The DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals recoil off today in Pomona , California , with 24 teams from around the world competing for $ 3.5 million in prizes . We ’re here at the event to bring you the late automatonlike thrills and spills , but mostly to keep a picket for any preindication of a robot uprising .
Update June 6 : Team KAIST of South Korea has won the DARPA Robotics Challenge , scoring a perfect eight points and clocking in at 44 minutes and 28 seconds .
Below we ’ve get everything you need to know about today ’s events , along with a live stream where you may take in the rivalry all day long .
What is it?
The DARPA Robotics Challenge is a competition hosted by the Department of Defense in Pomona , California . Twenty - four teams from around the world ( about one-half from the U.S. ) have built golem that must nail a number of tasks . The course is set up to model a disaster scenario not unlike the Fukushima atomic disaster that occurred in Japan in 2011 .
The teams that are manipulate their automaton are in a completely freestanding area without a clear line of sight to keep an eye on their bots . And much like a disaster scenario , there ’s make in tuner interference between the team and the automaton , signify that the bot must act slightly autonomously when communicating links go down .
The teams have two tries at the course , once on Friday and again on Saturday . Their good score from either day is the one that will find their chance at prizes .
When is it happening?
Right now ! you’re able to catch the live flow above Friday June 5th and Saturday June 6th . The first teams started this morning and the action will continue until about 6PM Friday . The second twenty-four hours of the rivalry starts at 8AM on Saturday and lasts the integral daytime as well . The awards ceremony is tentatively schedule for 7PM on Saturday . Four indistinguishable courses are lay up so that four teams are vie at the same fourth dimension .
What do the robots have to do?
Each team has an hour to discharge eight tasks with their robot :
Drive a fomite
drop dead the vehicle
afford a door , record a building
Locate and close a valve
Cut through a rampart
surprisal task
Remove rubble or navigate the terrain
go up step
Are the finals harder than the trials?
You count . During the trials each team had 30 minutes to complete each of the eight tasks . Now , all eight chore must be done in an hour . During trials , the golem were also allowed to be hooked up to safety belays so that they would n’t be damage should they fall . Now if the automaton falls it has to either 1 ) peck itself up or 2 ) the team must incur a 10 min punishment and go in and pick the automaton up manually .
wire communicating between the teams and the robots was allow during the test . Now , not only does all communications have to be wireless , there ’s periodic interference of up to 30 seconds where team ca n’t directly check their robot .
Who’s competing?
There are 24 teams from around the world , some of which are shop at by government . You canread more about the teams here .
Wait, I thought there was supposed to be 25 teams?
Yep . The only squad from mainland China had to drop out . The rumor is that the Taiwanese team could n’t get their visas in time .
What are the prizes?
1st booty – $ 2 million
2nd prize – $ 1 million
third prize – $ 500,000
Why should I care about stupid robots?
Because these robots are the great - grandparent of the robots that will no doubt lead the robot uprising one mean solar day . Today , disaster easing . Tomorrow , the world !
DarpaRoboticsRobots
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