September 19, 2010
School of Engineering, Bengaluru
What is common between Dortmund (Germany), San Francisco (USA), Qingdao (China) and Incheon (Korea)?
In years past, these cities have all played host to the FIRA Robot World Cup, that is played by robots rather than human participants; this year it was India’s turn to host.
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham’s campus in Bengaluru was the site chosen for this event sponsored by the Federation for International Robot Soccer Association (FIRA) that drew enthusiasts from all over the country and abroad.
The sporting events this year had more than just soccer games. “45 teams from 10 different nations engaged in robotic sporting events with infectious intensity,” explained the organizers.
“To put the technical ingenuity and creativity of the young minds to test, competitions were classified under three main categories: Androids, Wheeled Robots, and Simulations.”
The robots played against each other, performed seemingly miraculous tasks and maneuvers, as the human spectators cheered.
Technical University of Kosice (Slovakia) won MiroSot, the robot soccer game and Wuhan University (China) placed first in SimuroSot, the simulation robot soccer game. The Huro Cup, which required androids to perform a series of physical challenges, was a highlight.
Bots from Nanyang Polytechnic (Singapore) won Weightlifting and Wall Climbing and those from National Cheng Kung University (Taiwan) won the Obstacle Run and Basketball. KAIST, Korea placed first in the Androsot.
Preceding the tournament was a 2-day congress that showcased robotic innovations from around the country. Technical presentations were made by experts on emerging topics of interest in robotics such as Sensors, Path Planning and Intelligence Technology.
“The event provided a platform for students and experts from various Indian universities including IIT Kharagpur, BITS Pilani, CVR Andhra Pradesh and PESIT Bengaluru to come together and bond with students from all around the globe,” stated Dr. Rakesh, Associate Dean of Amrita School of Engineering, Bengaluru.
The Bangalore Mirror newspaper ran a one-page feature article on projects exhibited by several of these institutions. Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham’s SAVE (Sakshat Amrita Vocational Education) project was also featured, wherein haptics technology is being used to impart training in plumbing, fabric painting and carpentry to rural and tribal youth.
“Robots were the buzz word here as our institution campus transformed into a hub of frenetic activity,” added Dr. Rakesh. “The event attracted myriad visitors from near and afar to Amrita, We are proud to have hosted the 15th International FIRA Robot World Cup and Congress.”
Next year’s event will be organized in Taiwan. The event ended with a prize distribution ceremony, that included handing over the event flag ceremonially to the next host nation Taiwan.
