Blake Wilson and R2D2met us at the booth for Roboteq at Promat 2019 in Chicago for his first interview with IndustrialSage!
And yes, you’re seeing that right. R2D2 attended Promat! Two R2s, in fact…as well as a spunky little MSE-6-Series repair droid! (For those of you who aren’t mega-nerds, MSE-6s are the small black boxes zooming around the Death Star corridors.)
We found Roboteq because we heard the Star Wars theme playing a few aisles away. Like moths to a flame, we followed. And we weren’t the only ones, either. Attendees, new and old, swarmed around the droids and clamored for selfies. They even scanned R2D2’s attendee badge! (Yes, he had a badge!)
If ever you’re searching for a prime example of trade show marketing done right…this was it.
Roboteq specializes in electronic components for mobile robotics systems. They work in all sorts of fields, including industrial, agricultural, or military. “We do motor controllers…guidance sensors…battery management. We make things as easy to integrate into a robotics system as possible,” Blake explained to us. It also didn’t hurt that they were graced with the presence of arguably the most famous robot in the world.
As it turns out, Roboteq’s parts are so universal that they’ve caught the attention of the Astromech Droid Builders Club. The club now uses a large number of Roboteq parts in their replicas of R2D2 and other droids.
Beside the aforementioned R2 units, Roboteq is also unique because they’re a key developer of dual-channel brushless DC motor controllers. “Nobody else does that,” Blake pointed out. Those parts are made specifically for mobile robotics. Being the only creator and manufacturer for them is a pretty big deal.
Over-all, the marketing outreach for Roboteq at Promat inspired everybody. Lovers of science and fiction gravitated to their booth. Frankly, nobody with a passion for robotics should pass it up.
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