[chbot] Robotics Competitions!

[Anthony Edwards]

Hello hello and greetings to all the members of the Christchurch Robotics Group.
My name is Anthony Edwards and I am one of the Directors of an organization, currently based in Christchurch known as the Cerberus Foundation.
We are primarily a Research and Development organization with a bit of a passion when it comes to Engineering and to help further our work and encourage people in the Robotics field we are in the process of setting up two robotics competitions.
The first is the easiest to enter but has potentially the smallest prize.
The 200 Dollar Judgement.
This competition is extremely easy to enter, but difficult to win since you'll be competing against everyone else as well.  This competition was originally inspired by the founder of the Society of Robots and was based on the rules and guidelines of the competition!
There are two main rules that you need to observe
1) Build a nifty robot. It could be any kind of robot - a biped, a sumo robot, a sailing robot, or even a flying robot.
2) Write a really good tutorial on your robot and post it back to me via email. This means post pics, video, schematics, designs, source code, etc.  This information is likely to be posted to our website in an effort to encourage resource sharing, but if you wish to keep something between the builder and the Judges just make sure to mention it in the email.
Guide to Winning There are a few basic outlines we will use to judge your robot, make sure to keep each guideline in mind while constructing and documenting your robot.
Engineering - We will judge your robot based on how well you constructed it and how well it performs. There is a huge difference between a robot thrown together with duct tape, and one planned out really well on paper or CAD. We will determine how well you engineered your robot in three ways: pics of your robot, plans/designs posted, and an optional shake test. If you can supply a video of you violently shaking your robot, then putting it on the ground and it still works, then that usually gives huge bonus points.
Repeatability - Creators of semi-functional robots like to only show videos of their robot working. We discourage you filming your robot a dozens times, then posting the only video of the robot when it actually worked correctly. Tell us how well it works. Tell us the failure rate. Tell us why. If your robot does something unbelievable, have it do it multiple times in a single un-edited shot.
Originality - We've seen many robots in our day and would like to be impressed. New ideas that others can use on their robots are really useful. You should explain any original ideas you have in a manner that others can copy.
Tutorial Quality - This is a guideline that judges your ability to convey your knowledge to others. Have decent grammar/spelling (please spell check!), good step-by-step pictures, good text spacing. Images and video are great ways to compliment complicated information. Include as much information you can about your robot to help others learn from it. Your source code should be well commented, and easy to understand, too. And don't forget a parts list, total cost to you, and time it took for you to make the robot!
Usefulness - If your robot can achieve some useful function, practical or not, this will earn you extra bonus points. Examples would be a robo-maid, beer getter, or newspaper fetcher!
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That is the first competition that is being arranged by the Foundation, the second is a lot more comprehensive and public!
The Robot Games.
In many ways this competition will be like an olympic games.  It is a test of all of a robots abilities, Speed, Agility, Strength, Endurance, Uniqueness, Design, and there will even be a combat section since everyone seems to want one, the one currently implemented is a form of martial arts combat, boxing and bladed combat, it is known as the Hardcore league.  The other form is not currently implemented but will utilize wireless combat to simulate weapons of all sorts in an arena.
These are of course only the first two competitions we are in the process of arranging, many more may be set up as time goes on but for the time being we hope you will enjoy competing in these two tournaments, if you want to learn more you can always reach me at shadovar101 at hotmail.com and I will be happy to answer all your questions.
Best wishes and I look forward to seeing you all compete!
Anthony Edwards
PS If any of you are interested in entering but need a bit of a helping hand or don't have the confidence to enter on your own the Foundation has many links to open source resources and step by step instructions that will allow even those with basic engineering skills to construct their own robot! 		 	   		  
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