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The Life of ROBERT ALAN SMITH

Born: Sunday, June 3, 1951

Died: Thursday, June 1, 2017

Robert A. Smith

Of Wilkinsburg, age 66, on Thursday, June 1, 2017. Bob was the beloved father of Troy Powell of Wilkinsburg; Grandfather of Kendall Powell, and Quental Powell; Cherished brother of Diana, Allison, Brian, and Wayne. Bob was born in March of 1951. He was one of the five children of the late John and the late Audrey Smith. He is survived by his siblings Diana, Allison, Brian, and Wayne. From a young age Bob’s siblings recognized his talents as an innovative mechanic. By age 12 he had designed and constructed a pinball machine from wood and all of the necessary individual electronic mechanisms. Bob’s love for mechanics flourished in his working career as an adult. He was employed by the Field Robotics Center at the Carnegie Mellon Robotics Institute where he aided in the construction of exploratory robots. One of the most notable projects that he assisted was the Dante II robot that ventured into the center of Mount Spurr, an active volcano near Anchorage, Alaska in 1994. Even with his gift of intelligence, Bob was a regular guy that enjoyed working on cars, fixing things, physics, and his favorite color, mint green. He was admired for being the “neighborhood mechanic”, fixing many of the neighbor’s cars. Bob will be laid to rest on Saturday at 11 AM in Homewood Cemetery. There will be no visitation at the funeral home. Arrangements made by Patrick T. Lanigan Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc., 700 Linden Ave. at Cable, East Pittsburgh, 412-824-8800. Service Summary Interment 11:00 AM Sat Jun 03, 2017 Homewood Cemetery 1599 S Dallas Ave Pittsburgh, PA 15217 

 

Obituary courtesy of Lanigan Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc. website.

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