Category Archives: 2023

Test Tournament in Mannheim

Posted on by

And once again, our team is continuing at high speed this year! Hardly have our guests from Uruguay returned to their home country, and we’re already moving forward in with a test tournament hosted by the world champion TIGERs Mannheim and their Dual University Baden-Württemberg as part of the Bundesgartenshow 2023 in Mannheim.

And so it’s already 07:54 AM for us at Erlangen Central Station, as we’re off to Baden-Württemberg, this time only using regional trains and the Germany Ticket for cost reasons. Surprisingly, there are no train delays, and by 1:00 PM, we can enter the sacred halls of the BuGa.

As with all our other trips, the first order of business in Mannheim is: Arrive, unpack, and start. It doesn’t take half an hour before the entire space provided to us is occupied with various equipment, chargers, and soldering irons.

Soon, the field for testing should be available, allowing us to make our robots operational. But first, it’s about being patient and settling in: Welcome to BuGa 2023 Mannheim!

PS: A fun fact on the side: We’re accommodated on the BuGa premises in the hall for “Beneficial Organisms and Pests.” No, we’re not pests; instead, they’re referring to the wall’s artwork. There simply wasn’t space for us in other halls.

RoboCup: RoboTeam Twente vs. KIKS

Posted on by

The next game of the knockout phase takes place this morning at 09:00 AM. It’s between the Dutch team RoboTeam Twente and KIKS. You can find the link to the live ticker as always on Twente’s YouTube platform or at this link.

First Half

05:00 The game starts with a 15-minute delay.
04:29 Not much is happening in the game yet, the ball is moving back and forth. KIKS takes a timeout.
04:03 Attack on the Twente goal, Dutch defenders are moving too slowly. Eventually, a shot is taken by KIKS, but the goal doesn’t count because: Too fast! Lucky for Twente.
03:48 KIKS takes another timeout, but like the last timeout, it seems only software is being fixed; no one is running onto the field.
03:33 There’s a harmless shot on Twente’s goal, which comes to a stop in the out-of-bounds area. But where are the defenders? A more accurate shot could have been a goal!
03:05 Another shot on goal, but the Twente keeper can save it. The defense seems to be getting stronger.
02:00 Once again, excellent work by the Twente goalkeeper. He successfully stops a direct, fairly fast shot on goal. Interestingly, the ball ends exactly on the goal line, and there’s a discussion about whether it was a goal. The Organizing Committee gets involved too. Decision: No goal, the ball must fully cross the line, not just partially.
01:27 And well saved again by the Twente goalkeeper! But the defenders don’t seem very motivated; instead of closing the goal as quickly as possible, they prefer to move away!
01:11 Now the TIGERs computer referee goes wild and reports a goal even though the ball is miles away from the goal.
01:08 Initially, a goal for KIKS, and it seems pretty clear. Nevertheless, Twente raises a challenge flag, meaning they’re questioning the referee’s decision. And with success, the goal doesn’t count! And the time is rolled back to 01:22? Not entirely understandable, but let’s accept it; after all, KIKS accepted the decision too.
00:40 After many duels in the Dutch half, the expected goal finally arrives: KIKS now leads 1-0.
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 1 KIKS
-01:12 Initially, it looked like a successful attack from Twente. But then KIKS wins the duel and shoots towards the Dutch goal. Instead of trying to stop the ball (there were plenty of defenders), the backtracking defenders simply let it roll, and the goalkeeper turns awkwardly, resulting in a goal.
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 2 KIKS

Second Half

05:00 The second half is kicked off. Let’s see if Twente can make a comeback. During the 5-minute break, all robots were checked, which gives some hope.
04:34 Twente successfully intercepted the ball, but the receiver is turned, causing them to lose possession. Fortunately, the goalkeeper is once again on the spot, defusing the situation in the last moment.
03:47 But even the standout player of this match, the Twente goalkeeper, is just a robot, and he can’t handle every game situation. After some duels, it’s now 3-0 for KIKS.
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 3 KIKS
03:21 Once again, the TIGERs Autoref recognizes a goal, but at least from my perspective, I couldn’t see one. It doesn’t count either.
03:06 Very dangerous shot on the Twente goal, but their goalkeeper once again excels and saves it.
02:18 Unfortunately, another rather unspectacular goal against Twente, making it 4-0 now.
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 4 KIKS
01:14 Another shot on Twente’s goal, but once again, the keeper saves it very well. It’s a pity that in this game, he’s the shining star.
01:04 Actually defended well by a Twente bot this time. He elegantly positioned himself in the opponent’s passing lane, preventing the shot on goal.
00:02 Again, very nicely defended by a Twente defender, and with that, it’s unlikely that another goal will be scored before the end of the game.
00:00 After a last, fairly dangerous attack against Twente, the ball eventually goes out of bounds, and the game ends 4-0 in favor of KIKS. This means Twente is out of the tournament.

