Rugby players meet their match in mini-robots

There might be something robotic about the consistently high performance level of Munster rugby captain Paul O’Connell but he could meet his match in a group of UCD students.

They have programmed mini-robots to play rugby in a manner that represents a cross between Robot Wars and Subbuteo as part of their first-year engineering course at UCD.

A group of 62 students, in 21 teams, yesterday battled it out for the top prize in the ninth annual Siemens RoboRugby Competition.

The purpose of the competition is to test the analytical and abstract problem-solving skills of the budding engineers.

The robots are designed, built, and programmed by the students, with each team given identical equipment such as a central processor, wheels, and Lego Connect pieces.

“It’s quite amazing how different the designs are given they have the exact same pieces to build their robots,” said Siemens spokesman Michael O’Connor.

Unlike the TV show Robot Wars, all the robots are pre-programmed so the teams are unable to control their automatons via a remote control once the game starts.

While the robots can be programmed to identify different coloured balls which are worth different points for scoring, they can also be programmed to tackle their opponent and prevent them from crossing the try line.

Mr O’Connor said the competition provides a perfect platform for students to demonstrate their creative thinking in an engaging and innovative manner.

“The competition is about challenging students to think conceptually and strategically. Engineers will play a vital role in Ireland’s economic revitalisation and Siemens supports RoboRugby as part of our programme to engage and encourage young people to consider careers in engineering.”

Brian Mulkeen of UCD’s school of electrical, electronic, and mechanical engineering, said the competition motivated students to think inventively and independently, and learn skills that would be essential in their professional careers.