UND PRi3D of the North club inspires future engineers with “Robot in Three Days” build

UND students mentor high school robotics teams from the Greater Grand Forks area ahead of the 2025 FIRST Robotics Competition season

Every year, the UND PRi3D of the North student club—one of the UND College of Engineering & Mines’ 20+ student organizations—undertakes a remarkable challenge: building a fully functional robot in just three days following the release of the annual FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) game.

While high school FRC teams have six weeks to design and build their robots, UND’s ambitious three-day build serves as a resource for the entire FRC community by demonstrating innovative approaches to the new challenge.

By completing their robot so quickly, PRi3D of the North provides FRC teams with an early, working prototype to inspire ideas for their own designs. The club, open to all UND students, constructs the robot in the engineering labs on campus, blending creativity and teamwork in a marathon of engineering.

The value of iterative design

“Building a robot in three days is a huge undertaking. When the dust settles, and the robot is finished, the team members are often their own harshest critics,” Andrew Dahlen, faculty advisor for PRi3D of the North, explained.

“I’ve never met an engineer who, after finishing a project, proclaims, ‘I’ve created the perfect design.’ Instead, engineers are quick to point out the faults and what they’d do differently. This honest, iterative process is at the heart of engineering and a key part of what makes the Robot in Three Days build so valuable to the FRC community.”

By showcasing both the strengths and weaknesses of their design, the PRi3D of the North team helps FRC teams better understand the engineering design cycle and how iterative improvements lead to better results.

A night of inspiration and collaboration

Last Monday, PRi3D of the North hosted a robot reveal party on campus, inviting local FRC teams. Five high school teams attended the event, enjoying pizza, lively discussions, and hands-on demonstrations of the UND-built robot.

Members of PRi3D of the North shared insights into their design process, walked attendees through the features of their robot, and discussed the successes and challenges they encountered during the build. They also provided an up-close look at the 2025 FRC game, Reefscape, complete with the game elements the club had constructed.

The highlight of the evening was the opportunity for students and coaches to drive the robot, test game strategies, and collaborate on ideas for the upcoming competition. Coaches and students expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to learn from UND’s team and bring new insights to their own builds.

Jumpstarting the 2025 season

Seeing a working robot so early in the season, along with learning from its successes and challenges, is invaluable.  It’s not just about the robot—it’s about the knowledge and collaboration teams take home to improve our own designs.

Through events like this, UND fosters strong connections between college students and high school teams, creating a community of innovators driven to solve problems and embrace the iterative process that defines engineering.

The countdown to next year’s build for PRi3D of the North has already begun. Videos of the Pri3D robot can be found on YouTube.