BYU’s Combat Robotics Club creates a space for members to find new interests and learn that if they have the desire to do something, they can.
Cole Cecil founded the club to help people build their confidence in trying new things, telling members that "if you have any desire to do it, you can."
“The reason we have this club is to help people realize their own potential in making their own robots and help people figure the steps out," Cecil said.
He first became interested in combat robotics from watching the show “BattleBots,” and didn’t believe at first he could do it.
After further research and the involvement of his brother, he realized how accessible it can be and started the club at BYU.
The club allows members to learn how to use different skills, such as prototyping and computer-aided design, or CAD, to make their robots come to life.
Jared Jenkins is a neuroscience major and hopes to work in creating prosthetics. The skills he has learned in the club are easily transferable to what he wants to do in his career.
“There's a ton of prototyping with combat robotics, and so kind of nailing down the skills of CAD basic circuits and having an intuitive sense of mechanical engineering is going to be really helpful, especially in prototyping prosthetics,” Jenkins said.
In general, the club and the combat robotics world has an overwhelming sense of sportsmanship, increasing the club's appeal.
“You learn about engineering and stuff like that, but you could take a class to do that," Jenkins said. "The purpose of BattleBots is to have fun.”
Club members often battle against each other in preparation for upcoming tournaments and battles with other schools, such as the University of Utah and Utah State. In doing so they can find ways to improve their robots and build ideas off each other.
John Hellewell found his “niche” when joining the club and enjoys the competition and atmosphere.
“We all help each other — if I was missing electronics, people would help donate spare parts and things to help me get my bot running, even if I was going against them,” Hellewell said.
Hellewell also said that the sportsmanship within the club is great, which is one of his favorite things.
Cecil has seen many members find community and belonging in his club, and hopes it continues on after he leaves.
As a soon-to-be graduate, Cecil has found that the club has helped him stand out in job interviews. His club allows members to create their own robots, acting as an independent project they can put on resumes.
“It set me apart from the other competition which was great, which is why I want more people to be a part of the club,” Cecil said.
The club has grown exponentially since it started and has introduced a number of people to the combat robotics world.
Club members such as Jenkins and Hallewell hope to continue in the combat robotics world after graduation.
“It's just been lots of fun to see the excitement grow and how people actually want to do this,” Cecil said.