The «RoboBattle 48» robotics hackathon of Riga Technical University (RTU) Science and Innovation Centre, where dozens of robotics enthusiasts competed in building robots for 48 hours, was a success with a combat robot tournament and a robot design competition.
The Robotics Hackathon was attended by 52 participants - schoolchildren, students, experienced robotics enthusiasts, researchers, representatives of start-ups. Participants had the opportunity to try their hand at robot design and win prizes, as well as take part in a robot tournament, competing in a dedicated arena.
According to Gundars Miezītis, one of the organisers of the «RoboBattle 48» robotics hackathon and a representative of the Institute of Applied Computer Systems at the Faculty of Computer Science, Information Technology and Energy at RTU, the idea was born last year during the «Robotics and Electronics Day», when it was realised that Latvian robotics competitions needed a new impetus. «This is how the idea of a combat robot competition, which is exciting and attracts the attention of spectators, was born,» adds G. Miezītis.
«The dynamic nature of the fight not only encourages the development of technical solutions, but also encourages creative thinking, because even against a strong opponent, agility is not enough. The interest in such battles encourages others to build their own robot. By choosing the hackathon format, we were able to create new robots quickly - ten new robots appeared in Latvia within 48 hours. During the preparations for the hackathon, basic electronics and software were developed and are now available to anyone interested in building their own robot,» says G. Miezītis.
The winners of the hackathon were the team «VIPER», while the 2nd and 3rd place went to the robots «SHREDDER» and «Leonardo», which received valuable prizes from the event sponsors. The winning robots were recognised by the jury as the most innovative and creative robots of the hackathon. The jury also evaluated the participants in four other categories, awarding the prize for the most beautiful robot to the team «Banana», the most original weapon to the robot «Leonardo», the most technically outstanding robot to the team «GLast», while «BestAgons» was crowned the king of recycling.
The event was organised by robotics enthusiasts together with RTU Science and Innovation Centre and partners from SAF Tehnika, Latvian Electrical Engineering and Electronics Industry Association (LETERA), Latvijas Finieris, YEInternational, RS Delivers Latvia and NULE.
On 18 May at 9.00, young robotics and electronics talents will demonstrate their knowledge and compete in the traditional «Robotics and Electronics Day 2024» at RTU Faculty of Computer Science, Information Technology and Energy.
