The Unimate was the first ever programmable robot built in 1957 and patented by George C. Devol

The first Unimate ever was used on an assembly line in a GM plant in 1961, unloading parts 

1. What was your first experience seeing or interacting with a robot of any kind? What kind of robot was it? What did you think of it?

I experienced a robot cafe in Canada when i went in January of 2025, I was fascinated to see how a cafe spot was being run only by robots. The hot chocolate i got at that place was pretty good too!

What are your thoughts (positive, negative, or otherwise) on the use of robotics in industry and society, both currently and looking forward to the future?

I think that robots being implemented in the simplest jobs will be great. This reduces the risk of injury, help save time, and sanity for the workers! Some people may argue that robots taking over is bad, but i say that its the opposite! It opens up more jobs for robot maintenance, engineering, and design to name a few. 

If you could have a robot something so that you didn't have to do it, what would that one thing be?

One thing i would make a robot do, is trade stocks for me. i would have it use AI to predict if the stock was going to go up or down and when to sell/buy.

What do you think are the ethical considerations surrounding the use of robots and AI, and how do we ensure that these technologies are developed and used in a responsible and ethical manner?

I think that robots will be ethical if we make them ethical. There will always be that one guy that has tons and tons of money and wants to push robots to the extreme and program the robots to do unethical actions.

What are some of the most innovative or exciting applications of robotics and automation that you have seen recently, and how do you see them evolving in the future?

In my time in Arizona, i saw self driving taxis. There would be cars with nobody in them and driven by robots with cameras. I didn't get to be in one but I'm sure its very interesting to have a robot drive you to your destination. There have been some malfunctions i have seen on the internet but those are things that the company can definitely improve on. I see this evolving into cars that can drive perfectly on the road, better than the human drivers that are good.

Teach Pendant programming

Teach pendant programming is when you program the robot what to do through a tablet or a pendant, then it goes out and does it by itself.

Lead Through programming

Lead through programming is very friendly to people who dont know how to program machines, they can just lead the machine through what they want it to do, and the machine will retain that memory of the positions and enact the movements by itself

The Core Track teaches all essential concepts, terminology and programming commands needed to operate a UR robot. 

There are 8 modules in this E-learning course, upon successfully completing all of them, you get a certificate of completion. 

Module 1 

Module 1 is just a quick overview of the robot, getting familiar with the robot first is an essential step to further learning the robot. 

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Loop Excercise: 

To begin, we used a pendant to program the robot by setting various points within a loop. First, we ensured the program was in loop mode by selecting “Loop.” We then manually positioned the machine at the desired locations and clicked “Set Point” to save each position. This process was repeated two more times. Once all points were set, we ran a test, allowing the robot to move slowly through the programmed path. After confirming that both we and the machine deemed it safe, we proceeded to run the program at a higher speed.

Dot to Dot Drawing Exercise:

Next, we used a spring-loaded Sharpie to create dot-to-dot drawings. Building on what we learned from the loop exercise, we carefully mapped out the dots while ensuring the table remained stationary. During setup, we made sure the Sharpie did not touch the paper as we established the path. When it was time to draw, we revisited each point and lowered the Z-axis until the Sharpie made contact with the paper. Finally, we executed the program, successfully drawing the dot-to-dot design.

We were tasked with creating arms to pick up a random object—in my case, a nut 1.5 inches wide. The arms were designed to approach from the top, pick up the nut, and drop it at a different location.

First Design:
The initial design had a narrower build, with contact points positioned farther apart than in the final version.

Problems:

• The contact points didn't align with the nut when the arms were fully closed.

• There were gaps at the connection points between the arms and the base that needed to be filled and patched.

Second Design:
For the second version, I extruded the contact points closer together, resulting in a bulkier build. I also patched the gaps at the base connection, ensuring the arms were now ready for attachment and use on the robot.

Third (Final) Design:

For the final design, i added grooves to the arms so the contact points of the part and arms stay the same and secure.