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Central Illinois Bot Brawl Line Maze Rules

Robot:

The robot must be completely autonomous once the operator starts it. The robot must be no larger than 20 cm by 20 cm. It can be of any height. The maximum weight allowed is 3 kg (approximately 6.6 lbs).

Course:

The course will be on a 4-foot by 8-foot table with a 2 by 4 fence. The playing surface is 45 inches by 93 inches. The course will be:

  • Printed on a white material that is similar to wallpaper with a plotter printer.
  • The lines will be ¾ inch and colored black.
  • The course will be based on a grid of 7 1/2 inches. The lines will be no closer than 6 3/4 inches to each other. The lines will be no closer than 7 1/8 inches to the walls measured from the edge of the line to the edge of the wall.
  • The accuracy of the lines and walls are within a quarter inch.
  • The mat will be attached to the table by carpet tape around the edges as needed.
  • All turns are corners and will be 90 degrees.
  • There will be at least one loop in the course.
  • The start and stop will be separate, and will not be inside a loop.
  • The start line will be a thin pencil line used to position the robot.
  • The stop is marked by a 3 by 3 inch black square.
  • Dead ends will end in the middle of a grid.
  • Crossroads will be both tees, pluses, and ells

Procedure:

  • The competitors will start in a random order.
  • Each competitor will get 6 minutes with no breaks to complete the course a maximum of 3 times.
  • The recorded time will be re-started for each of the attempts during a run. The recorded time will be started when the robot crosses the start line.
  • If the contestant does not complete the course, the greatest distance covered on the prime path will be recorded.
  • To restart the robot, the contestant can grab it or ask the judge to grab it.
  • There cannot be any cues or inputs from any human being directly or indirectly while the robot is running the course.
  • The operator is allowed to make minor changes to the robot’s mechanical hardware between attempts.
  • The operator is allowed to make minor changes to the robot’s software between attempts by pushing buttons on the robot or on a remote start device. No other software changes are permitted between runs.  The maze cannot be programmed in.
  • The fastest time or greatest distance covered on the prime path will count towards placement.
  • The robot must follow the course from start to finish. If the robot goes off course and relocates the course at an advanced position, it must be restarted at the beginning. The robot will be considered off course if it completely leaves the line it was following and does not find its way back near the point that it left the line.
  • The robot shall be considered to have solved the maze when it reaches the stopped square and signals that it has completed the maze.  Coming to a stop is a sufficient signal, but other audible or visual indications may be used.  If the robot visits the stop square, but does not signal that it has completed the maze, then it has not solved the maze.  In this case, the timer for the run shall be kept running until the robot solves the maze or the operator declares the run to have ended.  This rule is specifically intended to permit a robot to continue mapping the maze after identifying the location of the stop square.
  • After solving the maze, if it has another run, the robot may return to the starting point on its own, or may be moved to the starting point by its operator.
  • The fastest time for completing the course determines each robot’s place in the competition.  For robots that do not complete the course, the ranking is determined by shortest distance from the end as measured along the path.
  • The robot must not damage the course.

Final note on the rules:

The intent of this event is for the robot to follow the line while navigating the maze from Start to Finish. If the judge interprets a competitor’s actions as attempting to circumvent this intent, then the judge has the right to disqualify that robot from this event and possibly the competitor from the entire competition. Someone entering the layout of the course into the robot in some fashion will be interpreted as trying to circumvent the intent of this event. This decision will be made in partnership with other members of the club.

 
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