portlandia" sketch.

The OSM, as Neevel calls it, was constructed of scrap aluminum, wood, a hatchet and floss in a Portland garage.

After the hatchet blade is lowered to split the Oreo, a pair of mechanical arms are dispatched to collect the cookie halves, which are transferred to a router table where the creme is removed.

The electric-powered contraption took about two weeks to build. "It was a big time commitment," Neevel said. "I had to work some long hours—I didn't see my girlfriend or my dog for hours at a time."

"Outstanding. I applaud your efforts," one YouTube commenter wrote. "For your next design, how about an automatic sock pair singlifier?

Three other inventors were commissioned by Oreo to come up with concepts, with the next one slated to be unveiled later this week.

Watch Neevel's Oreo separator in action: