RoboCup Crailsheim: luhbots vs RoboTeam Twente

The first match of the final day of RoboCup Crailsheim takes place between the third and fourth place teams from the group stage. The winner of this match will be our next opponent in the 1 PM game, as we positioned ourselves in second place during the group stage.

First Half

02:49 Twente takes a timeout.
02:49 Twente ends the timeout, but before the game can resume, a Twente bot spins wildly in circles.
02:07 Twente makes a bot substitution, and luhbots receive a yellow card for ball placement interference.
02:00 Twente plays the ball out of bounds, but luhbots fail at their ball placement, giving Twente a dangerous free kick.
01:29 luhbots shoot at the goal, but the Twente goalkeeper skillfully saves the ball. Both teams have had dangerous situations so far.
01:00 Twente holds the ball too long in their penalty area, giving luhbots a free kick which they convert into a goal. It’s 1:0 for luhbots.
00:15 luhbots commit a bot crash.
00:12 Out by Twente at their own goal line. luhbots get a corner.

Second Half

04:15 luhbots chip the ball over the boundary into the audience during their own ball placement.
04:10 Twente takes their second timeout and ends it again after about 10 seconds.
04:04 Twente makes a robot substitution and takes a robot off the field.
03:31 Twente holds the ball too long in the penalty area. luhbots get a free kick but fail at their ball placement, so the free kick goes to Twente.
03:25 A robot hits the already weakened goal wall of Twente, causing it to come loose. It is provisionally repaired while Twente makes another robot substitution.
02:52 Twente narrowly misses the luhbots’ goal.
01:07 luhbots score their second goal. It’s 2:0 for luhbots.
00:57 luhbots take the ball from Twente shortly after their kickoff and immediately score another goal.
00:34 Twente again takes too long to play the ball out of their penalty area, giving luhbots a dangerous free kick. They fail at the ball placement again, so the free kick goes to Twente.
00:01 luhbots hold the ball too long in the penalty area this time, and Twente converts the free kick directly into a goal to at least bring the score to 3:1, showing they won’t go down without a fight, although it doesn’t change luhbots’ victory.

Note: The above information is based on the public communication of the organizer. Our club is not the organizer of the tournament and therefore cannot independently verify the information.

RoboCup Crailsheim: ER-Force vs. RoboTeam Twente

Directly after our game against TIGERs Mannheim, we continue with our third match of the day: ER-Force vs. RoboTeam Twente. We are, of course, hoping for a win here to secure a good starting position in the knockout phase on Sunday.

If we win this game, RoboTeam Twente will surely finish fourth in the group. Additionally, we are almost certainly second, as it is unlikely that luhbots will win against the world champion TIGERs Mannheim. The latter are already sure to finish first.

First Half

05:00 The game starts almost on time with a kickoff by Twente. In this game, there is again automatic game commentary from the speaker, which makes the game much more accessible.
05:00 Since we are not quite finished with our setup, we start the game with a timeout. Quickly checking if our AI is started in the correct mode, laptops are plugged in, and nothing else stands in the way of a victory before the game can really begin.
03:45 After Twente’s robots lose some parts, there is an emergency break by Twente, costing them a timeout.
03:30 The game goes on quietly, and a goal for us falls quite unobtrusively.
ER-Force 1 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:30 Twente uses the game interruption to take a timeout and check their robots.
03:24 And the goals keep coming: Once again, we successfully put the ball into the net, further extending our lead.
ER-Force 2 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:24 Even though we are currently scoring goals, the game is extremely leisurely and feels more like a Sunday game. It must be said, however, that we are currently testing a new motor control and new motor boards, so it was expected that the game wouldn’t be ultra exciting.
03:01 After questioning the loyalty of one of our robots, as it behaves more like an opponent’s robot, there is a robot substitution.
02:28 Initially, our 1 gives the impression of a great performance, successfully executing ball placement. But this impression is quickly dispelled when it botches the subsequent throw-in.
01:45 Maybe we should hang a net around the field: For no reason and to the great confusion of all our computer scientists, our robot chips the ball out of the field during a game pause. Definitely something we want to look into.
01:21 Now there are some camera problems. Already yesterday (technically this morning), the camera caused sleepless nights, as among other things, the yellow paper was not well recognized by the camera.
00:19 Our Spätzle has to be substituted due to knee injuries (= motor failure): Spätzle’s knees became as soft as… well, Spätzle.
00:03 Almost at the end of the first half, we manage to increase our score: a goal for us. But the goal doesn’t count, as we previously committed a double touch: our robot kicked the ball twice in succession without passing to a teammate in between. This is a foul.
00:00 Thus, the game goes into halftime. The game action wasn’t exactly grand, but at least it matches the amount of sleep most of our team members had last night.
00:00 The halftime is used to flash the robots anew.

Second Half

05:00 As our team members are still trying to get our robots a bit more up to speed by flashing them, but the halftime break is running out, we also start the second half with a timeout.
05:00 Since we are also running out of timeout, the second half starts just as leisurely as the last half ended. Since this game is our last for the day, we have more than enough time to tackle the problem calmly.
02:43 This half offers very few highlights: The ball moves very leisurely, the game is often interrupted by shots out of bounds by RoboTeam Twente.
00:57 The game is so boring right now that I didn’t even notice two goals being scored. Meanwhile, there’s already a discussion on how we can pimp our firmware to eventually compete against TIGERs. So far, however, our hardware gives the impression that we can expect significant improvements from a software perspective in the coming weeks, which is very positive. Regardless, two goals for us!
ER-Force 4 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
00:43 One last timeout for us to tweak the hardware a bit more.
00:06 We stylishly close the game with a final, fifth goal.
ER-Force 5 : 0 RoboTeam Twente

Reading the game might seem rather sobering, but we are fundamentally very happy with our robots’ performance. It was already expected that new hardware would not work immediately and that only a limited amount of manpower could be devoted to designing new motor board firmware and motor control over a weekend. All the more, we are pleased that the robots run so well and reliably. This becomes even more understandable considering that we only received our new motor boards five days ago and thus could hardly test them.

Additionally, our HBC radio has so far only shone on the large field; radio problems are now officially a thing of the past, both on the small Division B fields and the large 12x9m² Division A field, much to our delight.

Since we are now almost guaranteed to be second place, we will probably not have any mandatory games today and will instead play our next game tomorrow afternoon.

Note: The above information is based on the public communication of the organizer. Our club is not the organizer of the tournament and therefore cannot independently verify the information.

RoboCup Crailsheim: ER-Force vs. TIGERs Mannheim

In a few minutes, the tournament’s two favorites will face each other; we are playing against our colleagues from Mannheim, TIGERs Mannheim!

First Half


5:00 The game started a bit later than planned. We are playing as the yellow team against the blue TIGERs. TIGERs have the kickoff.

4:45 First substitution: Our robot stopped moving.

4:30 Dangerous situation: We didn’t clear the ball from our goal area quickly enough, and TIGERs get a free kick. And goal for TIGERs…

ER-Force 0 : TIGERs 1

4:10 Kickoff. We commit a double touch, and TIGERs get their next free kick. We successfully defend it.

3:30 You have to hand it to TIGERs. In 2 moves, they skillfully send the ball across the field. 1 shot on goal and 2 misses.

2:47 We have ball placement in the corner. Not easy, but our dribbler isn’t working. Fortunately, TIGERs can’t manage it with their dribbler either.

1:55 The next dangerous shot on goal from TIGERs. Our keeper clears elegantly and chips the ball away.

1:03 TIGERs dribble past our defense. Very elegantly, TIGERs score the 2:0.

ER-Force 0 : TIGERs 2

0:03 TIGERs score the next goal. It’s clear our defense is too thin. With only 6 robots, we struggle to cover the spaces against the numerically superior TIGERs with 11 robots.

ER-Force 0 : TIGERs 3

Second Half


5:00 Kickoff. One robot has joined us.

5:00 Number 7 reports motor problems. So we’re back to playing with only 6 robots.

