A non-refundable reservation fee applies for all tours. Transportation from the Huntington Place to the tour location and back is provided.
University of Michigan Ford Robotics Building Tour – SOLD OUT
Date: Sunday, October 1, 2023
Time: 1:00-5:00pm
Fee: US$ 30.00
Opened in 2021, the Ford Robotics building is the home of Michigan Robotics. The 134,000-square-foot, four-story complex houses classrooms, offices, a cafe, and a startup-style open collaboration area and tailored lab space for a variety of robotic technologies. A few highlights include:
- Three-story fly zone for autonomous aerial vehicles
- An outdoor obstacle course for walking robots
- High-bay garage space for self-driving cars
- A rehabilitation lab with a Stewart platform, force plates, and dual-tread treadmill
- A robotics maker space with CNC, 3D printers, soldering irons, and other shop tools
- An outdoor Mars Yard with imitation martian rocks and soil for testing rovers earned Gold LEED Certification for its construction and design
- And in a unique agreement, Ford leases the fourth floor to perform robotics research and engineering in collaboration with U-M and other industry leaders.
Michigan Robotics emphasizes making real robots. Many roboticists specialize in simulations, but implementing a real machine in the real world poses real challenges. These new spaces enable Michigan roboticists to take full advantage of their hands-on orientation in research and teaching, as they work to build machines that better society.
For more information, contact Dan Newman at dnewms@umich.edu
Ford Rouge Factory Tour – CLOSED
Date: Thursday, October 5, 2023
Time: 1:00-3:30pm
Fee: US$ 50.00
The Ford Rouge Factory Tour shows the long history of innovation and ingenuity at the Ford Motor Company and how it continues to the present. You will get an inside look at the making of America’s most iconic truck, the Ford F-150, and immerse yourself in modern manufacturing’s most progressive concepts. During the tour, you will also experience the awe-inspiring scale of a real factory floor as you rev up your inner engineer. Celebrating the engineering ingenuity behind the production of the all-new aluminum body Ford F-150 truck, you will also receive a multisensory Manufacturing Innovation film experience that comes complete with vibrating seats, gusts of wind, 3D projection mapping, and winking robots.