A Robot for Rubik's

Robots are cool. I’ve been fascinated by them as long as I can remember. I vividly recall a class in elementary school where I got to play around with LEGO Mindstorms robots, and it was really the kick that started my fascination with computers and electronics in general.

This summer, I put aside some time and energy developing my own robot from scratch to solve Rubik’s Cubes. It seemed daunting at first, but I dove into it head-on, doing what I knew how to do and letting the other parts of the project fall into place as I completed more and more of it. My favorite part of this experience was the sheer amount of control that I had over the minute details of it all. There was no kit or instruction manual or anyone to guide my process, so everything had to be bought according to specification or custom 3D-printed and soldered together. I found a lot of joy seeing something that had come solely from my imagination manifesting itself in the real world.

Of course, there were many challenges as well. Parts broke, sometimes due to my own carelessness with sensitive electronics as well as just plain accidents. Still, those experiences, however frustrating they were, only served to help improve my process and made the end result better. Upon summer’s end, I know I will have to leave this hobby behind at home, but I am excited to be back on campus, to see friends, and maybe experience an entire school year without COVID ruining it.

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