LEAGUES

In all events you need a combination of skills, problem solving, artistic and coding. 

These are the OFFICIAL RoboCup Copyright rules:

• ●  There are no age groups; teams will be grouped as belonging to either Primary or Secondary sub-leagues.
• ●  Robots must perform autonomously: This means that remote controls of any kind are strictly forbidden; robots cannot use external power sources. Teams may use a coding program of their choice.
• ●  Non-Lego construction components ​are permitted and encouraged​. ALL types of materials are acceptable as it allows the participant to be as creative as possible.
• ●  Once the robots are activated, team captains must ask the referee for permission to touch their robot.
• ●  All robots must be built and programmed by student team members and team members must be able to explain their robot’s construction and code. Ready-made kits designed to perform a single specific task are not permitted.
• ●  A scale and a 22 cm cylinder will be available to measure robots subject to size restrictions.
• ●  Teams must present themselves to the referee 5 minutes before they are scheduled to compete.

Superteam:

Superteams are designed to foster collaboration and the exchange of knowledge. They will be posted on the first day of the competition and team names will be labeled on tables. Teams are encouraged to connect with their superteamates as early as possible, build relationships and reach out for creative support.

Challenges

RoboCupJunior offers several challenges, each emphasizing cooperative, problem-solving and task-achievement aspects. In the Soccer league, 2-on-2 teams of autonomous mobile robots play games in a highly dynamic environment, tracking a special light-emitting ball in an enclosed field landmarked in shades of gray. The Rescue league engages robots to identify victims quickly and accurately within re-created disaster scenarios, varying in complexity from line-following on a flat surface to negotiating paths through obstacles on uneven terrain. The robot OnStage league encourages creativity, bringing one or more robots together with music, dressed in costume and moving in harmony.

For children, the RCJ initiative provides an exciting introduction to the field of robotics, a new way to develop technical abilities through hands-on experience with electronics, hardware and software, and a highly motivating opportunity to learn about teamwork while sharing technology with friends. In contrast to the one-child-one-computer scenario frequently seen today, RoboCupJunior provides a unique opportunity for participants with a variety of interests and strengths to work together as a team to achieve a common goal.

To learn more, join our Forum: https://junior.forum.robocup.org/

Robot Communication

Communication between robots is allowed exclusively using Bluetooth class 2 or class 3 (range shorter than 20 meters) or via ZigBee. Teams are responsible for their communication. The availability of frequencies cannot be guaranteed. *for any events that involve more than one robot*

Robots must be autonomous while actively performing in their events.

Team Size

Since RoboCupJunior embraces teamwork and collaboration among team members, a team should have more than one member to form a RoboCupJunior team to participate in the International event. A team must be a minimum of 2 with a maximum of 4 members  and 1 teacher/mentor for all leagues (except OnStage League which allows up to 5 members). A team member(s) and/or robot(s) cannot be shared between teams. 

Age

RoboCup Junior Canada is tailored to Primary and Secondary school.

RoboParty is the event for students new to robotics and for returning competitors wanting to enhance their skills. It is a good starting point for students of any age who want to experience various aspects of robotics. A RoboParty team can include 1-4 Robots however each challenge must be completed by a single robot (except for performance). 

• The Maze:​ Robot needs to drive through a walled corridor without touching the sides as fast as possible.

• Formula 1​: Robot follows a black curved line on a Formula 1 race track as fast as possible.

• Performance​: A robot performs a 1 minute choreographed performance routine to music, entertaining the audience (Hint: Be creative and entertaining can use projections?)

• SumoBots​: Four Robots are set on the corners of an octagon trying to push one another out in a battle royal. Last robot standing wins.

