ARLINGTON — Members of the robotics club at Arlington High School know that many people don’t appreciate what it means to be asked to do a beta test.
In November, Arlington’s NeoBots club was one of just 12 groups in the world asked to use the Kinect system software instead of a traditional joystick to operate a robot. Kinect is perhaps best known as Microsoft’s motion-sensing device for the Xbox 360 game system.
The Arlington club’s beta test led to recent presentations at the Microsoft and DigiPen Institute of Technology campuses in Redmond. About eight club members met with game programmers as well as Kinect creator Alex Kipman. The Arlington students were interviewed by international journalists after showing off their robot.
“It was huge,” said Dan Radion, 17, a senior and NeoBots club president.
Put it this way, Dan said: Sports are popular at Arlington High and that’s understandable.
And it’s also understandable that students who enjoy science and say things like “robots of the world, unite!” often land in the “techie-geek-nerd” category of the school social strata, he said.
“But while it’s difficult to break into professional football,” Dan said, “I can see most of the members of this club turning pro.”
Teacher and club adviser Brett Sarver oversees the club of about 30 students.
NeoBots members and other technology students also have showcased their work for the Snohomish County Workforce Development Council, the state Commerce Department and members of the state’s congressional delegation.
“We’ve had some great opportunities recently for them to show off their stuff. I like to step back and let the magic unfold,” Sarver said. “It’s mind-boggling what they are doing. I am just amazed. And people at Boeing are very interested in seeing that the next generation gets ready to produce.”
Club mentors include employees of Boeing, Microsoft and C&D Zodiac aerospace. Club sponsors include the Arlington Rotary and Kiwanis service clubs, Platt Electric and PC Recycle.
The NeoBots club has programmers, designers, prototype builders and an electronics team. Together they plan to join other robotics clubs from Snohomish County on Jan. 7 at Mountlake Terrace High School to receive their assignment for this year’s annual robot-building competition sponsored by the nonprofit organization called For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.
The club will have until Feb. 22 to build their robot.
“We have no clue what we will be asked to do,” said Josh Rodriguez, 16. “But there is a lot of speculation out there.”
When not building robots or showing off for the business community, club members often visit local elementary and middle schools to inspire students who will follow them in high school.
“We’re treated like rock stars among the younger kids,” Josh said. “We want them to pursue technology, too. We want people to know that technology is cool and that it makes daily life more enjoyable.”
At the high school, the club is always looking for more members, Dan said. Among those especially needed are students interested in business, artists, and more girls.
“It’s not all about just running a robot,” Dan said. “We want to change the world.”
To view the NeoBots presentation in Redmond on YouTube, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQF88xeYEKg. The club website, still under construction, is www.neobots2903.org.
To donate to the NeoBots club at Arlington High, contact Sarver at 360-618-6300, ext. 3800, or email brett_sarver@asd.wednet.edu.
Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427; gfiege@heraldnet.com.
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