Humans of Clearpath: Spring 2022 Co-ops
Another term has come to an end. Which means we have to say good bye to a group of talented students as they head back to school. We asked a few of our students to share their experiences, what they worked on and what advice they have for our future co-ops! Read on to find out more.
Eric Chiang
Electrical Design Co-op (OTTO Motors)
Q: Why did you choose a co-op term with Clearpath?
I had worked a co-op term with Clearpath before, and the people that I worked with were so amazingly talented and knowledgeable, that I wanted to come back and learn from them more.
Q: What did you work on this term?
This term I performed testing on the battery packs for our robots, and worked on updating the design of some of our PCBs .
Q: What is your proudest achievement over the last four months?
Applying what I learned from battery technology to create tests that contributed to critical design decisions.
Q: What is your favorite part about working at Clearpath?
The mentorship from people who have worked in industry for decades. It’s a great feeling to go into work everyday knowing that you’ll learn something new.
Q: If there is one word to describe your co-op experience at Clearpath, what would that word be?
Engaging.
Q: What advice do you have for future Clearpath co-ops?
Don’t be limited by your role! Talking to other people from different disciplines and roles in the company is a great way to gain perspective and makes you a much better engineeer.
Evelyn Campbell
Software Developer Co-op (OTTO Motors)
Q: Why did you choose a co-op term with Clearpath?
I was very intrigued by what Clearpath does. By looking through the Clearpath and Otto Motors websites I gained a very positive impression of the company. I believe that robotics has a bright future and I feel that Clearpath is making valuable strides towards that future.
Q: What did you work on this term?
I spent most of my time this term problem solving to deduce the cause of issues, creating solutions to bugs, implementing new features and testing these changes on the robots.
Q: What is your proudest achievement over the last four months?
My proudest achievement over the last four months has been completing my burndown tickets for our latest release. This was when I spent the most time doing in-person developer testing with the robots, and I was proud to see the outcome of my changes. I felt confident that I could keep up with my team, despite being a co-op student.
Q: What is your favorite part about working at Clearpath?
Working at HQ has been my favorite part about my co-op term at Clearpath. Being able to observe and test with the robots in person has been a great experience and I’m always impressed by how smart our robots are. On top of that, it’s always nice to be able to see my team in person.
Q: If there is one word to describe your co-op experience at Clearpath, what would that word be?
Fulfillment – I took a lot of fulfillment from being able to learn a lot of new things here, and feel that I was gaining valuable experience from my co-op term. Working with the robots physically allowed me to observe the output of all the work we do which was a very rewarding experience in itself.
Q: What advice do you have for future Clearpath co-ops?
Take the most of this opportunity to learn, further your skills as a developer, and request feedback often. Be proactive and don’t be afraid to ask questions, via slack or in person. When you can, take the time to get to know the people in your team, there are a lot of great minds here at Clearpath!
Kate Leung
Robotics Test Developer Co-op (Clearpath Robotics)
Q: Why did you choose a co-op term with Clearpath?
I chose Clearpath because I wanted to explore the robotics industry! Since the team is so multidisciplinary, I was excited to learn from all kinds of people about the work they’re dedicating themselves to. I also knew that I’d be able to make real contributions to the team, which was exciting.
Q: What did you work on this term?
I worked on testing outdoor navigation ground vehicles. This includes designing and executing a test suite for different aspects of the robot in all kinds of weather conditions, then analyzing and presenting the results from these tests. The project I’ve mostly been working on involves testing the limits of the robot, so that we can provide accurate and well-tested metrics to customers.
Q: What is your proudest achievement over the last four months?
In order to test the robot’s obstacle detection of differently sized objects, I had a really interesting setup for two weeks, and an efficient system to get the results. I really enjoyed the process of running these experiments, then later, determining common patterns in the behavior of the robot with shorter, thinner, or even different coloured obstacles.
Q: What is your favorite part about working at Clearpath?
The people! Everyone I’ve worked with has been very friendly, and willing to help out if I have any concerns. For example, since part of my job involves having to test the robot outside in the snow, they made sure I got a cozy Clearpath tuque to help keep warm!
Q: If there is one word to describe your co-op experience at Clearpath, what would that word be?
Valuable. I’ve gained a lot of insight about the work done here, and the experience I’ve gained here will always stick with me!
Q: What advice do you have for future Clearpath co-ops?
Ask lots of questions!
Interested in working at Clearpath?
If you’re interested in working alongside robot enthusiasts AND actual robots check out our Careers page.