{"id":11643,"date":"2015-09-08T07:45:53","date_gmt":"2015-09-08T11:45:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chescotimes.com\/?p=11643"},"modified":"2015-09-08T07:45:53","modified_gmt":"2015-09-08T11:45:53","slug":"students-to-get-hands-on-with-robot-at-tchs-pickering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/?p=11643","title":{"rendered":"Students to get hands on with robot at TCHS Pickering"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"TheBaxster\"<\/a>

The Baxster robot by Rethink Robotics is programmed to package boxes at the Omega Design Corporation in Exton. In September, the robot will be moved to the TCHS Pickering Campus and used in the Electronics and Robotics program.<\/p><\/div>\n

Robots are coming to the Technical College High School (TCHS) Pickering Campus. Specifically, the Baxster, a collaborative robot designed by Rethink Robotics. With a modern red and black body, an expressive face made from an iPad, dual arm capabilities and easy programming capabilities, the Baxster will become an integrated part of the curriculum in the current Electronic and Robotics and the new Advanced Manufacturing programs at TCHS Pickering.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Baxster is currently housed at Omega Design\u00a0Corporation in Exton, Pennsylvania. TCHS purchased the robot in partnership with Omega Design to explore the possibilities of collaborative robots in advanced manufacturing and develop applied learning curriculum for students. Omega Design specializes in the design, manufacture, service and support of packaging solutions for pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare industries. The company serves clients such as Teva Pharmaceuticals, Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson and Johnson, L\u2019Oreal, Estee Lauder and Proctor and Gamble.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Partnering with corporations and local businesses on workforce development initiatives is something that benefits both students and local companies. \u201cWe want to keep the TCHS students in our electronic and robotics programs on the cutting edge with what is happening in the advanced manufacturing field,\u201d said Kirk Williard, the director of career, technical and customized education for the Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU). \u201cThis partnership with Omega Design allows our students and instructors to experience the impact of this knowledge first hand.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Currently Omega Design is experimenting with how the Baxster can be used with end-of-line unit case packing. They are taking the robot to the PACK Expo in Las Vegas in September to showcase the possibilities of collaborative robots in their field.\u00a0 The robot will be part of a display booth demonstrating the future applications of robotics and highlighting the company\u2019s STEM initiatives. \u201cThis will show what is coming down the pike for our customers,\u201d said Glenn Siegele the president of Omega Design. \u201cOur traditional customers haven\u2019t adopted collaborative robots yet so we will be promoting workforce development at the show and our partnership with TCHS.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Once the Baxster is moved to TCHS Pickering, Omega Design will continue to be involved in training students and developing curriculum. Representatives from the company serve on the school\u2019s Advanced Manufacturing occupational advisory committee, a new program that will open in 2017, and the local advisory committee for the upcoming school renovation. The company also plans to challenge students to develop solutions to real-world work experiences and problems.<\/span><\/p>\n

TCHS and Omega Design chose to purchase the Baxster specifically because it is a collaborative robot.\u00a0 Most industrial robots are locked into a cage with a large guard package around them for safety reasons. In comparison, humans can work side by side with collaborative robots, and they can be easily moved from one packaging line to another. The Baxster is also extremely easy to program. \u201cYou don\u2019t need an advanced computer programmer to write a new program when you want the Baxster to do something new,\u201d said Charles Chan, a control engineer for Omega Design. \u201cYou can program the robot directly on its arm. It is much more user-friendly.\u201d In addition, the Baxster also has dual arms that can work independently of each other. It can complete two separate and distinct tasks at the same time.<\/span><\/p>\n

TCHS Pickering students already work with traditional, non-collaborative robots both within the classroom and in robotics competitions. \u00a0Electronics and Robotics students participate in FIRST Tech Challenge, which gives students hands-on programming and prototyping experience with robot design. Working with the Baxster will give them experience with an emerging technology that they can put to use beyond a classroom environment. The students will be challenged by Omega Design to complete actual productive work tasks. \u201cThis will enable them to understand some of the differences between completing a task for productivity and efficiency versus just showing off the cool tasks it can do,\u201d explains Siegel.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ultimately, this partnership is about developing a skilled workforce in advanced manufacturing for the future. \u201cCareers in advanced manufacturing are good, rewarding careers,\u201d said Siegel. \u201cThey are neat, safe, challenging and rewarding \u2013 both financially and intellectually.\u201d Ultimately, the Baxster\u2019s most important job is to get students thinking about their future and the many possibilities and career paths that are available to them.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Robots are coming to the Technical College High School (TCHS) Pickering Campus. Specifically, the Baxster, a collaborative robot designed by Rethink Robotics. With a modern red and black body, an expressive face made from an iPad, dual arm capabilities and easy programming capabilities, the Baxster will become an integrated part of the curriculum in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[1534,1565,6329],"class_list":["post-11643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-robots","tag-schools-2","tag-tchs-pickering"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11643","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11643"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11643\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11643"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11643"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11643"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}