    a ballpoint pen, also known as a  and "ball pen", is a pen that dispenses ink over a metal ball at its point, i.e. over a "ball point". the metal commonly used is steel, brass or tungsten carbide. it was conceived and developed as a cleaner and more reliable alternative to quill and fountain pens and is now the world's most-used writing instrument: millions are manufactured and sold daily. as a result, it has influenced art and graphic design and spawned an artwork genre. pen manufacturers produce designer ballpoint pens for the high-end and collectors' markets. the bic cristal is a popular disposable type of ballpoint pen whose design is recognised by its place in the permanent collection of the museum of modern art, new york.bic cristal in moma collection ==history== right|thumb|200px|tip of a ballpoint pen highly magnified ===origins=== the concept of using a ball point within a writing instrument as a method of applying ink to paper has existed since the late 19th century. in these inventions, the ink was placed in a thin tube whose end was blocked by a tiny ball, held so that it could not slip into the tube or fall out of the pen. the ink clung to the ball, which spun as the pen was drawn across the paper. the first patent for a ballpoint pencollingridge, m. r. et al. (2007) "ink reservoir writing instruments 1905â20" transactions of the newcomen society 77(1): pp.&nbsp;69â100, page 69 was issued on 30 october 1888, to john j. loud,great britain patent no. 15630, 30 october 2008 a leather tanner, who was attempting to make a writing instrument that would be able to write on his leather products, which then-common fountain pens could not. loud's pen had a small rotating steel ball, held in place by a socket. although it could be used to mark rough surfaces such as leather, as loud intended, it proved to be too coars
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