TW: A lot of people think NASA is comprised solely of engineers, astronauts, and scientists. ![]() Programs like this allow the kids to have that tool aspect where they can do some engineering and fabricating at the same time. Same with the engineering students-we’ll talk to them about internships, further education, and the importance of interacting with manufacturers and fabrication shops to create the correct part they are trying to design and engineer, with the understanding that it’s a team effort amongst everyone. We'll talk to vocational students about junior colleges that have the welding and machining programs. We talk to students about further education and what they’re interested in. So, when they see ours, they get wide-eyed. ![]() But then again, it seems to be the majority of machinery in schools is very old. Some schools are lucky enough to have shops that have a lathe or a mill or saws that they can use. You do have some kids that are the manufacturers or the fabricators on their teams. About one-third of them are more interested in the vocational side, the milling and lathing and welding aspect of it. JN: To be honest, 30% of the kids are more interested in the engineering side of things. TW: Was it encouraging to witness the curiosity and interest coming from students at these competitions? A small group of NASA employees and volunteers took and completed work-order requests from students. NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center hauled the 36 ft.-long trailer to three student robotics competitions in California this spring, aiding students with repairs and maintenance work on their robots. The first day-their practice day- is the heavy day and it kind of dwindles from there.Īnd then in Fresno I printed out 75 work orders and ran out of. JN: In Monterey we processed about 60 work orders in the three days we were there. TW: How many orders did you receive at the Monterey, Fresno, and Lancaster, Calif.-based robotics competitions? Some of them, like welding, could take a little longer. We try to get the work orders in and out in no more than five minutes. JN: I’ve seen anything from “Hey we need to cut this shorter,” to “We need a tab,” “We broke this,” “Can you straighten this,” “Can you tap this rod for us,” “Can you weld some brackets for us,” or “Can you re-weld our robot, it cracked here.” We’ll even do some soldering. TW: What type of work orders have you received from students? And it also helps us keep track of what we actually do. And that’s more so they can get used to processes once they get out of high school and into the real world. We just try to get work orders done as soon as possible for them. We even have a little grid on there so they can sketch out the part that they need, if they need exact dimensions made, things of that nature. We do have a mock paperwork order that we ask them to fill out with notes on what needs to be done. ![]() We can’t allow that for liability reasons. They'll come out to the trailer thinking they can just run in and use some of the tooling. ![]() TW: What is the process for a student to have their robot repaired? Pictured is Jason Nelson, a lead engineering technician involved in the fabrication shop on wheels. The mobile shop has onboard equipment that includes a mill, lathe, drill press, metal saw, metalworking tools, and welding equipment. The trailer also comes with its own generator if we needed to go fully mobile. We can do welding repairs for them on-site. We use the TIG primarily because 90% of these robots are made of aluminum. South Bend lathe, a Wells-Index (milling machine), refurbished full-size mill, advanced saw, a mill/drill combo, a cold-cut saw, and a 400-amp Miller welding machine with TIG and stick capabilities. JN: The new trailers-specifically ours-come with a 13-in. TW: What can you tell me about the equipment inside the mobile fabrication shop? Jason Nelson, lead engineering technician, and David Voracek, chief technologist at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center and project manager for RAP, spoke with The WELDER to discuss the mobile shop, what they assisted students with, and how they generated student interest in areas like welding. The shops also may be used to aid in emergency response efforts someday. Officials said the goal is to have these mobile shops on hand at all 10 NASA centers. A group of Armstrong employees and one volunteer manned the shop, taking and fulfilling work-order requests submitted by students involved in the robotics competitions. The mobile shop made its debut at three FIRST Robotics Competition events in California earlier this year.
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