Robotics: The Face Of Tomorrow
As kids, all of us secretly wanted to be one of those world changers who would end up creating amazing things, at the perfect intersection of creativity and intelligence. In the process of growing up, the sheer magnitude and lure of innovations in the field of technology only increased exponentially. With smart and effective algorithms taking over decision-making and task management, hardware substitutes in the form of robots, also known as robotics, are one of mankind’s greatest inventions.
Robotics is a much talked-about and trending field. It has enthusiastic researchers and innovators at the helm, scaling newer heights with each passing day. With people in the machinery and electronics industry doing their best to keep themselves ahead of time, robotics and artificial intelligence is all set to rock the stage in years to come.
As explained by Valentino Braitenberg in his book Vehicles: Experiments in Synthetic Psychology, robotics is a chance for humans to play God and think of logical and sensible solutions for imitating human action.
Many students are interested in this field and don’t know how to begin. The first step is to gather all possible information and get your hands on building a simple bot. You can delve into robotics through different fields such as algorithm analysis, embedded system design, dynamics and motion, sensors and actuators, control systems, bio-inspired algorithms, particle swarm theory, etc.
There are a lot of interesting bot-making tutorials available online and various workshops conducted by techpreneurs and enthusiasts around the year.
The brain of a robot is its microcontroller, which does the processing, decision making and organizing instructions for execution. The easiest way to know how to use a microcontroller is by using an Arduino Uno development board that comes with an onboard microcontroller and supporting peripherals. The coding on this platform is easy, and there are a lot of useful online resources.
Once you are familiar with using a microcontroller, let your imagination take over and try to think of something that excites you. If it’s your passion, then you are more likely to enjoy the process of building such a bot.
Starting at an early age has an advantage because you will be able to learn more and dive into the fascinating world of amateur robotics. A few examples of bots to try, as a beginner, are a line follower bot, wall follower bot, etc. Also, do read Valentino Braiterberg’s book ‘Vehicles’ to understand his thought process on designing robots.
If you do like this as a hobby, there are a multitude of options around the world, where you can pursue robotics as a full-time career. Many reputed universities offer robotics as a post-graduate course, for which you can be eligible after completing a degree in engineering. If you want to pursue this field, it is important that you have practical experience, sound theoretical backing and a passion for working towards transforming your dreams into reality.
