About this event

🛠️ Rapid Prototyping & Intro to SolidWorks

Design Your Own Robotics Parts (Hands-On Workshop)

📅 Date & Time

Sat, Jan 3, 2026 · 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM PST

📍 Location

Shade Hotel bar, Sea Level
655 North Harbor Drive · Redondo Beach, CA

In-person workshop
(Bring your fully charged laptop with Solid Works installed to get hands on design experience)

🔍 Event Overview

Have you ever had an idea for a robot, mechanism, enclosure, or custom part — but didn’t know how to turn that idea into something real?
This event is a hands-on introduction to rapid prototyping and SolidWorks, one of the most widely used professional 3D CAD tools in engineering, robotics, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing.
We’ll focus on practical, real-world design, not theory. By the end of the session, you won’t just understand how SolidWorks works — you’ll have designed an actual part that could be used in a robotics or hardware project.
This workshop is designed for inventors, makers, builders, and deep thinkers who want to move from ideas → digital models → physical parts.
No pressure. No judgment. Just focused learning and creative building.

🧠 What You’ll Learn (In Plain English)

We’ll start from the ground up and move at a pace that works for beginners, while still offering depth for experienced builders.
You’ll learn how to:

• Turn an idea or sketch into a dimensioned 2D design
• Convert that design into a fully editable 3D part
• Modify designs quickly using parametric modeling
• Create parts commonly used in robotics:
• Brackets
• Mounts
• Enclosures
• Linkages
• Structural components
• Understand design intent — how to build models that don’t break when you change them
• Prepare your design for 3D printing or fabrication
• Think about how mechanical parts interface with:
• Sensors
• Motors
• Actuators
• Embedded systems
• AI-driven robotics workflows

You do not need prior CAD experience. If you can use a mouse and think visually, you can do this.

⚙️ What Is SolidWorks — and Why It Matters

SolidWorks is a professional-grade CAD platform used by engineers and inventors worldwide to design real products — from consumer devices to industrial robots.
Why we’re using it:

• It’s parametric (change one dimension, everything updates)
• It mirrors how real engineering teams design hardware
• It’s powerful enough for advanced robotics, yet accessible to beginners
• Skills learned here transfer to:
• Fusion 360
• Onshape
• Inventor
• Real engineering jobs and startups

This isn’t “toy software.” You’re learning a tool used in the real world.

🤖 Rapid Prototyping + Robotics + AI (How It All Connects)

Modern robotics and AI don’t live only in code — they live in physical systems.
At this event, we’ll discuss and demonstrate:

• How mechanical design enables robotics intelligence
• Why AI systems still depend on:
• Precision mounts
• Sensor alignment
• Structural rigidity
• Mechanical constraints
• How CAD fits into an AI + robotics pipeline
• How rapid prototyping lets you:
• Test ideas quickly
• Iterate without huge costs
• Improve designs based on real-world feedback

If you’re interested in AI, robotics, drones, automation, or hardware startups — this is foundational knowledge.

🧰 Workshop Structure (What the Session Will Look Like)

• Welcome & context (why this matters)
• Live walkthrough of SolidWorks basics
• Guided hands-on modeling (you follow along)
• Independent design time with help available
• Optional sharing & discussion of designs
• Next steps: how to continue learning and building

You can work quietly, ask questions, or collaborate — whatever works best for you.

👥 Who This Event Is For

This workshop is ideal for:

• Inventors and makers who like building things
• People interested in robotics, automation, or AI
• Engineers (or aspiring engineers)
• Neurodivergent thinkers who prefer structured, logical tools
• Anyone who enjoys turning abstract ideas into concrete systems

You do not need:

• A degree
• Prior CAD experience
• Prior robotics experience

Just curiosity and a desire to build.

📦 What to Bring

• A laptop (Windows preferred; Mac users welcome if configured)
• SolidWorks installed (trial or student version is fine)
• Optional: sketches, ideas, or problems you want to design around
• Curiosity, focus, and questions

🚀 What You’ll Walk Away With

By the end of the session, you will have:
✅ A working understanding of SolidWorks fundamentals
✅ At least one 3D part you designed yourself
✅ Confidence to keep designing independently
✅ A mental model of how hardware, robotics, and AI connect
✅ New connections with people who think like you
This is not a lecture — it’s a skills-building session.

🧩 About the Group

This meetup is part of Asperger’s Inventors, Makers & Entrepreneurs, a community built for people who enjoy deep focus, technical creativity, and meaningful collaboration.
We value:

• Curiosity
• Respect
• Clear communication
• Shared learning
• Building real things

If you’ve ever felt out of place in typical networking events — this space is for you.