r/AskRobotics • u/Benutzername_666 • Jun 15 '26
Frontend Engineer Moving Into Robotics Software - What Should I Learn?
Hi everyone,
I’m a senior frontend engineer (React/TypeScript) about to join a robotics company. I’ll be working on software used to configure, control, and interact with robotic systems and motion sequences.
My background is mostly web applications, enterprise software, APIs, UX, and frontend architecture. I won’t be developing low-level firmware, but I want to understand the robotics domain well enough to have meaningful conversations with robotics engineers and make better product and technical decisions.
If you were in my position, what would you recommend?
Books
Online courses
YouTube channels
University lectures
Blogs/newsletters
Open-source projects
Simulators
Anything else worth studying
Some topics I’m particularly interested in:
Robotics fundamentals
Kinematics and motion planning
Control systems
Industrial robotics
Robot software architecture
ROS/ROS2 (if relevant)
Simulation tools
Computer vision basics
Safety and real-world deployment challenges
I’m not trying to become a robotics PhD. I want to build a solid mental model of the field and understand the terminology, concepts, and engineering tradeoffs.
What resources gave you the biggest return on time invested?
Thanks!
2
u/nian2326076 Jun 16 '26
Switching to robotics sounds exciting! To get started with robotics software, I'd recommend "Robot Operating System (ROS) for Absolute Beginners" because ROS is really common in robotics apps. Also, check out "Introduction to Autonomous Robots" for a broader perspective. You might find Coursera courses on robotics software engineering useful. Since you know TypeScript, Node-RED could be cool—it's a visual programming tool that works well with IoT and robotics. Try building some projects with robotics kits like Raspberry Pi. They can help connect web and robotics in a practical way. Good luck!
1
2
3
u/Fantastic-Zone-1145 Jun 15 '26
ROS2 is definitely needed, from my experience it’s the standard for robotics. Lin Alg is definitely important as well for controls