Capture The Flag

Contest will be hosted at the end of Fall 2010.

Robot-CTF (Capture The Flag) is an autonomous mobile robot design competition in which one robot attempts to retrieve an object (“flag”) from the opposing side’s base in a capture-the-flag challenge. Robots must start in of the "home base" on their respective side of the course, navigate and traverse a path through the arena, reach the opponent's side, grab the flag, and move the flag back to base. The winner is the robot that accumulates the most points. Points are earned by moving through checkpoints to and from the opponent’s base. Bonus points are documented below.

The goals of the competition is to create an autonomous robot that can navigate through the course, find an object, recover it, and return it to the starting point. This competition is also designed to help those who compete prepare for the Trinity Firefighting Robot Competition.

General Rules

 * 1) General Rules: Each robot will be given two time trials, each lasting a maximum of 5 minutes. The robot will start in its base and try to successfully get into the opposite base, recover a flag, and return the flag to its base. If this is completed in less than the allotted time, the fastest robot will win. Otherwise, the team that acquires the most points will be victorious. Details of scoring can be found in the "General Bonuses and Deductions" section.
 * 2) Robot Size: While in its starting position, the robot must exceed no more than 12" in height, 12" in length, and 12" in width. At any point during the competition, the robot must not exceed 18" by 18" by 18". Failure to adhere will result in disqualification for the round. There is no weight restriction.
 * 3) Robot Starting Position: The robot must always start fully inside its home base, facing any direction. See "Arena" for base size and location. It cannot start while in contact with the flag.
 * 4) Robot Activation: You may activate your robot at the beginning of the round by touching it, but there will be bonuses available for other methods of activation. See "General Bonuses and Deductions." After activation, no further contact or interaction between humans and the robot is allowed… this is an autonomous robot competition.
 * 5) Contact with Arena: The robot may come in contact with any part of the arena during the competition. The arena must not be deliberately permanently damaged in any way. If such damage is determined to be deliberate by the judges, the robot will be disqualified.
 * 6) Detachment: No part of a robot may deliberately detach during any point during the competition.
 * 7) Modification between Rounds: Robots maybe be re-programmed or modified in any way between rounds. Table space (however limited) will be available at the site of the competition.
 * 8) Restricted Areas: A robot may not exit the arena at any time during competition.
 * 9) Flag Placement: The flag may be placed in either the standard location (see the 2010 CTF Maze Design image), but can be moved directly between the ramps for an "easier level" of difficulty. If a team chooses to do this, a 40 second penalty will be added to the total time.

Time Trial
During competition, one robot will be on the field at a time. All restrictions above will apply. Only one flag will be placed on the field (on the opposite side from the robot), and the team competing will be allowed to choose which flag starting zone it begins in. The robot will start completely within its base and try to successfully get into the opposite base, recover a flag, and return the flag to its base. Each team will be allowed 2 trials and the fastest recorded time will win. The clock will stop when the robot is completely within its home base with the flag. All bonuses and deductions will apply except for those designated "N/A" in the "General Bonuses and Deductions" table below. Bonuses and deductions will be treated as time multipliers (less than 1 for bonuses and greater than one for deductions). If no team is able to recover the enemy flag and return to its home base within 3 minutes, the team that gets the most points will be declared the winner.

Flag starting zone: The competing team may place the flag in either starting position in the opposite base, but it must stand completely within the starting zone. See "Arena" for flag starting zone location and "Flag" for flag size specifics.

Scoring: A team’s score depends on how close the robot came to achieving the proposed goal. If the robot completed its mission, its score will be reflected as the total time it took to complete its task. If no robot completes the maze, scoring will be determined by the point system laid out in the “General Bonuses and Deductions” section.

General Bonuses and Deductions
''Note: To "enter" and "exit" a territory, the flag can be either on or off the ground. It just must be completely enclosed within the area, on or over it. Points are only counted in the event that the robot does not complete the maze."

Prizes

 * 1st place – $10 Best Buy gift card per team member
 * 2nd place – $5 Best Buy gift card per team member
 * 3rd place – 1 Free Creamery Ice Cream coupon per team member

Registration
This competition is open to the public, but registration is required. The Penn State Robotics Club members require no registration at University Park. Use this form to register for the competition. Contact us with any questions.