Beyond Robotics | RFORCE Team Feature
Introduction
Meet JOINUS. Meet the minds behind the machine.
Robots compete, rankings move, and the numbers tell a story. But every now and then, a team comes along that reminds us why robotics competitions exist in the first place. Not just to build machines, but to build better people and better communities.
Introducing JOINUS, VEX V5 Team 1791V, a high school team from Hsinchu City, Taiwan, competing under Curious X-Lab. This is the first dedicated team feature ever published on RFORCE, and it could not be a better way to showcase what the platform is truly about: putting robotics competitors in the spotlight, globally, as athletes, thinkers, and humans.
Their defining moment came at the One World Signature Event at UC Berkeley, when JOINUS received the Excellence Award. The reaction was one of a kind: ecstatic, yet grateful, with a clear shared understanding that the late nights, the debates, the failures, and the persistence had all paid off.
According to the RFORCE Index, which ranks robotics teams and individuals on a global scale, JOINUS currently stands at #659 in the world, with an RFORCE score of 39.67. That number places them among the strongest competitive teams internationally.
But this article is not about climbing leaderboards alone. Let’s go beyond the robot…
Beyond Robotics: The People Behind 1791V
JOINUS 1791V is built by Tzu Fan Liu (劉子凡), Li Wuting (李梧庭), Sun Huaze (孫華澤), Zhuang Yongcheng (莊詠程), and Wang Hejie (王和杰), guided by their coach Andy, under the Curious X-Lab organization.
JOINUS is not built around a single school or a single schedule. Its members come from different campuses across Hsinchu City, juggling academics, exams, and outside commitments. What brought them together was not convenience, but curiosity. A shared passion for robotics, long conversations about how machines should move, and a desire to build something meaningful as a group.
Some members are competing in VEX for the first time. Others returned with experience. What unites them is respect. JOINUS learned early that strong robots come from strong communication, and that communication does not happen automatically.
This season pushed the team hard. Coordinating schedules across schools proved difficult. Early differences in experience created moments where some voices hesitated and others unintentionally spoke over teammates. JOINUS did not ignore the problem. They addressed it directly.
Structured idea sharing sessions became part of their process. A simple rule guided them forward: there are no bad ideas. Over time, they built a communication system rooted in openness and trust. The team now considers that growth more valuable than any single mechanism or design choice.
Outside of intense build sessions, the team makes a deliberate effort to stay grounded. After every practice, they go out to dinner together. It is a simple routine, but an important one. Laughter, inside jokes, and playful reminders of past mistakes help reset the pressure. Errors are not buried. They become shared references, used to sharpen focus rather than assign blame.
When they are not in the lab, many of the team members are on the basketball court. The game builds stamina, coordination, and mental resilience, traits that carry directly into competition day. Music fills their workspace, keeping energy high. Photography is another shared interest. Cameras come out not just for fun, but to capture high quality images of their robot, blending creativity with engineering and turning documentation into storytelling.
At the center of that culture stands their coach, Andy. From the team’s earliest days as VEX newcomers, he guided them step by step, not only through technical challenges, but through leadership and communication. His philosophy is demanding and clear: continuous trying, continuous thinking. On the RFORCE Index, the JOINUS coach is ranked #659 globally with an RFORCE score of 39.67, mirroring the balance and discipline seen across the entire program. Under his mentorship, JOINUS learned that progress does not come from avoiding mistakes, but from confronting them together.
That mindset runs through to the athletes as well:
Team captain Tzu Fan Liu (劉子凡) leads at the intersection of programming, structure, and responsibility. His robotics journey began with LEGO, moved through EV3, and now lives in VEX V5. Taking on the captain role this season meant managing more than code. It meant guiding people. On the RFORCE Index, JOINUS competes in a deeply competitive programming field, with the Programmer unit ranked #2,881 globally. Outside the lab, photography allows Tzu Fan to slow down and observe, a contrast that shaped his patient communication style and steady leadership.
Mechanical design is driven in large part by Li Wuting (李梧庭), whose fascination with cars and performance engineering brought him to JOINUS. His commitment paid off when he successfully designed the structure for the team’s new generation robot. Competing as part of the Builder unit ranked #659 globally, Li represents the engineering consistency that defines JOINUS. Robotics helped him grow from a reserved thinker into a confident designer willing to defend ideas and iterate openly.
That same builder strength is reinforced by Sun Huaze (孫華澤), a structure ideator who balances robotics with leadership as Vice President of his school’s Student Union. From LEGO to VEX, building has always been his language. One of his proudest moments came when a key structural idea he developed significantly improved the robot’s performance. Robotics taught him to approach problems methodically, a skill that reaches far beyond competition.
On the field, precision belongs to Zhuang Yongcheng (莊詠程). As driver and operator, his focus and control define match play. Outside robotics, he sharpens those skills through competitive e-sports, training reaction speed and hand eye coordination. His dedication led to a new personal best in Driver Skills. On the RFORCE Index, the JOINUS Driver unit is ranked #1420 globally with an RFORCE score of 26.55, placing him in a highly competitive international pool. Robotics taught him how to accept failure, reflect honestly, and return stronger.
The future of JOINUS is already taking shape through Wang Hejie (王和杰), the youngest member of the team. As an assistant structure designer, he embraced advanced challenges early, with 3D modeling marking a major breakthrough. Competing as part of the Builder unit ranked #659 globally, he is gaining elite-level experience while still in middle school. Basketball helps him reset mentally, while robotics has strengthened his time management and discipline.
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Now that you’ve met all the members, let us acknowledge the machine which brought JOINUS to the world stage.
Introducing the 1791V Robot
- Primary Drive Base: X-Drive (44W 200 RPM motors)
- Key Mechanisms: Intake/s, S-Conveyor, Outtake, Plate Impact, Hooks, and Guide
- Strategic Focus: High skills score + reduce loader clear time
- Design Philosophy: Precise and Powerful
This is the robot you see in the spotlight. The glamour shots. The clean runs. The refined mechanisms. But like all great machines, its true story lives in the people who built it.
Final Words
JOINUS is a team built on discipline, humor, and genuine passion. Beyond the robot, beyond the rankings, they are proof that the strongest machines are built by people willing to learn together. All VEX teams can learn a valuable lesson from them on how to succeed not only in robotics, but in life in general.
Their message beyond robotics is clear: Mistakes are not setbacks, they are steps, and innovation requires courage, patience, and people willing to support one another through every iteration. Team JOINUS 1791V has introduced itself to the world in this way.
And now the season continues… Stay tuned to RFORCE news to see what these minds from Hsinchu City build next, both on the field and beyond.
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Brought to you by the RFORCE Editorial Team
For the dreamers, the builders, and the next generation of innovators.