A group of students from University of Queensland have hit their $30,000 kickstarter target to commercialise 3D printed PCBs in a mere five hours.
A kickstarter project to commercialise printed circuit boards (PCBs) manufactured by a 3D printer led by University of Queensland students has hit its $30,000 target.
The project managed to complete its fundraising – planned to be raised over 30 days – within five hours of the project going live. At time of writing, the project has raised $91,399 in crowdfunded backing with 27 days left to go.
The engineering graduates’ product, the EX1 Printer, is capable of manufacturing PCBs onto any suitable surface – including paper. Currently, boards are manufactured through an etching process that utilises acid to remove waste materials. The team’s printer would greatly accelerate the process whilst making it more accessible.
Mechanical engineer John Scott, one of the inventors behind the technology, said: “Just by talking to our friends, we knew there would be a certain, select few people that would definitely be interested in it. But we didn’t really know if it would be quite widely picked up. We’re really happy that everyone gets what we’re doing; even if they’re not a technical person, they understand that this is something really big.”
