How to build a robot

For anyone looking for a SEAS class where you can get hands-on AND make a robot, look no further than Computer Aided Machine Design (ES 51). Taught by Conor Walsh, John L. Loeb Associate Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and Michelle Rosen, Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering Design, this course looks at the design and construction of mechanical and electromechanical devices, with topics ranging from engineering graphics and sketching to materials selection to DC motors. Students get to work in the lab and create design projects using professional modeling software. Over the length of the semester, the course takes students through the process of building a robot and culminates in a task that the robots have to complete. Last week in section, small groups of students were led by Rosen to drill holes into Delrin shaft supports. These shaft supports are crucial for the gearboxes the students will eventually use for their robots.

Michelle Rosen, Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering Design, helps Denise Navarro, A.B. '22 with the hands-on ES 51 lab work. (Photo by Olivia Nie, SEAS Communications)

Teaching fellow Vlad Sevostianov, A.B. '19, an earth and planetary sciences concentrator, troubleshoots the drill. (Photo by Olivia Nie/SEAS Communications)