-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueDon’t Just Survive, Thrive
If we are to be relevant and prosper during these next critical decades in electronics, we must do more than survive. As an industry, we can and must thrive. In this issue, our contributors explore these concepts meant to help you take your business to the next level.
Material Matters
Materials management is nuanced, multifaceted, and requires a holistic systems approach for business success. When building high mix, low volume, and high technology, managing materials and overall cost containment are even greater challenges.
Additive Manufacturing
In this month’s issue, we explore additive manufacturing technology for the PCB fabricator: where it stands today, the true benefits, and where it seems to be headed.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
From Afterschool Robotics Club to FIRST Competitions
August 11, 2016 | Barry Matties, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
![](https://iconnect007.com/application/files/1016/3122/4573/First3.jpg)
Seven years ago, Joel Bruxvoort, a science teacher at Jefferson High School in Daly City, California, started a robotics club as an afterschool program. Now, his club has two teams competing in events for FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an international youth organization developed to advance STEM subjects around the world. I met up with Joel at the San Mateo Maker Faire to find out what it takes to coach and a run a robotics team.
Barry Matties: Joel, I was talking to Ken Johnson and Jill Wilker earlier about how the FIRST program is reaching into the public school curriculum. Why don't you tell me a little bit about your experience with it?
Bruxvoort: I have a robotics club that I run multiple teams off. This is my seventh year doing it, and it started as an afterschool club. It still is mainly an afterschool club, but I am also getting ready to start teaching it for the first time as a UC-approved elective class. I’m looking forward to that.
Matties: In terms of the club, how many of the students are there?
Bruxvoort: I have about 25 students actively involved in the club on one to two teams. Right now I have two teams at the Maker Faire and two robots on the field.
Matties: Do the students start from the ground up and build the robots?
Bruxvoort: Yes, it's very important to get those basic skills, all the way from using tools and basic programming skills, to give them as much experience as they can at all different levels. I really like having multiple years with the kids, because if they’re hesitant on something, I can teach them, get them confident and build up their skills over time.
Matties: How is your program funded?
Bruxvoort: We have one benefactor who gives us a couple thousand dollars a year. Then we do our own fund-raising. As a teacher, I also get a stipend for running the club.
Matties: How much money on an annual basis does it take to run a club with 25 students?
Bruxvoort: It depends on what you want to do. My first year, I ran the club for less than $2,000. This year, I'm investing in buying equipment, getting a whole new set of computers, and building up that. I've been investing in the field and in hardware. My fundraising is better this year, so I'm going to be spending about $7,000 on the club.
Matties: And that gives you a good foundation of technology and building materials?
Bruxvoort: Yes, exactly. Now I really have the capability of having probably three teams fully functional with everything they need within that. Computers are available and basic shop tools, which I've been building up over time as well.
Matties: Does the school give you space to operate your club?
Bruxvoort: As a physics teacher, I've been able to operate out of my classroom; but we just got a new science building and there is a room that’s been given to me so the club actually has a robotics room. That room will transition as the robotics space next year. Also, the plan is to have a Maker class come in, so it will be a shop for robotics and making.
Matties: This is great, because the cost of higher education, obviously, is not achievable for everybody. To give the foundation of these skills at such an early age, you're changing kids' lives, actually. So we've talked about the mechanics and the financial side. Tell me a little about the impact on the kids. What do you see?
Bruxvoort: I see tremendous growth in what the kids can do. Robotics is appealing to some who want to go and do it. Also, there's a lot of scary things about it. What's nice and what I like about FTC (FIRST TechChallenge, one of the four FIRST programs) is it's very approachable. It's meant to be trial and error, so you can get in and explore something new, and fix it if it doesn't work. That iterative process of learning allows the students to try something new, and the cost of failure isn't too high. That's really good.
Matties: In terms of their confidence and self-esteem in this area, how's that?
Bruxvoort: They build skills, which takes them to the next level. They can try things, and they learn, and then they can try something more complicated. There's always a new cycle of kids who've never touched programming. I can introduce them to the basic ones, and then when they master that, they've got that strength to build to the next one.
Matties: That's great. It seems like it is more than just robotics.
Bruxvoort: It's not just robotics; there's the whole engineering notebooks to get the students thinking as an engineer. There is a design part, and there's outreach capabilities, so the kids are getting out of the classroom, going to events, or talking to other groups. We go to the library, we go to schools, and we're here at the Maker Faire. The kids get to talk and explain what's going on about the program, and they get better and better as we keep doing it. It's a lot of fun to see.
Matties: I really appreciate you spending time with us, sharing. Are there any closing thoughts that you want to share?
Bruxvoort: I have to say it's just a great program, because you can get started easily and then just grow from there.
Matties: Great. Thank you so much.
Bruxvoort: Thanks.
Suggested Items
iNEMI Packaging Tech Topic Webinar: Equipment Capabilities and Challenges to Support Advanced Packaging Trends
07/26/2024 | iNEMIModern day computing needs, notably AI/machine learning and high-performance computing, along with their subsequent memory and I/O requirements, are fueling an increased demand for semiconductor devices with higher performance, lower power consumption and latency as well as reduced footprint.
IFTEC: Taking Training to New Heights in France
07/24/2024 | Michelle Te, IPC CommunityLike many nations, France has suffered from a global marketing misnomer: Electronics manufacturing can be done cheaper and better in Asia; therefore, education, financial resources, legislation, and business ventures should be shifted to other important industries. Yet electronics are so ubiquitous that they have become like "salt in the sea," says Pierre-Jean Albrieux, president of IFTEC, a French company and resources and training center specializing in the manufacturing processes of electronics (PCBA, PCB, and design). “It is present everywhere, so we end up not seeing it anymore.”
Vertical Aerospace Begins Testing on New VX4 Prototype
07/22/2024 | BUSINESS WIREVertical Aerospace, a global aerospace and technology company that is pioneering zero emissions aviation, announced that testing on its most advanced eVTOL aircraft, unveiled last week, has started with initial powered ground tests, including propeller balancing, successfully complete.
Book Excerpt: The Printed Circuit Assembler’s Guide to... Low-Temperature Soldering, Vol. 2, Chapter 2
07/10/2024 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamThe evolution of low-temperature solder alloys requires thoughtful consideration of the thermal and mechanical reliability requirements specific to each application. Thermal cycling and drop (mechanical) shock tests have long been used as board-level proxy tests for evaluating and quantifying the ability of electronics assemblies to sustain abrupt, short-term mechanical stresses, as well as continuous cyclic stresses.
SMT Perspectives and Prospects: A Dose of Wisdom
07/10/2024 | Dr. Jennie Hwang -- Column: SMT Perspectives and ProspectsFor decades, tens of thousands of people from all walks of life have attended the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders gathering in Omaha, Nebraska, relishing the opportunity to learn from Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, who field questions for five hours about life, business, and investing. Reportedly, more than 40,000 people from all over the world attended the 2024 meeting, and millions more watched the livestream of the event.