RoboCup and Festo are adopting a new approach to mobile robotics competitions – the Festo Logistics League using a standard mobile robot platform Robotino® with open interfaces.
The focus is no longer on sports in the form of soccer or ice hockey. Rather, the game environment takes its inspiration, actors and tasks from the world of industrial production:
- Autonomous mobile robots as autonomous guided vehicles ensure smooth logistics in a complex manufacturing process.
- State-of-the-art technologies such as RFID and GPS navigation require competitors to use innovative ID and navigation methods.
- The selection of suitable programming systems and methods before the start is perhaps the decisive challenge for the teams.
- The other challenge is to develop and use the artificial intelligence of the autonomous mobile robot systems.
- The mix of industrial relevance and sporting motivation means that every prospective logistics or production technology specialist who cannot participate misses out on a key experience.
The competition environment
A 6m x 6m arena represents the production hall in this practice-oriented manufacturing competition. The Unfinished Parts Store and Outgoing Goods are on opposite sides of the arena. The production hallcontains 10 machines each with a specific function that is unknown to the teams at the start of the competition.The machines themselves are actually RFID read/write devices which examine the subassemblies presented to them, establish their production status, and – depending on their function – write a new production status to the chip.
The aim of the game:
The autonomous guided vehicles must attempt to manufacture and deliver the maximum possible number of finished products. The challenges:
Teams first have to discover the unknown functions of the 10 machines as quickly as possible, store their locations in the production hall, and communicate this information to the other team members.
The opposing saboteurs block the paths between the Unfinished Parts store and Outgoing Goods.
Last but not least: Right in front of Outgoing Goods is one more opponent who – like the goalkeeper in ice hockey – does everything possible to prevent the puck from entering the goal, thus preventing delivery of the finished product.
Of course at half time, the teams swap roles.
This is an exciting, multifaceted and demanding task, not only for the teams problem-solving and programming, but also for the Robotinos® in their role as industrial autonomous guided vehicles (AGV). In this way, Festo Logistics League will set new standards for the quality, attractiveness and innovation potential of future competitions of this type.
For more information, please visit
http://www.robocup2010.org/competition_League.php?c=5&l=12
About RoboCup 2010:
RoboCup 2010 will feature competition eventsas well as workshops, exhibitions and conferences. Scientists and students from world renowned institutions will be pitting their skills to secure top honours in the Championship. When it first began in 1997, RoboCup aimed to foster artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics research. By 2050, the RoboCup Federation hopes to field fully autonomous humanoid robot soccer players to compete in the World Cup.
