Watch This 13-Year-Old Make a Braille Printer out of Legos

There are plenty of better places for Legos than the beach.

Where, you ask? A science fair, for one.

After learning that Braille printers cost at least $2,000, Shubham Banerjee, a student from Santa Clara, California, last year built one with a Lego robotics kit as his school science fair project. Now the 13-year-old Silicon Valley native runs his own company, which recently got funding from Intel. Soon, the printer—called Braigo—will go on the market for $350.

“I just thought that price should not be [so expensive],” Banerjee told The Associated Press. “My end goal would probably be having most of the blind people…using my Braille printer.”

At just a few pounds, the machine weighs a lot less than traditional braille printers too—current models can be heavier than 20 pounds. It can take any reading material from a computer or an electronic device and uses raised dots instead of ink to print.

Banerjee’s dad, who works at Intel, ponied up an initial investment of $35,000 for the project. He has since won many awards and received encouragement from the blind community, which counts 50 million people worldwide.

Lorraine Brown, an instructor at the Vista Center for the Blind, has spent thousands of dollars on tools to help her communicate with other people.

“[Banerjee] may be 13 in his body, but he’s extremely mature for his age,” she told ABC News.

According to her, an inexpensive braille printer would change lives.

The Americans With Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination against the blind, but employers can still refuse to hire a visually impaired person based on his or her inability to perform job duties. In 2012, only 37.7 percent of U.S. adults with reported significant vision loss were employed.

With his machine, Banerjee joins the others making the effort to help the blind gain confidence, skills, and independence.

His company, Braigo Labs, was one of 16 companies Intel invested in last November. The funding will help with payroll for his staff and a more sophisticated product design. The second version of the printer was made with a desktop printer and a Intel computer chip.

The Braigo is expected to hit the market later this year.

“I have been working with bootstrapped funds from my parents since 2014,” Banerjee said in a statement.

Like a seasoned Silicon Valley entrepreneur, he added, “I am ecstatic that Intel Capital is investing early in our effort to disrupt the braille printer/embosser industry.”