Servo - September 2011

Robotic Combat Association in Rosemont, IL, on October 22nd and 23rd. Go to www.thecrca.org for further information.

Robot Battles 41 will be presented by Robot Battles at DragonCon in Atlanta, GA on September 4th and 5th. Go to www.robotbattles.com for further information.

ComBots Cup VI will be presented by ComBots in San Mateo, CA on October 29th and 30th. Go to http://robo games.net/registration/ event/view/11 for further information. SV

EVENT REPORT:

2011 NRL National Champi nships

● by Nicholas Ozorak

It was may 21, 2011. In an airplane hanger at the edge of the Indianapolis International Airport, I could hear crashes, clanks, and the hum of tools being used. However, this was not related to airplanes — this was the 2011 National Robotics League National Championships.

The venue was the Vincennes University Aviation Technology Center, with a full-size Boeing 737 for company. Underneath the plane’s left wing was the pit area, where 29 teams would make last-minute adjustments and prepare their robots for battle.

Once the teams arrived at the venue, they unpacked their tools and set up shop. Their first challenge was to make sure their robot passed inspection to ensure that it was both legal and relatively safe to fight in the arena. Robots that didn’t make the weight limit or needed to be recalibrated were sent back to the pit for fine-tuning.

The championship was structured as a double-elimination tournament. For three minutes per round, each opponent’s goal was to disable the other’s robot. The first loss meant being knocked into the loser’s bracket, and the second loss meant the end of the line for that robot.