Shubham Banerjee: 13-Year-Old Launches Company To Print Braille, Builds Prototype Out Of Legos

Shubham Banerjee is one amazing 13-year-old. According to the Huffington Post, Banerjee built a Braille printer out of Legos for a school project after wondering how blind people were able to read. The California eighth-grader did some research, and was surprised to learn that embossers (printers that print braille) cost at least $2,000, which is super expensive for most people. And so Banerjee decided to do something that could change the world for millions of people.

“I just thought that price should not be there. I know that there is a simpler way to do this,” Banerjee thought.

After having success with his prototype, he decided to launch a company that would make Braille printers that are lightweight and that cost a fraction of what other machines cost. Banerjee says that the printers would use “raised dots instead of ink,” and that people could use it in their homes, printing from a personal computer or an electronic device.

Shubham Banerjee named his invention the “Braigo,” which is a combination of braille and Lego. According to the Hindustan Times, Banerjee was able to get started on this project last summer after a $35,000 investment loan from his dad. He used the money to make a “more sophisticated” model of the “Braigo” which he calls “Braigo 2.0.” He is hoping to have made some substantial progress by the summer of 2015 so that he can bring his product on the market.

“My end goal would probably be having most of the blind people… using my Braille printer,” Banerjee said. Since Banerjee is too young to be the CEO of his company legally, his mom has taken on that role for the time being.

“I’m really proud of Shubham. What he has thought, I think most adults should have thought about it. And coming out of my 13-year-old, I do feel very proud,” Malini Banerjee said.

If you like learning about inventions, you should check out Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation on CBS. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, the show airs on Saturday mornings, and is part of a morning line-up that attempts to get people away from typical cartoons, and interested in something more “intellectual.”

“The show will feature segments like ‘what if it never happened,’ ‘the innovation by accident’ and a strong focus on ‘junior geniuses’ who are changing the face of technology.”

Meanwhile, if you are interested in learning more about the Braigo, and about Banerjee’s advancements, you can follow Braigo labs on Facebook.

[Photo courtesy of YouTube]