ISO 10218 is the international safety standard for industrial robots, split into two parts. Part 1 covers robot manufacturers, and Part 2 covers system integrators who install robots in real workplaces. Together, the standard defines how robots must be designed, integrated, and used so that people working near them stay safe. As our team dug … Read more
When my team started building competition robots, our first PETG bracket snapped at the joint under a 12 kg load. That failure sent me down a months-long rabbit hole of testing, breaking, and ranking every filament I could get my hands on. After printing more than 400 test coupons and 60 robot components across PLA, … Read more
If you’ve ever wondered how does 3D printing work for robot parts, the short answer is this: a digital CAD file is sliced into thin horizontal layers, then a printer builds your part one layer at a time from plastic, resin, or powder. I run a small robotics workshop in my garage, and this process … Read more
Block based programming for robots is a visual coding approach where users build robot behaviors by dragging and dropping graphical blocks instead of writing lines of text code. Each block represents a command, a sensor input, or a logic instruction, and they snap together like puzzle pieces to form complete programs. This style of programming … Read more
If you have ever watched a child program a small robot to roll across the floor, light up, or wave its arm, you have seen the answer to how does robotics help kids learn STEM in real time. It turns abstract science and math into something a ten-year-old can touch, test, and break on purpose. … Read more
If you’re asking “what age should kids start learning robotics?” you’re not alone. This is one of the most common questions parents and educators ask our team, and the answer is more layered than a single number. Research from Tufts University’s Department of Child Development suggests age 7 is the ideal starting point for structured … Read more
Starting a robotics club at school is one of the most rewarding things I have seen teachers and students do together. A robotics club gives kids hands-on STEM experience, teaches real problem-solving, and creates a community around shared curiosity about how things work. Whether you are a teacher, parent, or student with a big idea, … Read more
The FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) is an international high school robotics program where teams of students, guided by adult mentors, design, build, and program industrial-sized robots to compete in a sports-style game. Operated by the nonprofit FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), the program reaches more than 93,000 students across 35-plus countries … Read more
VEX Robotics is a global educational robotics platform that teaches students from elementary school through college how to design, build, and program robots for hands-on STEM learning and competition. I have been following the VEX program for years, and what strikes me most is its scale. Tens of thousands of student teams compete each year … Read more
If you have ever watched a high-speed packaging line place chocolates into trays at 200 picks per minute, you have already met a delta robot. These spider-like machines sit above conveyor belts in food plants, electronics factories, and pharmaceutical lines, moving so quickly that the eye can barely follow them. In this guide, our team … Read more