Robot builders from 30 countries will bring together 800 of their creations — designed to engage in combat, play soccer, sumo-wrestle, lift weights or fight fires — to compete at the fourth International RoboGames this weekend in San Francisco.
As in prior years, there will be stiff competition, including in the android soccer event, in which Brazil is expected to challenge last year’s gold medal-winner, the United States.
As of press time, several Mountain View residents were racing the clock to get their bots completed before the weekend. Sixth grader Steven Murray, for one, is nervously anticipating the games. He’ll enter Tribble 2.0 in the adult league for the first time after two years of competing in kids’ events.
“Some adults get quite serious,” says Steven’s father Mike, an electrical engineer who’s helped Steven cultivate his interest in robotics since third grade.
Tribble 2.0, built from 200 legos, will compete in the lego-sumo contest, where each robot, weighing no more than two pounds, must push opponents out of a three-foot ring to be declared victor.
Mike Murray says winning is all about anticipating your opponent’s strengths.
“Some robots go fast and hit you hard; others move slowly but have a powerful push,” he said.
Young David added that Tribble 2.0 was given an unassuming name — derived from an old “Star Trek” episode — so no one will suspect its strength.
Wael Chatila, a software engineer who created GÂglebot, won’t tell you much about his robot, particularly if you’re a reporter. “I don’t want to give away any secrets,” he said.
But the name GÂglebot (pronounced google-bot) provides enough of a clue to its abilities, he says. In his native Swedish tongue, g means “go.”
Chatila was inspired to compete when he brought his family to RoboGames last year and thought he could build a better bot than the winner of Best of Show, a miscellaneous category open to what David Calkins, founder of RoboGames describes as “cool-looking” robots.
“I wanted to build a bot that’s cool and useful,” says Chatila, “one that I can use from day-to-day” and “won’t stick on a shelf somewhere.”
He did reveal that his bot has a camera and an on-board computer, and that he programmed its functions using the iRobot platform.
While competitors are working hard to perfect their bots, Calkins said he was in the middle of “hell week.” He said he and his wife are single-handedly setting up the huge venue at Fort Mason Festival Pavilion with the help of two forklifts.
Even though “we’re in the Guinness Book of Records for world’s largest robot event, we’re not well funded,” Calkins said.
According to Calkins, his favorite thing about the games is the camaraderie between robot builders. Everyone gets along. And if a robot breaks, another engineer or even a competitor will help fix it, he said.
“But it’s really about ego,” Calkins added. “They want their opponents to be as good as possible to prove their bot is the best.”
INFORMATION
What: RoboGames, an international robotics competition
Where: Fort Mason Festival Pavilion, San Francisco
When: June 15-17; Friday noon-6 p.m., Saturday noon-10 p.m., Sunday noon-7 p.m.
Cost: $20 adults, $15 kids ages 7-17, Free for kids 6 and under
Tickets: Available online at www.robogames.net or at the competition
