This Tamil Nadu Engineering Student Built A Palm-Sized CNC Machine With Nothing But Scrap!

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This Tamil Nadu Engineering Student Built A Palm-Sized CNC Machine With Nothing But Scrap!

Many Telugu film lovers have seen the film ‘Eega’, better known as ‘Makkhi’, where Samantha Ruth played the role of Bindu, a miniature artist who engineered miniature fully-functional objects. Who knew that by taking ‘Eega’ as an inspiration, someone could bring the film back to life.

Well, that ‘someone’ was S. Kavin Prabhu, a young engineering student from Tamil Nadu, who built a Computerised Numerical Control(CNC) machine, using only scrap material and items worth only INR 1500. S. Kavin Prabhu’s CNC can create miniature statues using micro-machining on a piece of chalk.

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Bringing Scrap To Life From His Childhood Days

We often used to break toys during our childhood days, and as a result, unleashed the wrath of our parents on us. Kavin was no different than us. A boy from Rasichettipalayam village in Pollachi, Tamil Nadu, he was different in only one aspect - we used to turn toys into scrap and throw them all over, and Kavin turned scrap into something better and creative.

Attending inter-school science fests from the young age of eight, Kavin came up with surprising innovations, his first creation being a hearing aid, which he built from some motors and scrap when he was at 9th standard. “It was part of a project, and my inspiration to innovate the aid was my deaf grandmother. When the motor comes in touch with teeth, sounds can be heard”, said the 21-year-old inventor.

His father had a mechanic shop, and Kavin used to watch him fix and repair broken objects. Following in his father’s footsteps, Kavin did the same as his father with whatever he had. Along with his father, his science teacher Shobhana also fueled the inventor inside him.

A Young Inventor - Kavin Prabhu

“I attended several inter-college fests and science forums along with a friend. I got into advanced projects during 11th standard,” Kavin shares his endeavors from his high school days. Astonishingly, Kavin invented a pothole detector, which alerted the user about approaching gutters and potholes. His pothole detector was based on vibrations. “It could also be used to understand the quality of roads.”

Although none of these initiatives progressed past a certain point, Kavin was overjoyed when he was accepted into the course of his choice due to his efforts.

He expected to work on larger projects in the future, which would pave the way for his entrepreneurial ambitions.

The Birth Of The Palm-Sized CNC Project

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Kavin had to stay at home, and as a result, he had to sacrifice several opportunities. However, he created an affordable four-axis Computerised Numerical Control (CNC) machine from locally obtained scrap which has proven to be more than just successful.

“Last year, while one of my friend’s birthdays was approaching, I decided to gift a miniature art made by myself. That’s how the CNC project kickstarted,” exclaims the young inventor.

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The CNC possesses the capacity to create miniature statues using micro-machining on a piece of chalk. “I had no design in mind but only the deadline which is my friend’s birthday. Thus, trial and error is the only method followed here,” he adds. “I don’t like spending money to make new inventions. Every time, scrap is collected and what turns out from it is the end result.”

The palm-sized prototype is created entirely of scrap materials, including parts from a discarded DVD writer, PVC pipes, rusty bearings, bolts, and nuts. By following a computer code, Kavin's CNC can cut shapes out of plastic, metal, and wood, among other materials. The machine's primary advantages include its tiny size, low power consumption, and optimized design, and Kavin is searching for ways to improve the design.

Displaying his extravagant talent, he has created a customized portrait creator out of scrap printer parts. “I dream to step into entrepreneurship. An incubator startup is what comes to my mind now, but I will explore more options in the upcoming years,” exclaims Kavin, who is currently a third-year mechanical engineering student, at the Vellore Institute of Technology.