15th Annual Robotics Competition Coming to Trinity College; 110 Teams From Around the World to Participate
Communities from throughout Connecticut will be represented, among them Avon, Hartford, Pomfret, Rocky Hill, Wallingford, Weston, and Windsor. There also will be teams representing about two dozen U.S. colleges and universities.
The teams will qualify in one of five categories: the junior division featuring middle-school students; the high school division; a senior division made up of college students; walking (for robots that use only legs to move); and the expert division, which is open to any team regardless of the contestants' ages or affiliations.
The two-day event will kick off Saturday with pre-qualifying rounds, a symposium and poster session. The main competition will take place on Sunday when the teams, representing the five levels of expertise, compete in two separate contests. The first will feature autonomous computer-controlled robots that will navigate through a maze resembling the floor plan of a house, locate a burning candle, and extinguish the flame in the shortest amount of time.
Contestants may not use joysticks or remote controls. The robot in each division that completes the challenge in the fastest time will be declared the winner. Additional points will be added or deducted as a result of the effectiveness with which their robot performs the task.
Cash prizes will be awarded for first, second, and third place. A trophy will be given to the victorious team in each division and medallions will be awarded to members of the top three teams.
In addition, Versa Products Inc., of New Jersey, the lead sponsor, has provided a free valve to every team. The team in each category that achieves the highest score while using a Versa Valve will receive a $500 cash prize. The company¹s president and CEO is Jan Larsson, a 1977 Trinity graduate. Larsson is not only a Trinity alumna, but she is a former student of David Ahlgren, the contest director and Karl W. Hallden Professor of Engineering at Trinity. Larsson is expected to be on hand during Sunday's events.
The second competition, begun last year, will feature robots that are capable of locating a child, who is presumably disabled, panic-stricken, and unable to find his or her way out of the burning house. The contest, called "Robot Hide and Seek," is sponsored by The Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities. Cash prizes and medallions will be given to the top three teams.
That's not all, however. The Cost Effective Challenge, which features robots that complete the challenge with the best score and lowest design cost, will offer cash prizes to the two most exemplary models. And one robot will be selected as the most inventive and creative design concept.
In partnership with the Israel Institute of Technology, Trinity has created the first and only Olympiad Exam administered at a public robotics competition. Contestants will complete the one-hour exam working independently or with their colleagues. Prizes will be awarded.
At the conclusion of the event, the best overall robot in the entire competition will be declared the World Champion, and will receive a trophy and certificate of achievement.
On Saturday, the Connecticut Council on Developmental Disabilities is sponsoring the presentation, "Interactive Robotics for Health Care and Assistive Technologies," by Francois Michaud of the University of Sherbrooke, Quebec.
The other symposium speakers will be Paul Oh from Drexel University, who will present his work with the indoor aerial robotics competition, and Jenelle Piepmeier from the U.S. Naval Academy, who will talk about nanorobots.
More information: http://www.trincoll.edu/events/robot/
Source: Trinity College
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