Robots Fight It Out in Robogames at TBU
2. February 2023A heat of a popular, nationwide competition called the Robogames took place at the Faculty of Applied Informatics (FAI) on 1 February 2023. More than 50 participants competed in four disciplines – “Robot Sumo”, “Mini-robot Sumo”, “Line Follower Robot” and “Cleaning Robot”. There were three age categories – under 16s, under 19s and 19 and over.
“Robot Sumo and Line Follower Robot contests are held across the world, at national and world championship levels,” explained Assoc. Prof. Jiří Vojtěšek, the Dean of the FAI.
The aim of the games is to draw attention to robotics and programming. Robotics clubs have grown in popularity at primary and secondary schools, and the subject is increasingly becoming an aspect of the IT curriculum.
Contestants bring along robots they build themselves in such clubs to compete at the venue. They have to program and prepare their fighting bots to take on and ultimately defeat others in the competition.
“With regard to Robot Sumo, I especially like the fact that young people get to play with LEGO, but careful consideration has to be paid to their creations. After all, they need to construct a robot that pushes another out of the ring,” said Assoc. Prof. Jiří Vojtěšek. He added, “At the same time, they’re learning to program, because the robots act on their own; no one is allowed to control them. This means contestants put their robots in the ring and activate them, but each robot must then find its opponent and push it over the line. Fixed rules governing the sizes and weights of robots exist, for instance.”
The first Robogames competition at the TBU’s FAI happened in 2017, though in 2020 and 2021 it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Participation is free of charge, and the event has proven highly popular with sponsors, which supply a host of prizes for participants to win.