April 6 through 14 is National Robotics Week. This week celebrates the US as a world leader in robotics technology development. The first National Robotics Week was held in 2010 and was created by an Act of Congress. The inaugural week featured 50 separate events throughout the US. This year the event has grown to include more than 125 planned activities throughout the country, including a series of educational events for students at Intelligrated’s St. Louis facility. Intelligrated is one of the leading material handling solution partners in North America. Which shows how much National Robotics Week has grown.
Robotics and Materials Handling
Though not that old of an even, National Robotics Week already has a storied history. A group of leading universities and companies lobbied Congress to create a “national road map” for robotics technology. The purpose of National Robotics Week is to highlight the growing importance of robotics and their role in making materials handling, manufacturing, healthcare, defense and other industries more efficient and profitable, with a keen eye on inspiring students of all ages to pursue careers in the cutting-edge field of robotics.
The use of robotics in materials handling and other areas also is predicted to expand substantially during the coming decade.Over the next five years, careers in robotics, science and engineering are expected to grow at double the rate (20.6%) of the overall work force growth rate in the US (10.1%). Developments in robotics already have fueled many 21st Century products and technologies and show no sign of becoming less impactful in the future.
Inspiring Students to Careers in Science and Technology
In St. Louis, college students from Washington University and the Missouri University of Science and Technology will tour the Intelligrated’s Alvey Robotics Lab. The lab is a 5,050-square-foot research and development facility for creating new applications for robotics in manufacturing and business. Elementary school students also will participate in the tour, including some from the Rockwood, Missouri School District who currently are studying the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) curriculum.
NASA’s Mohawk Guy
Working with NASA and iRobot, the National Robotics Week Advisory Council will launch a series of videos this week designed to inspire students of all ages to pursue STEM studies. One video will feature Bobok Ferdowski, NASA’s “Mohawk Guy” and flight director for the Mars rover project. Ferdowski will be speaking about his work with robotics on the Red Planet.
At Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry, a Robot Block Party will be hosted all week in which robots from both the US and Japan will be on display and demonstrations will be given of their uses. There also will be lectures from robotics experts from some of the nation’s leading universities, as well as hands-on activities for children.
For more information on events in your area click here for schedules and locations.