Northwest Aerospace News April | May Issue No.14 | Page 48

N
estled inconspicuously in a
small corner of Altek, a Liberty
Lake, Washington contract manu-
facturer, is command central for one
of the country’s leading-edge drone/
robotics educational programs —
Minds-i. Started in 2005 by Altek
President Mike Marzetta, and his
wife, Christy, Minds-i seeks to excite
students about STEM-related careers
through a variety of robotic and
drone curriculums, education labs,
and kits.
To create Minds-i’s educational sys-
tem, Mike combined his childhood
fascination with remote-controlled
cars, models, and LEGO bricks with
his professional background in au-
tomation, technology, and manufac-
turing. The curriculums come with
documented Common Core Math
and Next Generation Science artic-
ulation guides to fit with education
mandates.
The company’s patented “quick-
lock” construction system allows
users to connect/disconnect pieces together easily,
while allowing for rotating arms, levers, and suspen-
sion systems. Connectors and small beams of varying
sizes can be formed into frames, chassis, or foundations
that can be static, robotic, or motorized. The technol-
ogy capitalizes on the strengths of traditional toys like
LEGO and erector sets, but adds flexibility to capture
the imagination of young innovators.
“One of the things that sets us apart is that our
products are designed to not only be easy to
build and durable enough for indoor or out-
door use,” Marzetta explained, “but they
can easily be modified so a student
can truly think and design some-
thing out-of-the-box.”
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