The Robotics badge gives students a strong foundation of key concepts that encompass the broad field of robotics. Students will learn basic electromechanical safety, gain an understanding of components and harness new skills to repurpose devices to create a practical solution. Students will learn how to design an automated product and create a prototype.
The Details
Electromechanical Safety: Ability to work with tools and electronics in a safe way, including an understanding of dangerous voltages and how to touch exposed electronics;
Identification of Components: Understanding of basic components including resistors, capacitors, integrated chips, leds and potentiometers;
Combination of Hardware and Software: Understanding of how software communicates with hardware, including digital and analog signals using Arduino and Raspberry Pi;
Repurposing Old Tech: Refinement of creative problem solving skills through upcycling or repurposing of old technology;
Computer Aided Design: Ability to design a product in CAD and translate the file and print the file on a 3D printer;
Open Source Integration: Ability to navigate the open source robotics community, which is often the heart that keeps robotics alive. Building off of each others work helps create easier, faster and more effective solutions to problems;
Practical Solution Ideation: Ability to design, build and test a product related to robotics that solves a real world problem. While the product itself might not be complete or fully solve the problem, attempts at first prototypes is where the summation of the robotics badge will leave students.
Designed in collaboration with the MassRobotics community.