MAZE:

Rules

1. There are no restrictions on robot size; 
2. All walls, including the entrance and the exit are, at least 30 cm apart and at least 15 cm high painted white.
3. Teams will be allowed 3 attempts to complete the maze and the referee will retain the best score. 
4. Maximum time granted per attempt is 120 seconds.
5. Team captain has the option of returning the robot to the entrance area if a robot gets stuck; this will cancel wall bump deductions, however, the countdown continues. 
6. To prevent teams from pre-mapping the layout of the fields, walls may be removed, added or changed just before a run starts. Each round will feature a new maze design but organizers will avoid changing the level of difficulty..

Points:

• Final score per round = (Time – Bump).
• Bump= -5 points every time robot touches a wall
• Completion time= time to get from beginning to end of maze
• Time= (120 – completion time)

Example: If a robot exits the maze in 40 seconds having bumped the wall twice, it will earn (120 – 40 – 5 – 5) = 70 points

FORMULA 1

Rules

1. Robot follows a black curved line on a Formula 1 race track
2. The black line will be approximately 2 cm wide.
3. This is a timed challenge
4. Teams will be allowed 3 attempts to complete the maze and the referee will retain the best score. 
5. Robots are subjected to a size limit of 22cm in diameter and height
6. Timer will be started once robot starts moving (check with Sarah)

Points:

• Time to get from beginning to end of track

PERFORMANCE

Rules

1. Teams will use their creativity to construct and decorate 1-2 robots to perform a choreographed routine to music.
2. The performance area will be approximately 2 meters by 2 meters
3. The performance can last to a maximum of 60 seconds; teams are granted 5 minutes for set-up time before the performance and 3 minutes clean-up time after the performance.
4. There is no size limit.
5. Teams may provide background music on a USB key before their performance, or they may decide to use their own speakers.

Points

• Teams will be asked to present their performance concept and have to explain their program.
• Performance evaluation by a panel of judges will be based on: Creativity, Entertainment, and complexity of program.
• Use of sensors and autonomy of robots will taken into consideration

SUMOBOTS

Rules

1. Four robots compete on an octagonal ring, attempting to push one another out.
2. A robot is considered eliminated when it does not move for more than 10 seconds or all wheels exit the ring.
3. The ring will be approximately 150 cm from side to opposite side. The base of the ring is white with a 2 cm black octagonal border along the perimeter. A reversal of colours is a possibility. 
4. The ring will be elevated off the floor, making it difficult for the robot to return once it moves beyond the line.
5. Robots are subjected to a size limit of 22cm in diameter and height. 
6. The mass of the robot must not exceed 1000 grams (1kg). 
7. Referee will apply a colour label to each robot for identification.

Points

• A Robot receives 5 points for each opponent it pushes out of the ring.
• A Robot receives 20 points for being the last robot in the ring.

Teams are combined together and must pick one robot to compete in a new surprise challenge presented at RoboCup that builds upon the existing challenges.

Inspired by the RoboCup Community www.roboparty.org  

The RoboCup Junior OnStage is an integration of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). Participants program their robots to move to music while their robots move and humans perform on the stage. Competitors are encouraged to lightly costume their robots with highly engaging robot movements which give their robots real personality. RoboCup Junior OnStage can be approached in a number of ways with creative new ideas appearing every year. Some previous ideas have been robots dancing together in tightly choreographed teams, students interacting with their robots while they were performing, students creating their own music, choreography, and students telling a story while the robots act it out. The OnStage challenge strongly encourages a team effort where students design their own costumes, build their robot prototypes, their costumes, on top of the programming and building.

Please note in the documentation red text indicates changes from previous year. 

Artificial intelligence at its best! The Rescue competition mirrors the real-life use of robots that rescue people from life-threatening situations.

