GISH students learning all about robots in class, club
Trevor Andrews, Reporter
As companies around the world are looking for ways to add automation, robots are becoming more and more important. The demand for new and improved robots is always growing, according to one Senior High instructor.
“Technology is always changing, everything is being automated and it is good to know how to make these things,” said GISH Robotic Instructor Eric Sell.
Sell is also the sponsor for the school robotic club.
“The most important thing to know when making a robot is you must have an idea before making it; as well as to be open minded. You also must draw your idea down, and be willing to change the idea and make it better,” he added.
Humans have always been looking for ways to improve and make things more efficient and Sell said he believes robotics will play an important role in this.
“Anyone who has a general interest in the things around you might be interested in robotics.
“You can connect a lot of the stuff we see around us to robotics,” he said.
PJ Delatorre, a student in Sell’s robotics class said he enrolled in the class because “I thought it would be fun.
“My favorite thing about robotics class is to be able to work in a team,” Delatorre added. “When I work in a team I can get help with certain things and it also ensures that we can get something done.”
In robotics class, groups of students are building robots that are designed to pick up items like rings and once each group finishes their robot, students compete against each other. During the competition students will try to grab the most amount of rings.
“I recommend this class to anyone who enjoys working in a team, and likes to build things,” Delatorre said.
While robotics can be fun, there are also difficulties some people may have.
“The hardest thing for me is thinking of a general idea for my robot,” he said.
“Before I joined Robotics class I thought the projects would be tedious. Now that I’m in robotics, I would say building robots isn’t as tedious as I thought it’d be.”
Sell said that anyone can join robotics class, even if they don’t have experience building robots.
“Before this class, I had no experience building robots,” Delatorre said.
Sell said that robotics can “allow us to have a better understanding of cars, planes, factories, and computers. I first learned how to make robots, when I became a skill and technical science teacher, and learned how to make them through that way.”
He said that this year is the first year that he is teaching robotics. For the past four years he’s taught engineering.
“We make vex robots that are for vex competitions; they are small vehicles that can do different tasks,” Sell said. “Before you make a robot you need to have a plan before making it, and you also need to draw this plan out.”
Any student interested in joining the class should talk to their counselor or Sell if they would like more information about the club.
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