4:06 Our defense is really a wall. Despite fewer robots, even fast shots are intercepted.

3:46 TIGERs fail again at ball placement in the corner. To be fair, the vision is also the worst in the corners.

3:22 TIGERs keep up the pressure, but this time only hit the post.

2:51 One, two, three shots on goal in quick succession. Our goalkeeper clears well, and no goal is scored.

2:02 Goal for TIGERs. The keeper comes out to clear the ball, but TIGERs skillfully place the ball past the goalkeeper.

ER-Force 0 : TIGERs 4

0:44 TIGERs play an impressive passing series and outsmart our defense. The keeper can only run after the ball before it’s shot into the goal.

ER-Force 0 : TIGERs 5

0:18 Unfortunately, the next goal. The game is well in TIGERs’ hands.

ER-Force 0 : TIGERs 6 (Final Score)

Both teams perform their victory moves. Here we are a bit ahead of TIGERs and can circle around them.

Note: The above information is based on the public communication of the organizer. Our club is not the organizer of the tournament and therefore cannot independently verify the information.

RoboCup Crailsheim: ER-Force vs. LUHbots

The second day has now begun, and we have our first match of the tournament, playing against the LUHBots from Hanover, who are aiming for their first promotion to Division A this year.

First Half


5:00 The game starts on time; we are playing as the yellow team against the blue LUHBots. We have the kickoff; unfortunately, the first pass goes nowhere.

4:42 We intercept the LUHBots’ throw-in, advance forward, and attempt the first shot on goal. The LUHBots’ defense holds, but we get a corner.

4:34 The corner was skillfully defended by the Hanover team, but now no robot seems to have any interest in the ball.

4:16 As expected at this stage of the tournament, the league software is still experiencing minor issues. Currently, there’s a discussion about the functionality of the GameController, and shortly after, the vision in one corner of the field fails.

4:12 The radio of one robot seems to be malfunctioning. We take a timeout to investigate further, but it appears to be a robot issue.

3:58 The game continues, now without our robot 5. This doesn’t stop us; we take a shot from our half that reaches the goalkeeper.

3:12 A series of duels ensue, but our robots seem distracted by the spectators and leave gaps. LUHBots repeatedly win the ball but are promptly stopped again.

2:50 Despite many attempts by the LUHBots, we remain firmly in their half. After another duel, the vision loses both robots, leading to a brief interruption.

2:26 Our AI seems to misjudge the position of the barriers at the edge and stubbornly refuses to get closer than 30cm. Our software team watches this with little enthusiasm.

2:14 Another corner for us. We play a dangerous pass past their defense area, which is then shot directly into the goal!

2:14 Unfortunately, the goal is invalid as one of our robots rammed a defender just before the shot, which is a foul.

1:46 Another corner for us, our pass to the middle is received but not converted.

1:30 One of our robots tries to shoot the ball three times but only manages to do so with very little force.

1:13 The same robot has now overcome its stage fright, shoots – and scores!

1:13 This time the goal counts, making it 1:0 for ER-Force!

ER-Force 1 : LUHbots 0

1:13 We raise a challenge flag to question the referee’s decision on the first goal (and to test if the challenge flag mechanism works). Our argument is that the foul was too long ago to disallow the goal. The referee agrees, making it 2:0 for ER-Force!

ER-Force 2 : LUHbots 0

0:56 After the LUHBots’ kickoff, we advance back into their half and don’t intend to leave it again.

0:31 A duel succeeds, and we pass to the middle. Our striker stumbles on the reception but then turns and scores! It’s now 3:0 for ER-Force.

ER-Force 3 : LUHbots 0

And that ends the first half. Now we prepare for the second half and try to get our robot 5 back on the field.

Second Half


5:00 We start the second half refreshed with 6 robots again.

4:55 The kickoff is immediately shot out of bounds. We try and fail at ball placement, but the LUHBots also fail to place the ball. Thus, we have a free kick.

