Looking for the best robot projects to practice your hardware and software skills? This article contains lists of exciting projects you can try on your own. In this article, we will share the top skills you need to build impressive robots, plus template examples to get started. We will also guide you on how to showcase your expertise in robotics by creating a portfolio.
The evolution of technology brought us to the world of artificial intelligence where machines are capable of replicating human behavior. In the world of robotics, everything is possible. Using computer science and machine learning concepts, you can now create incredible robots at home.
5 Skills That Robot Projects Can Help You Practice
Robotics requires adept hardware and software knowledge. In this section, you will learn about the skills you get to practice when working on a robot project. Robotics is a great way to enhance your skills in programming, electronics, and mechanical design. You will also exercise your critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
- Problem-solving. A key part of being a robotics designer is the ability to persevere when issues come up during the various phases of completing a robot. Practicing your skills through completing robotics projects can help with your development of problem-solving skills.
- Ability to learn new technologies. As the robotics world continues to evolve, there are constantly new technologies that you need to understand. Working on various robotics projects will require learning new facets of robotics and machine learning. Having a learning mindset will help make the adoption of new technologies easier and more enjoyable.
- Hardware electronics savvy. The physical structure of a robot is made up of hardware components such as motors, power supply, and Integrated Circuits (IC). In-depth knowledge of their functionalities is required to build a successful robot project. A strong understanding of microcontrollers like Raspberry Pi will enable endless possibilities.
- Circuit design. Electronics parts are connected to a circuit board known as the Printed Circuit Board (PCB). A circuit diagram shows how components are interconnected using lines, blocks, and symbols. You will learn how to read electronics symbols, interpret connections, read component values, and be able to layout circuit diagrams in PCB.
- Programming. The microcontroller sends instructions to hardware components connected to the board. These instructions are a program written in a microcontroller that tells each component when and how they will perform a specific task. C and Python are some of the most commonly used programming languages in robotics.
Best Robot Project Ideas for Beginners
You first need to understand the basics of robotics and gain experience in control systems and simple circuits. In this section, we’ll provide you with fun project ideas that are great for practicing your skills and adding to a professional portfolio.
Obstacle Avoider Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Ability to learn new technologies, programming
An obstacle avoider robot can change its direction without human intervention when an object is detected in its path. The main function of the Ultrasonic sensor is to measure the distance between the robot and an object in front of it. When the sensor transmits signals to the microcontroller, it will instruct the servo motor to make a turn because an object has been detected.
Bluetooth-Controlled Arduino Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Ability to learn new technologies, hardware electronics savvy
This Arduino robot, controlled with a Bluetooth mobile app, is one of the easiest projects that lets you practice your skills in wireless communication. The mobile app controls the movements of the Arduino robot. You don’t need to program the mobile app since it is already available on the internet.
Line Follower Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, circuit design
This path tracing mobile robot is designed to detect and follow a depicted line. An infrared light sensor and infrared LED are used to determine the line. Infrared LED illuminates the infrared light and the sensor will measure the reflectivity of the surface.
Simple Robotic Arm Using Stepper Motor
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, programming
This Arduino robot arm is a programmable device used to grip and pick up an object. It is bigger and more dynamic than a pick and place robot and it uses a joystick controller instead of a keypad. This robot consists of controller, driver motor circuits, stepper motors, and a regulated power supply. Robotic arm is a good project for both students and hobbyists.
Plant Irrigator
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, ability to learn new technologies
Having house plants is awesome, but knowing when to water them can be confusing. With this simple everyday robot project, you can perform a common household chore through automation. The project contains a moisture sensor that sets-off the water pump through microcontroller programming and waters the plant.
Best Intermediate Robot Project Ideas
Intermediate projects have more complex circuit connections than beginners’ projects. They have more dynamic movements and most of them use wireless communications. There are many options you can choose from to create a more challenging project.
Voice-Controlled Robot Using Raspberry Pi
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Circuit design, programming
An Android application is used to transmit voice commands to the robot’s microcontroller via Bluetooth. The smartphone should be connected with the Bluetooth module to communicate with the Raspberry Pi. Then the microprocessor will transmit the signal to the motor driver. This project will test your skills in Python programming and wireless communication.
Self-Balancing Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, programming
A self-balancing robot is a two-wheeled small vehicle that prevents itself from falling. A DC motor is connected to each wheel which keeps the robot balanced. A MPU-6050 sensor with accelerometer and gyroscope is used to determine the tilt angle of the robot. This project is composed of an Arduino Uno board, GY-521 module, DC motor, and L293D Motor driver.
Autonomous Surface Monitoring Robot (ASMR)
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Ability to learn new technologies, hardware electronics savvy
ASMR with an automatic controller identifies the health condition of the soil by determining its characteristics such as soil moisture and temperature. This robot can detect air humidity in the surrounding environment as well. Some of the main components of this robot are the soil moisture sensor, LM35 temperature sensor, Arduino Atmega 328 IC, and GSM module.
Automatic Scrap Collecting Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, programming
This project is designed to remove scraps from different places thus eliminating the need for manual work. The basic components of this robotics project are DC motor and DC motor driver, a microcontroller, LEDs, a regulated power supply, battery, and an IP camera.
