Robotics is the point at which software and hardware meet. This combination of disciplines allows for devices to be created that can have a substantial impact on individuals and our society as a whole.

Throughout high school, I have played an active role in my school’s robotics club. Each year we compete in two different competitions. In the fall season, we compete in the First Tech Challenge, while in the spring season we take part in the MATE ROV competition.

For the First Tech Challenge, we are tasked with building a robot that is 18 in. X 18 in. X 18 in. This robot will be placed onto a playing field and is required to complete specific activities to score points. The game is broken up into an autonomous and remote controlled period, so the robot must be able to perform in both situations. For MATE we are tasked with designing a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) that can perform specific tasks underwater. In addition to this, we must also create a full presentation which we give to mock-investors who want to use our product for real-world applications.

Our team dynamic is such that everyone serves every role. Still, each person on the team has some areas in which they spend most of their time on. During FTC for example, I spend most of my time on the mechanical design side of the project, while also spending time learning about the software side with some of the more experienced coders. During MATE, however, I am able to take more of a business role as well, since a lot of the competition also revolves around the pitch. Building a company website as well as some of the marketing materials are some examples of the business aspects of work that I did.

Aside from all of the technical aspects of robotics, I think that the biggest takeaway that I have from this club are project management skills as well as how to work efficiently with other team members. I learned that things often take much longer than you expect them to, mostly because you run into problems along the way. As for how to work with other people, I learned that you need to be able to divide up tasks and let people work independently, only coming together once a meeting to take stock and keep everyone up to date. If everyone tries to do everything or is not able to communicate clearly, then there is chaos and very slow progress.

As for robotics itself in the future, I am excited by the innovations in medical robotics such as the da Vinci surgical robot and look forward to learning more about them in the future.