4:36 A bizarre situation: Our pass is blocked by the defense, and after a duel in front of the penalty area, the defense chips the ball into their own goal! This creates a borderline case in the rules, as chipped goals over opponents are usually invalid, but the LUHBots shot over their own robots. Now it’s questionable whether this rule applies to own goals. The referee decides not to allow the goal.

4:26 We fail again at ball placement, as our software still expects the wall to be in the wrong place and refuses to approach the ball.

4:12 A duel at the LUHBots’ defense, we are slightly pushed off and thus touch the ball in the opposing defense area. Unfortunately, that’s a foul.

4:04 We intercept the LUHBots’ free kick and score directly!

ER-Force 4 : LUHbots 0

4:01 The robots of both teams are running relatively well, with only three substitutions so far. We’ve only made one substitution, a new record for us! Now the LUHBots take one of theirs off the field.

3:43 We pass to the corner and stand in front of an open goal, but our robot can’t decide on a shooting angle and just fidgets in front of the ball, unfortunately a missed opportunity.

3:18 During the LUHBots’ ball placement, we are in the way and thus commit a foul. We receive a yellow card, but it doesn’t affect our current player count.

3:13 An unsuccessful duel in front of the defense. During ball placement, a LUHbot decides to smooth the ball with its dribbler. Meanwhile, we notice a robot that is no longer reliably responding to our commands. We take a timeout and are forced to remove the robot. Now we are outnumbered on the field.

2:46 Despite an overwhelming number of LUHBots attacking us, we win a duel in front of the defense and get the ball to a robot covered by three LUHBots. However, the subsequent shot on goal fails.

2:31 Corner for ER-Force. We make a high shot over the defenders, but no teammate is ready to receive it. The ball goes out of bounds.

2:29 Neither team can get the ball off the wall, so the referee places the ball manually.

2:28 Two repaired robots come from our team area. We take a timeout to test them and bring them back into the game.

2:28 At least one robot can return; the other seems to have also damaged its shooting module.

2:12 Oh dear, what a mishap! The robot we substituted had the wrong team color set! The LUHBots unsuccessfully try to contact it, and we complain that there is no new yellow robot. After much laughter, this is corrected.

1:50 Corner for ER-Force. We shoot a wonderful unmarked pass to the middle, but the receiving robot just watches the ball as it passes by.

1:46 We intercept the LUHBots’ throw-in and are back in their half.

1:33 We dribble the ball impressively in a circle in front of the defense, but uselessly.

1:10 After a throw-in for the LUHBots, they commit a double touch, giving us a free kick. We pass to the middle, our robot turns, shoots – and scores! Goal for ER-Force.

ER-Force 5 : LUHbots 0

1:10 We substitute a robot just to test how much time the new rules allow for substitution. We immediately substitute it back in.

0:27 Impressive pass combination forward. Our robot stands with the ball in front of the defense but again can’t decide to shoot.


And after a few more duels, the game ends with a decisive victory for ER-Force!

Final Score:

ER-Force 5 : LUHbots 0

Note: The above information is based on the public communication of the organizer. Our club is not the organizer of the tournament and therefore cannot independently verify the information.

RoboCup Crailsheim: Summary

Now that the RoboCup Crailsheim is coming to an end, we can give a summary of the weekend.

Our team was able to draw a lot of valuable conclusions from the tournament: why is it possible for us to forget to load the shot in a real tournament game? Shouldn’t something like this be activated automatically? Is our radio actually as robust as we thought? Why didn’t we pass in this or that game situation, although it would have made sense?

Many questions to which we can now throw many minutes of saved game material. But it’s not just us: The other teams were also able to gain valuable insights from the tournament and praised the RoboCup-like overall situation. Accordingly, the teams are all the more pleased to hear that both the city of Crailsheim and the Crailsheim company are planning to hold the tournament every year!

As a living location for robotics and automation, the Crailsheim location and the company Gerhard Schubert, which is inseparably rooted in robotics, only benefit from inspiring young talent from the region with the strengths of robotics and STEM subjects. As a university group, we are therefore very pleased to be able to do our part!

So we only have two things left to say: See you all at RoboCup Bordeaux – as well as RoboCup Crailsheim 2024!