Workshop with UruBots

Posted on by

Hardly back in Germany, we’re already starting the exam period with a joint workshop with the freshly established Uruguayan team UruBots. There was already a kick-off meeting in Germany last August with the team’s two professors.

The 13 students and 2 instructors are from the newly established University UTEC in northern Uruguay, right on the border with Brazil. Since mid-July, they’ve been traveling all over Germany and have already achieved some successes: The team secured the first place in a discipline at the FIRA RoboWorld Cup in Wolfenbüttel. After all the exciting experiences, the journey of the Uruguayans, who by the way, hardly anyone has ever been to a country other than their homeland, now ends at FAU in Erlangen.

After the workshop starts with introductions and presentations about our university group, it ramps up after lunch in our local university cafeteria: Our guests tinker with robots, program their first AI, and evaluate how they can improve their robots. The day ends with a small test game in our basement.

After an exciting first day where both teams learned a lot, the second day is all about cultural exchange and getting to know each other: In mixed groups, we cook spinach lasagna and Chivito, a kind of burger served on a French baguette with vegetables, fries, and a special sauce.

While one group prepares both dishes together, the rest of us engage in a traditional Uruguayan card game: Erizo. We didn’t do too bad, but Bavarians seem to have a natural knack for card games, so what did we really expect.

Finally, we conclude the workshop with presentations about UTEC and our university. A big thanks to Ms. Claudia Barnickel, who represented and presented our university excellently in Spanish. Now, the Uruguayans just have to hop on the train and enjoy the last few days of vacation in Germany. Back home, they’ll continue with the ambitious robot-building project.

From our side, we can only hope to see our friends from Uruguay again soon at RoboCup and remain in hopeful anticipation of the young team’s further successes.

Carpet Installation 2023

Posted on by

Unfortunately, in December of last year, we fell victim to water damage, which turned our basement into a construction site for a while. However, thanks to the strong support from the university, we not only managed to navigate the problem skillfully, but we also found a sustainable solution. A big thank you to FAPS, who offered us a replacement field with camera and tinkering corner within 24 hours of our request (!), and to the Department of Computer Science, who put all their energy into restoring the room.

However, our old carpet did not escape the water damage completely. Additionally, it had already seen better days, so shortly after RoboCup 2023, it was time for a new carpet. First, we had to make space for it in the basement.

Only together were we able to bring the heavy, over five-meter-long carpet roll from FAPS to the basement. Once again, many heartfelt thanks for accepting and storing it during RoboCup. We had to navigate it through some tight corners and over high steps.

After safely getting the carpet roll onto the playing field, a significant advantage of our new carpet became evident. Unlike our previous one, this time we only had a single roll, so we didn’t need to worry about aligning two separate sections while unrolling.

As the final step before setting up the vision system, we needed to stick the field lines to the carpet. Teamwork was crucial once again, as it was the only way to ensure the lines were straight when applied to the carpet.

A special thanks goes to the company Kibek, with their branch in Fürth, which provided us with very competent advice and significant price support when obtaining the carpet.

In the past, we have been able to rely on the honest and knowledgeable advice from the employees in Fürth, and we will gladly do so again in the future!

RoboCup: Final Report

Posted on by

Now that the RoboCup is already a few days behind us, we’d like to take the opportunity to review the tournament.

Overall, our team was very well prepared, having all the electronic and mechanical components with us, allowing us to respond adequately to every situation with our equipment.

While it’s unfortunate that we ultimately lost due to our radio communication, everyone is already looking forward: Our sponsors Gerhard Schubert and HBC-radiomatic are already offering to address the existing issues with the radio system, so we can soon showcase our full potential.

We’re also looking ahead: Not only are we preparing for the arrival of a team from Uruguay at FAU at the end of July for a joint workshop, but we’re also planning improvements. While nothing works without radio communication, our motor boards have also posed problems. A robust solution needs to be in place by Christmas.

There was a small moment of joy at the end of the tournament: We quickly had the opportunity to take a photo with our friends from TIGERs Mannheim to compensate for the missing match against them.

In the end, we’re happy that the vacation, apart from the unfortunate theft of personal belongings, went very well, and everyone enjoyed it. The wine museum in Bordeaux, the beach holiday on the Atlantic Ocean, or the French National Day in Paris: Many beautiful moments will remain in our team’s memory, making our time together truly unforgettable.

So, there’s only one thing left to say: See you all in Eindhoven 2024!