São Paulo – Two Arab countries are sending teams for this year’s edition of the RoboCup, one of the world’s premier robotics contest, due from July 21st through 24th in João Pessoa, Paraíba. According to information from the organizers, three teams are coming from Egypt and one from Sudan. Overall, roughly 45 countries will be represented.
The RoboCup comprises various competitions, ranging from robot football to household chores. There are over ten categories. “In every category, robots must operate autonomously, with no human interference,” says FEI University Centre professor and general coordinator of the 2014 RoboCup, Flavio Tonidandel.
The best teams from each country compete in the contest. For the junior category, national contests are held to select RoboCup participants. In the higher categories, the teams register and undergo a pre-qualification process to ascertain that they are apt to participate. All teams are linked to research institutions.
Junior teams are required to have a tutor, which may be a professor from their school or a specialist. They all bring their completed robots to the contest. The winners receive trophies and certificates. The RoboCup is held in a different country each year, since 1997, and this is the first time in Brazil.
Tonidandel claims the competition fosters the development of cutting-edge technology in autonomous, intelligent, collaborative robots. “The robots in the rescue category, for instance, were used in Fukushima, Japan a few years back. The robots in the @Home category should spearhead advances in domestic robot development, and football robots aid in developing new techniques and processes for performing collaborative tasks,” he says.
Besides, says the coordinator, an event like the Robocup motivates young people and robotics researchers. “The goal is to even further improve our future through the presence of intelligent robots,” he says. In Brazil, the contest is organized by the Brazilian Computer Society (SBC), The São Paulo State University (Unesp), FEI University Centre and the Paraíba state government.
The action in João Pessoa begins on the 19th an 20th, the RoboCup 2014 setup days. Following the contest, on the 25th, a symposium on robotics-related themes will take place. The competition will happen at the João Pessoa Convention Centre and is open to the public. Admittance is free and no reservation is required, since several contests take place simultaneously at different areas within the venue.
Service:
RoboCup 2014
July 20th to 24th
João Pessoa Convention Centre
Information: www.robocup2014.org
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
