DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

[kallahar]

We got a lot of great ideas for new contests, and I think that this current form is one that will challenge everyone, but that should be easy enough for everyone to attempt!

Simply put, it's autonomous cars racing around a track... with guns....

Yeah, it should be cool :)

All the details are at http://defconbots.org/defcon17/

Over the next 2 months or so we'll be building the demo bot & software, so we'll play-test the contest using that. The rules will change a bit I'm sure, so if you have any specific concerns then please post them here!

The #1 goal I have is to get more people involved, I'd love it if some teams would share their project progress and some of the basic code (like how to read sensors, etc) then that would really help out the new people!

Kallahar

[YenTheFirst]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

sounds fun!

[Tacitus]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Would a blog of the development process of the demo bot be of interest to anyone thinking of competing?

[lil_freak]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Would a blog of the development process of the demo bot be of interest to anyone thinking of competing?

Yes, it would be of interest.

[theamk]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

I would be very interested in the development blog! Please, do post it.

By the way, why is hit detection determined by the human judge? I would imagine that one could install a flat 'target' on the side of the car, and detect pellet hits using piezo sensors, something like this:
http://unconventional-airsoft.com/20...le-simon-game/

[YenTheFirst]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

wouldn't that probably get confused with bumping into walls, or the other car?
also, you would have to have sufficient coverage of the vehicle, possibly including wheels.

[kallahar]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Yeah, we figured that getting an automatic sensors to accuratly detect a "hit" (and not false positive) would be pretty difficult. I'd love to see a demo proving me wrong though :)

Kallahar

[theamk]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Bumping into the the wall vs. ball hit should be possible to tell apart - my scope shows quite a different waveforms in each case.
Reliably determining the hit into ANY part of the car is probably complicated. However, if the rules are changed as following:

Each car has a three round targets attached to it, each 3" diameter, one on the back, and two on each side. Hitting the target disables the motor for X seconds.

Then the task becomes much easier. In fact, we can also place a blinking IR led in center of each target, to make vision processing easier.

[microgramme]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

I'm so down! I am under the understanding the cost to get in is much less now -- this should add more competition!

[kallahar]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Yeah, we had IR beacons a couple years ago and the guns just tore them up, killing the electronics. Please build one though and prove me wrong :) I'd say that just a target on the rear is good enough though, maybe a 4" wide by 2" tall rectangle. I think the trick will be getting it reliable on a moving, vibrating platform.

And yeah, the cost should be much much less, $300 or so to get a fairly capable bot. Pretty much all off the shelf components.

Kallahar

[kallahar]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Okay, due to popular demand, I've created a blog! I'm not a blogger, but we'll see how this goes...

http://defconbots.blogspot.com/

Kallahar

[LosT]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Kall, and Tac, you two are slowly becoming like K&R of C fame in my book (K & T)-

How many bots can a team enter?

According to the rules the bot simply has to fit into a 1" square, correct? I may have a clarification issue I would like to ask off board....

What is considered "intentional" damage to other players?

How will inner and outer position be determined? How soon prior to a match will this information be made available?

It does not seem that much AI will be required based on the size and shape of the arena. Can you comment on this?

1057

[kallahar]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

Teams can have as many bots as they want.

1' square includes any arms or outriggers at any time.

intentional damage would be anything considered a physical weapon

inner/outer will probably be decided by random chance at the start of the match, so within a few minutes of the start.

Kallahar

[Homeslice (tm)]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

I am interested in competing this year but I am a bit confused on the rules. I have seen posts relating to targeting opponents and vehicle motor disablement based on a hit, but not on the actual rules page. Is this old info or is this something that is still planned?

[theamk]

Re: DefconBots Robot Contest Rules for next year!

The new rules prohibit any weaponry. You are not allowed to shoot the opponent, and thus there is no need for motor disablement.

The new rules were posted in March 27, 2009 - any weapons/hit detection discussion prior to that date are about old rules, and does not apply today.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated in any way with contest organizers.