Rescue Line 

Each Field has two zones to be completed:

1) Line Follow Zone

2) Evacuation Zone

Line Follow Zone

The challenge is to navigate the path consisting of a black line on white tiles with the following:

• Specific Directional indicators at intersections which may lead to dead ends if not followed
• Navigate around obstacles
• Possible gaps in the path 
• Inclines of either seesaw or ramp
• Overcome speed bumps

Points are awarded based on completion

• 15 points for the correct path at an intersection
• 10 overcoming obstacles
• 10 reacquiring line after a gap
• 5 speed bumps and inclines.
• 5 – per tile 1st attempt* or
• 3 – per tile 2nd attempt
• 1 – per tile 3rd attempt
• 0 – per tile after 3rd attempt

Checkpoints

• A checkpoint is a tile in which a robot will be manually placed back on when a lack of progress occurs
• Checkpoints will not be located on tiles with scoring elements
• The start tile is a checkpoint where the robot can restart
• A checkpoint marker indicates which tiles are checkpoints

*An attempt is each time the robot is moved back to a checkpoint.

Lack of progress

• a team captain declares a lack of progress.
• a robot loses the black line without regaining it by the next tile in the sequence
• a robot reaches a line that is not in the intended sequence.

Transition from the field to evacuation zone will be identified with a silver tape line across the entrance to the evacuation zone.

 

Evacuation Zone 

Represents a war zone or natural disaster site in which victims need to be rescued by the robot by bringing them into the

Evacuation Point (black right angle triangle with sides 30cm x 30cm) that is placed in designated corner of the evacuation zone:

Level 1 : bump of 5 cm along the side that does not touch the wall

Level 2 : bump of 6 cm along the side that does not touch the wall

Victims

• Live victims (silver balls) x 3
• Dead victims (black balls) x 3

Each team chooses their level and the challenge consist of 

Saving (placing) the 6 “victims” in the evacuation point, this will provide multipliers on the points accumulated from the line follow zone.

The multipliers vary (1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, etc.) depending on evacuation zone level and the number of victims rescued.

 

Rescue Maze will be a offered in preparation to the International divisions.

Teams will be able to participate in Rescue Maze and Rescue Line at the qualifying RoboCup event.  The Rescue Maze challenge is open to all RoboCuppers.

A disaster has occurred and it is too dangerous for a human to enter. A rescue mission is necessary. A fully autonomous robot needs to be sent into the hazardous maze to locate heated victims so that the humans know where they are. A rescue package needs to be dropped for the humans that will locate them and keep them alive, ‘water’ etc (note: simulated).

SOCCER LIGHTWEIGHT (electronic):

Students are required to design and program two robots to compete against an opposing pair of robots by kicking an infra-red transmitting ball into their designated goal. 

SOCCER OPEN  (passive):Students are required to design and program two robots to compete against an opposing pair of robots by kicking a brightly colored orange ball into their designated goal. 

NOTE: Consult with RoboCup Junior representatives if you intend to compete in Soccer Open to ensure that there are enough available teams.

Rules

1. There are no goalies (a goalie is defined as a robot that stays within the penalty box)
2. Soccer game consists of two 10 minute halves with a 5 minute half-time
3. Robots are subjected to a size limit of 22cm in diameter and height. 
4. The mass of the robot must not exceed 1.4kg. (Soccer Open 2.2kg)
5. Robots may have a ball-capturing zone of up to 3.0 cm. (Soccer Open 1.5cm)
6. Robots cannot take full control of the ball by removing all degrees of freedom.
7. Robots must stay in the bounds of the field defined by the white line
8. Players can only touch their robots given permission from the referee
9. Robots subjected to penalties will be removed from play for 1 minute
10. When a Referee decides a robot is damaged, it will be removed from play for a minimum of 1 minute. Structural repairs can be made during this time (code cannot be modified).
11. Referee will make all final decisions during the game

Points

• 1 point is given for each goal
• Goal occurs when the ball touches the back of a soccer net
• Should a robot score on its own net, their opponent is awarded 1 point.

Ranking

• A team receives 2 points for a win
• Each team receives 1 point for a draw
• Final games will include overtime in the event of a draw

• Please Note: Open League and the Lightweight league may be combined depending on entries.