Event Description
Imagine how spectacular it would be to have a robot that could think by itself, move on itself and have it make its own decision! Wouldn’t it be just astounding if you could be its creator?
Rush Hour is an autonomous robot-making competition, that tests your ability to make a robot that can “sense” the ground and move to the target without external interference. During the first onsite round, the robot has to follow an encoded path, and reach the target, controlling its motion based on the encoded data. During the final onsite round, the robot has to map a line maze and traverse the shortest path between two specified points in the maze.
Prizes worth INR 25000
PRELIMS:
Date: 2nd March 2018
Time: 10AM to 5PM
Venue: Badminton Court(Sports centre)
FINALS:
Date: 3rd March 2018
Time: 10AM to 5PM
Venue: Badminton Court(Sports centre)
Event Format
This event consists of two Phases:
Ø Online Phase-
Abstract Round
Abstracts should be submitted on or before 3rd February 2018.
To submit your abstract:
1. Login
2. Click 'Upload Abstract' which will lead you to a new page.
3. Exercise the provision to upload files on the new page.
4. With that, your submission of abstract is complete.
The format of abstract can be downloaded here. Each team has to make only one submission. In case of multiple submissions, only the last submission will be evaluated. This step is eliminative.
A video should be sent by the selected participants to rushhour@pragyan.org on or before 25th February 2018 to confirm their spot in the onsite round. The video should simply show the bot working. This step is non-eliminative. Information about the video can be downloaded here.
Ø Onsite Phase-
Preliminary (Line-Follower) Round:
The bot has to travel on a line-path with a contrasting background (white vs black) which includes angled turns (any angle between 0o - 180o) and curves in the track.
Final (Maze-Solver) Round:
The bot has to search for the end point in a maze and has to return to the starting point in the shortest path possible.
Problem Statement
Onsite Round 1:
The track will consist of alternating parts of two types:
Type 1: Black Line on White Background
Type 2: White Line on Black Background
The first and the last parts of the track will strictly be of Type 1. The line where each part meets the next will be taken as a checkpoint. If the bot strays from the track, it can be reset back to previous checkpoint, but the timer will continue to run.
Participants’ Bots should traverse each part of the track as per the following conditions:
Type 1: The bot should traverse this part with a constant speed. The choice of speed is left to participant.
Type 2: The bot should traverse this part with a constant speed. This speed should be equal to half the speed of bot in type 1.
Participants, when fixing the speed of the bot, should keep in mind that time to complete the track is judging criteria.
Onsite Round 2:
The track will be a Maze with start and end points marked by a square box of 250mm x 250mm. The bot should start at the Start box and find its way to the End box. All the turns and intersections will be perpendicular. The bot, once it reaches the End, must turn around and trace the shortest path back to the Start.
Judging Criteria:
Onsite Round 1:
- Time taken to reach the destination
- Encoded data interpretation
- Completion of checkpoints
Onsite Round 2:
- Maze algorithm
- Time taken for completion.
Resources
http://www.argenox.com/library/msp430/
http://www.embeddedrelated.com/blogs-1/nf/Enrico_Garante.php
http://www.ermicro.com/blog/?p=2104
http://learningmsp430.wordpress.com/2014/01/10/line-follower-using-msp430g2-launchpad/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Maze-Solving-Robot/
FAQ
Q) Can I participate without submitting the abstract?
A) No. Abstract is important and compulsory. It is required as it is the first selection criteria for participating.
Q) Are there any prerequisites to registering for this event?
A) No, but the resources provided in the website should be enough to help you make the working model and to clarify your doubts.
Q). Will any facility be given for charging our equipment?
A) Yes, 220V power supply with extension cords will be given.
Q) Do I need a working prototype when registering for the Event to pass Phase 1?
A) No, the final working model is only needed when you are submitting the video of your robot.
Rules:
● Any student with a valid identity card (from their respective institution) is eligible to participate in the event.
● All teams will be given a calibration time of 10 minutes.
● Maximum time allotted for one trial is 10 minutes.
● The starting procedure of the robot should be simple and should not involve providing the bot manual force or impulse in any direction.
● Each team can have a maximum of 3 trials. All trials require the approval of the presiding judges before the bot can be removed from the arena. In each trial, the timer and points will be set back to zero. The best time/points of the three trials will be considered.
● The judges can reduce the number of trials for any team if time constraint arises.
● During a trial, the bot should be restarted by putting it back on the start-zone. The bot should be in the “Power Off” mode and turned on again at the start-zone on the call of the judge's signal.
● Between the trials, participants should not feed any information about the arena to the bot. The bot should not “remember” anything between trials too.
● Participants are permitted to: adjust the sensors (Gain, Position etc.), change speed settings and make repairs. However, a participant should not alter a bot in a such a manner that it alters its weight (e.g. removal of a bulky sensor array or switching to lighter batteries to get better speed).
● The judges shall arbitrate the points earned by the team. Till then, the scores will not be revealed.
● Participants are not allowed to modify the track. Only event managers are allowed to handle the track.
● Participants are not allowed to keep anything inside the arena other than the bot.
● The judges may stop the robot at any time if they feel that it is causing and/ or may cause any action that might be hazardous. No robot is permitted to use any flammable, combustible, explosive or potentially dangerous processes.
● Readymade sensors (e.g. line array sensors) can be used.
Robot Specifications:
● The dimensions of the bot should be within 200 x 200 x 200 cubic millimeters (Length x Breadth x Height).
● The Potential Difference between any two points in the robot should not exceed 12V.
● The Bot must only have on-board power supplies.
● The Bot should not have any sensor for sensing the environment around. (e.g. Kinect)
● Use of an onboard camera is prohibited.
● The organizers reserve the right to disqualify any bot that is found not adhering to the given specifications.
General Rules:
● The time and points measured by the organisers will be final and will be used for judging the teams. Time or points measured by any participant by any other means is not acceptable for scoring. In case of any disputes / discrepancies, the organisers' decision will be final and binding.
● Participants must bring their own computers, programs and software if they wish to program their robots at the competition site.
● The participants are requested not to assume anything without discussing with the event managers.
● The organisers reserve the right to change any or all of the above rules as they deem fit.
Team Composition:
● Maximum of 4 participants per team.
● Teams should register themselves online.
● No person shall be a member of two teams.
● A team can constitute of members from different colleges.
Arena:
● Line thickness will be 3 cms.
● Turn angles can be between 0o and 180o.
● All measurements are with 10% tolerance.
For Event queries:
Abilash: 8056166423
Maheshwari: 9491340546
Aqeel: 9677861758
Or email us at rushhour@pragyan.org