# What is a Testbed?

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This section is intended to pair with Unit 1, Lesson 4 of the Intro to Robotics V2 curriculum.
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A **testbed** is a testing environment for hardware and software components. Testbeds are a fantastic tool to practice programming, troubleshoot parts, collect data, and continue to grow familiar with the EDU Kit V2. 

Similar setups are used by professional engineers and companies as part of the development, quality control, and refinement processes! Depending on the end goal, these testbeds can be designed a variety of different ways. For example, if a company is gathering data on how much weight a part can handle, the testbed may be designed to continually move over a period of time while adding new amounts of weight.

## In the Classroom:

Let's take a look at the testbed used within Unit 1 of the curriculum:

<figure><img src="https://3023198990-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FnKoHwxC0Q1NBpLowZUmu%2Fuploads%2Fozu94o2P7nza9ROkIVD4%2Funknown.png?alt=media&#x26;token=6fb63239-5476-4ec8-9a26-59937cb13f13" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

The goals of our testbed are:

* Provide a base frame that can be reused
* Allow mounting of 3 different kinds of actuators&#x20;
* Demonstrate using actuator brackets for the different kinds of actuators
* Safely secure moving parts while creating our first OpMode
* Create an easy to move platform for organizing and storing student projects outside of class

This testbed can additionally be used for testing new actuators, Control Hubs, batteries, or sensors upon receiving them. **This is a recommended best practice even if they may not be used yet!**

### Building the Testbed

{% file src="<https://3023198990-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FnKoHwxC0Q1NBpLowZUmu%2Fuploads%2FJvweIg0XOq1ARYWLq8W0%2FDUO%20Testbed%20Build%20Guide.pdf?alt=media&token=4f091949-cbee-4ceb-a283-13cc401b6f6f>" %}

Completing the Testbed build takes 20-30 minutes.