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Totally disagree. To a very large degree, the mechanics are a solved problem. Robots have all the mechanical capabilities they need to solve all sorts of useful problems. The challenge is figuring out how to control them to do anything useful. That's mostly software. Sensors too, and electronics to run the software. But it's mostly an algorithmic and coding challenge.

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I do think the mechanical and electrical aspects of robotics (ie the mechatronics) are ignored or glazed over when teaching robotics, especially through simulation. One has a new appreciation for how wheels roll on carpet once they try to implement a control / path planning algorithm on a real robot in their living room! It would be valuable to gain these "appreciations" by learning robotics more intimately with real robots.

Agree, hands on is great and it's an awesome way to learn. Anything that gets hardware in to more hands is positive. However, limited programming of a third-party hardware platform is a far cry from learning "mobile robotics" in any intellectually honest sense, which was my original point. Useful indeed, but a small part of the overall equation.

The grandparent obviously has limited experience. Custom electromechanical systems, particularly mobile ones, are not like software. You can't spitball them together in five minutes for free, and you can't build more than a tiny percentage of things using ready-made parts if you care about weight/space/cost/repeatability/efficiency/etc. Particularly if you are planning to take them to market and want a defensible USP.

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