Desktop Circuit Board Fabrication
Prototyping and iterating circuit boards takes far too long. After a board is designed, the process of quoting, manufacturing, and shipping typically takes two weeks. And mistakes are inevitable. That’s why it often takes three or more iterations to develop even simple PCBs. In total, that adds up to a month or two (or more) of dead time for every design that passes through an electrical engineer’s hands. Engineers should be spending their time innovating, not waiting on deliveries. We deserve better.
My name is Levi Janssen. I’m an electrical engineer, a creator on YouTube, and sometimes I build robots for NASA. I am fueled by a desire to create the things that would otherwise live in my head. I have a particular obsession with developing tools that streamline the prototyping process and reduce the distance between idea and reality. In pursuit of this, I’ve built 3D printers and desktop CNC mills. As an electrical engineer, I’ve long been jealous of mechanical engineers. Desktop 3D printing allows mechanical engineers to iterate complex mechanisms multiple times per day. I should know, as I’ve done so many times. But electrical engineers do not have such a tool. We still have to wait weeks to get our PCBs.
I aim to fill this gap. I’d like to do for electrical engineers what 3D printing has done for mechanical engineers. The goal for CircuitedLabs is to engineer a desktop machine that can fabricate near-production-quality circuit boards automaticalsly. By moving the fabrication process away from the distant manufacturers and directly to the engineer, circuit board lead times can be reduced from weeks to hours. I want to remove the hurdles between engineers and their designs so that they can innovate quickly and without compromise. 3D printing ushered in a new paradigm for mechanical engineering. It’s time we do the same for electrical.
How You Can Help Me
By contributing to this campaign, you are directly funding my efforts to prototype a desktop circuit board fabrication machine. The $20,000 goal will allow me to purchase necessary hardware to prototype this machine, as well as enable me to spend my time working on development. This money will be used to purchase hardware for constructing prototypes and test setups throughout development. It will also be put towards infrastructure developments such as tools for the purpose of speeding up prototyping. Finally, it will be used to offset the opportunity cost of working on this project, so that it may occupy my undivided attention.
In the event that funding exceeds my goal, I’ll be able to consider bringing other engineers into the company to accelerate my development efforts. I’m already in contact with at least two other engineers who would like to contribute their time. In the event that funding does not meet my goal, I will still go forward with development to the best of my abilities. However, development would be slow going, as I likely wouldn’t be able to purchase tools and hardware that could accelerate progress. Further, I would be unable to devote my full attention to this company. Any contribution is greatly appreciated, as I am eager to dig into the engineering of this hypothetical machine.
How I Can Help You
Though CircuitedLabs is currently in the concept stage, I still want to compensate you for your contributions. I want you to experience rapid, automatic custom circuit boards before anyone else. In the event this product does make it to market, I will give you a personal discount equal to the amount you contributed to this campaign plus an additional 20%. So if you contribute $1,000 today, I will offer you a $1,200 discount upon product release.
It should also be noted that this machine will be expensive. I am proposing a new technology, and its nature demands complexity. As such, the lowest price I’m anticipating is $5,000, but it could be much more. A landed price would be dependent on many factors throughout development. Given the magnitude of the expected price, the discount perk will only be offered for contributions of $500 or more.
The Development Plan
The problem of rapid circuit board manufacturing has been addressed several times before, but previous attempts have failed. Some have tried to additively manufacture PCBs, but no conductive ink or filament comes close to the conductivity of copper. Others have tried to subtractively manufacture PCBs, but milled boards are limited to a single layer and completely exposed. I intend to take a new approach. My aim is to expand upon the subtractive manufacturing method by introducing additional features that can take it all the way to a useful two-layer circuit board. The three core features planned for this machine are described below.
Mechanical/Trace Milling
Included in this feature is trace milling on two layers, drilling holes, and milling the contours of the board. Milling is a generally solved problem. PCB mills are not new technology, and some are capable of trace and space widths of four or five mil. That's even more precise than many PCB manufacturers will offer. This feature will require minimal innovation and represents a small risk.
Solder Mask Application
Applying solder mask is not a commonly automated process like PCB milling. However, there is precedent for this process. Solder mask is commonly applied manually, then cured with UV light. It's relatively simple and takes little time. The goal will simply be to automate this otherwise manual process. This will require some innovation, but it only represents a moderate risk.
Via/Through Hole Generation
The generation of vias and through holes will be the most challenging feature of this machine. Vias and through holes are copper plated holes in a PCB that electrically connect multiple layers. The industrial process for creating these involves a dozen steps and utilizes dangerous chemicals like formaldehyde. In order for this to be accomplished on a desktop, a new process is required.
Fortunately, I have already demonstrated an alternative via/through hole generation method. This new process has only two steps, involves no hazardous chemicals, and requires few consumables. And the vias I’ve produced with this method have had resistances in the neighborhood of 40 mΩ, which is very comparable to production vias. Though this is the most challenging feature and poses the most risk, I have already shown that it can be done.
The Impact
Electrical engineers make the world run, and the humble circuit board is crucial to that endeavor. Nearly every device around you, from the phone in your pocket, to the coffee maker on your counter, to the car in your garage, and to the LED lights in your ceiling, require circuit boards. Being able to develop circuit boards faster means being able to develop everything faster. It means increasing the rate at which we can collectively improve this world through technology. The majority of the electrical engineers I’ve talked to have told me that circuit board lead times have hindered progress on their projects. I believe that this doesn’t need to be the case. I want to live in a world where the distance between idea and reality is just an afternoon. By contributing to this campaign, you are helping me build that world. If you're unable to contribute financially, the most helpful thing you can do is share this campaign with someone who you think may be interested. Thank you for your time, your contribution, and your confidence in a better tomorrow.
(A short note: The campaign video was originally written for, and posted to, YouTube. Any references to the Indiegogo campaign in the video were intended for a YouTube audience, which is why they seem misplaced here. I appologize for any confusion.)