Sun Tracking Robot with Solar Panel
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, programming
Show off your forward thinking with this sun tracking solar panel Arduino robot project. By being able to track the sun, the solar panel can take advantage of the available sun throughout the entire day. The use of an Arduino Uno board in this project is key to informing the robot when it’s time to adjust to a new position for better sun exposure.
Advanced Robot Project Ideas
Most of the advanced robot projects use autonomous technology with wide robotic applications. If you already have a background in robotics, these robotics project ideas are best for practicing and enhancing your technical skills. To become an expert, a strong understanding of robotics programming and electronics is highly advantageous.
Firefighting Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Problem-solving, hardware electronics savvy
This robot is operated by Android applications through wireless communication. It can move along the ground autonomously, searching and detecting flames, and hosing them with water to put them out. Creating a robot like this for your portfolio shows that you are capable of solving real problems. It also requires hardware knowledge to implement a water tanker.
Autonomous Surveillance Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Ability to learn new technologies, programming
In this project, you will be creating a robot for surveillance applications. A Raspberry Pi camera module is installed to record videos and identify people using face recognition technology. If an unidentified person is detected, it will notify the owner by sending an email. A Passive Infrared (PIR) sensor is also used to sense movements of human beings within the range of a given distance.
Arduino Operated Robotic Lawnmower Power
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, circuit design
This Arduino robot lawnmower is a fun and useful project to complete that can impress prospective employers. Using advanced technology, this autonomous robot lawnmower navigates within a set boundary and then automatically changes direction once it detects the boundary wire. A range of components is required to complete this advanced robot.
Robotic Bartender
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Hardware electronics savvy, programming
Building a robotic bartender is as easy as programming its robotic arm to craft different drinks. Who wouldn’t want to spend more time enjoying the party and less time hosting? This impressive robot project uses a RobotGeek Snapper Arm and a Pumping Station to combine liquids for whatever cocktail or mocktail you want to drink.
Pick and Place Robot
- Robotics Skills Practiced: Ability to learn new technologies, problem-solving
Leave the tidying up to the robots, with this pick and place robot project. This project combines two robots into one: a gesture-controlled moveable base and a robotic arm for picking up and placing items. The arm is remote controlled and wireless so it can move around a space. It uses both Arduino and Raspberry Pi technologies, so can display your prowess in both.
Robot Starter Project Templates
GitHub is a repository hosting service that offers lots of templates from trusted sources for your project. Although you can still create simple robots without using templates, it is recommended for you to take advantage of them. Templates contain reusable libraries to make compiling code easier. Here is the list of some starter project templates used in robotics.
- Simple Robot Template. This template allows you to create a robot that can move along the given direction and distance. Available on GitHub, Simple Robot uses the C# programming language.
- Basic Python Template. This template is the best choice to create a Python-based robot. Python is one of the most popular programming languages used in robotics and it brings a friendly collection of libraries for your projects.
- Robot Demo App Template. You can create a robot that performs various tasks with this project template. The Robot Demo App uses the Arduino IDE and gives you the ability to make many different Arduino robot projects using this template.
Next Steps: Start Organizing Your Robotics Portfolio
After you establish your skills in robotics projects, the next step would be creating a strong portfolio to show off your talents. A portfolio allows you to organize your skills, training, achievements, and projects. It helps employers evaluate your capabilities when you apply for a job. Your portfolio is the best way to make you stand out among applicants.
Include the Actual Picture of Your Project and Its Mechanical Design
Be sure that the chassis of your robot is neat and clean. Remove excess parts and fragments like glue or soldering lead. The actual picture will show how you organize the mechanical parts as well as the wirings and components. You can also include a picture of your PCB layout to show off your skills in circuit design.
Create a Detailed Process Flow to Show How Your Robot Works
To avoid wordy paragraphs in your portfolio, create a process flow chart that explains the basic functions of each component used in your project. It should discuss the relationship between components and how they communicate with one another. This is another technical way of explaining how your project works.
Discuss the Technical Skills You Applied to the Project
The main purpose of your portfolio is to show off your technical skills in robotics. You should include the programming language, project template, the main hardware parts, and the microcontroller or microprocessor you used to build your robot. You should ensure that your technical skills are written concisely in your portfolio.
Robot Projects FAQ
Before you can start your first robot project, you should first learn electronics, programming, and microcontrollers. You can start building a small project until you have the expertise to create more advanced projects. You can study robotics and machine learning by enrolling in online courses and training.
"Career Karma entered my life when I needed it most and quickly helped me match with a bootcamp. Two months after graduating, I found my dream job that aligned with my values and goals in life!"
Venus, Software Engineer at Rockbot
Arduino Uno is a user-friendly microcontroller that’s easy to learn. It is recommended for students and beginners to use Arduino boards for practicing their technical skills and knowledge. Arduino has a programming platform that is open-source and can be downloaded for free. There are also many Arduino robot project ideas you can find on the internet.
Yes, the evolving tech industry increases the demand for robotics engineers and developers. Because of this demand, salaries in robotics are high. The average salary for a robotics engineer is $84,805, according to PayScale. Entry-level workers can expect to earn around $77,427 per year, while experienced engineers earn an average salary of $100,555.
Learning robotics isn’t hard, however it does require patience, commitment, and a passion for electronics and programming. You should also be tech-savvy, creative, and innovative.
About us: Career Karma is a platform designed to help job seekers find, research, and connect with job training programs to advance their careers. Learn about the CK publication.
