Reading Room
The Fictionlab Blog
Explore a mix of technical guides, industry insights, and stories from inside our Robot house. Whether it’s engineering deep dives, business analysis, or the history behind our rover competitions, this is where we share our knowledge and culture.
From Idea to Proof-of-Concept Robot: How a Robotics R&D Project Runs Step by Step
How a robotics R&D project turns an idea into a proof of concept: success criteria, platform choice, integration, lab and…
Read more Wheeled Mobile Robot Kinematics: Differential, Skid-Steer and Ackermann Models in Practice
Forward and inverse kinematics for differential, skid-steer and Ackermann robots: the equations, why skid-steer needs a slip correction and Python…
Read more Gazebo vs Isaac Sim vs Webots: Choosing a Robot Simulator for ROS 2
Gazebo, Isaac Sim or Webots for a ROS 2 project? Physics, sensor realism, GPU requirements, licensing and setup time compared,…
Read more Outsourcing ROS 2 Development: 15 Questions to Ask a Robotics Software Partner
Fifteen questions to ask before outsourcing ROS 2 development: architecture and DDS experience, testing and CI, documentation, code ownership and…
Read more Educational Robots for Universities: What Separates a Teaching Platform From a Toy
What separates a university teaching robot from a toy: durability under student use, ROS 2 support, learner-friendly documentation and an…
Read more Brushed vs Brushless DC Motors for Mobile Robots: Torque, Efficiency and Control
Brushed or brushless DC motors for a mobile robot? Torque, efficiency, lifetime, encoders and control electronics compared, plus how motor…
Read more What Is an Unmanned Ground Vehicle? Definition, Types and Real Applications
What an unmanned ground vehicle is, how UGVs are classified by drive, mass and autonomy level, how they differ from…
Read more Build vs Buy: When a Custom Mobile Robot Makes Sense and When to Start From a Platform
Build from scratch, modify a platform or buy one ready? A decision matrix for custom mobile robots covering cost, time…
Read more Mobile Mapping Robots for GIS, BIM and Archaeology: Sensors, Accuracy and Workflow
How a mobile mapping robot produces data for GIS, BIM and archaeology: sensor stack, what really drives accuracy, the workflow…
Read more Choosing a ROS 2 Middleware: Fast DDS, Cyclone DDS and Zenoh Compared
Fast DDS, Cyclone DDS or Zenoh? What the ROS 2 middleware actually changes in discovery, Wi-Fi behaviour and multi-robot setups,…
Read more RViz2 vs Foxglove: Visualising and Debugging a Robot in the Field
RViz2 or Foxglove for field debugging? How the two tools differ in remote access, bandwidth control, replaying MCAP recordings and…
Read more Inspecting Solar Farms With a UGV: Where Ground Robots Beat Drones and Where They Don’t
Where a ground robot beats a drone on a solar farm and where it does not: close-range thermal inspection, navigating…
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