Did you know that embossing machines needed to generate Braille characters can cost thousands of dollars? After finding this out, hacker Carlos Campos decided to design and build his own using 3D-printed parts, along with an Arduino Mega and a RAMPS board for control.

Instead of punching each dot, the device pushes a pin out onto the paper, then rolls the dot onto it from the other side, leading to a much quieter operation than normal machines.

Check out the clips below to see the pin actuator by itself and the embosser in action. More details and videos can also be found on Facebook. The project is still in the experimental stages, so collaborators are invited to help turn it into an even more useful implement.