Physical things are hard, there are a million little issues. Sometimes 'seeing' a piece or component can reveal a lot as it represents the solution to a proble

Physical things are hard, there are a million little issues. Sometimes 'seeing' a piece or component can reveal a lot as it represents the solution to a problem that is not otherwise evident. The smallest details like the size/type of motors, power ratings, how they are positioned, what kinds of sensors they use can reveal a lot. To boot, you're not dealing with a toy that can fall apart after 10 uses - this is gear that ostensibly has to be fairly robust, which introduces a whole other set of quality challenges beyond 'just making it work'. Example: making a little 'toy car' that ran across the floor, we ran into all sorts of control issues with the motors as the car encountered surfaces of different types, and also issues with getting caught on carpet etc.. Upon seeing how our partners made a previous device, it became pretty clear how they solved the problem. Instead of testing various different configurations and trying to find the 'best fit' - we just used their example.