National Engineers Week (February 18-24) is a time to celebrate the contributions of engineers and their role in shaping our world. Engineering and computer science are the foundation of many of the technologies and systems we rely on daily, and they play a crucial role in solving some of the world’s biggest challenges.
This week is an opportunity to recognize the hard work and innovative thinking of engineers and computer scientists, and to inspire the next generation of STEM professionals to follow in their footsteps.
Let’s take a moment to recognize the special engineers at Ozobot who are the key individuals behind the bot to celebrate National Engineers Week!
Ozobot Engineers
Ondrej Stanek – Managing Director & Principal Engineer
Ondřej started developing the firmware and electronics for the first Ozobot robot prototype back in 2012. In 2015, Ondřej founded the Ozobot engineering team in Prague, Czech Republic and he has been at the helm of the engineering department ever since. The team is currently five engineers strong and provides research and development, electrical engineering, and firmware development for Ozobot technology.
Ladislav Laska – Senior Embedded Systems Engineer
As Senior Embedded Systems Engineer, Ladislav leads the electrical engineering team in Prague in developing new products and oversees the integration of hardware with firmware and other software components. During his career at Ozobot, Ladislav has introduced numerous improvements to internal processes, such as the integration framework for automated firmware testing and tooling for release management.
Michaela Maršálková – Javascript Developer Engineer
Michaela Maršálková is a Javascript developer and an inspiring woman in STEM. At Ozobot, Michaela focuses on maintaining and developing the Ozobot Blockly web editor. Among other projects, Michaela has been a key contributor to Ozobot Classroom.
Ondrej Sienczak – Senior Software Engineer
As Senior Software Engineer, Ondřej designs and integrates various software platforms and programming languages with robot hardware. Among other projects, Ondřej has been a key contributor to the advanced functionality of our Ozobot Evo through developing software and integrating emerging technologies directly into the robot.
Ondrej Pilat – Senior Embedded Systems Engineer
A member of Ozobot’s Prague-based team since 2015, Ondřej serves as Senior Embedded Systems Engineer where he is responsible for programming the core functionality of Evo as well as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communication in all Ozobot hardware. Ondřej thinks the coolest part about being an engineer is seeing what you do in the real world. Through coding, you can manipulate the physical world in the digital world.
Bob Belt – Senior Software Engineer
From the Evo App to AR prototypes to creating the first prototypes for the Ozobot Classroom Communicator (OCC), Bob has been able to work on various projects at Ozobot. As Senior Software Engineer, he helps make sure Ozobot’s platforms like the Evo App and MetaBot.
We would be remiss to celebrate National Engineers Week without recognizing Ozobot’s Industrial Design team. Often overlooked as engineers, industrial designers play a crucial role in product development, merging artistic creativity with engineering principles to design innovative and functional products. Read on to discover more about Ozobot’s talented Industrial Designers!
Tim Hemesath – Industrial Designer
Industrial designers do a lot of the behind-the-scenes work when it comes to creating a new product. For example, they design the whole product before it goes into production and create the renderings internal teams use for sales and marketing initiatives. An Industrial Designer at Ozobot and an asset to the engineering team is Tim Hemesath. From designing renderings for STEAM Kits to creating new challenges for Evo, Tim is always busy with a new project.
Ryan Smith – Industrial Designer
The most recent member of Ozobot’s Industrial Design team, Ryan approaches designing, creating, and testing new products with a hybrid method using a mix of digital and physical tools. Depending on the project, some days he creates digital 3D models, renders, or graphics while other days he is prototyping and testing with 3D printers, laser cutters, or cardboard and hot glue. Since beginning at Ozobot in 2022, Ryan has been integral in developing products including STEAM Kits, Ozobot Crawler, and most recently, the new Ozobot Robotic Arm (ORA).
Happy National Engineers from all of us at Ozobot! If you’re curious about engineering and would like to learn more about Ozobot’s team of engineers and the type of work they conduct, check out our Behind-the-Bot employee spotlights on the blog.
