Member Spotlight - Gabriel

Check out Gabriel's's personal web site here.

Gabriel's robots include: Tilt-A-Wheel, Razor 2, RISDozer, Platform, and SpyBlade

Question 1: How did you get involved in the LEGO Robotics Group of Ann Arbor? I was in East Hampton, NY, when I became a LUGNet member and I noticed that someone from Michigan is starting a Lego robotics club. At the time I was frustrated because I wasn't there! But when I came back to Detroit I became an active member of this great group! Question 2: What do you do for work? How does this work effect your Robotics? Oops... Right now I work in the construction field. This doesn't help my robotics, not even a bit. But I used to work as a computer technician in Romania. This gave me just a little experience in procedural programming and CAD. I also have some experience with mechanics and electronics. I always dreamed to build a real robot someday. Lego Mindstorms is a great start and I feel that one of these days my dream will became reality. Question 3: So far, what has been the most challenging aspect of Robotics and why? A Lego robot is a blind and almost senseless machine. The most challenging aspect is to make it aware of it's surroundings. The limitations of the system make this even harder. But even so, I am amazed by the ways people find to overcome such a primitive system... Question 4: Out of all of your creations, which made you feel the most satisfaction when it was complete and why? Hmm... Actually so far none of my creations were complete or satisfactory. My CanGrabber was pretty close, but TiltAWheel's Peoples's Choice Award gave me the most satisfaction. Question 5: What if any inspiration do you use when it comes to starting a new Robot? Depends. I always use some inspiration. I don't want to reinvent the wheel. I look in real life, contests, movies and Internet. I get ideas, ways to solve problems. Sometimes I have original ideas. I just wish to be able to make them more reliable... I guess it's like everything else: you have to practice a lot to became an expert!

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