Introduction

Who does not remember the fables of the Fountain Jeans and more particularly that of the grasshopper and the ant? This fable depicts the behavior of two animals through which the realist world and the artistic world confront each other. The first is represented by the ant, and the second by the grasshopper. The ant lives in seriousness in an anticipation of the future, while the grasshopper lives in the present time without worrying about tomorrow. These behaviors are also identifiable in humans: spending and saving, sharing and selfishness, the preoccupation of art and the economy ... In addition to this strong morality that is interesting today, the ant possesses capabilities that inspire scientists. Many researches are being done on the world of ants and more specifically on how they communicate, locate and determine the optimal path from the food source to the anthill. The aim of the robotics competition of this first AuRobAT edition is to reproduce the behavior of the ant between the anthill and the place where the food is.

Mission of the Ant Robot

Carry balls (Ping-Pong balls) to the anthill by going through a predefined path with challenges of different natures. There are two competition levels:

  1. Junior Level: Open only to teams whose members are enrolled in secondary education;
  2. Senior Level: Open to teams whose members are in higher education and any other team including those of secondary education if they wish;

Challenges to overcome during the course

Level 1:

The following Five challenges will be present on the journey of the robot-ant:

Challenge 1

Challenge 2

Challenge 3

Challenge 4

Challenge 5

Level 2:

Seven challenges will be present on the journey of the robot-ant: the five challenges above in addition to the following two challenges:

      1. An Obstacle: it is represented by an ant present on the course that the robot must get around before repositioning on its initial path;
      2. Color balls: The robot should only carry blue balls and ignore the others.

Paths

Level 1:

The playground area consists of a black band of 15mm ± 3mm traced on a platform (2m x 1.80m) of light brown color. The black dot represents the entrance to the anthill: starting point of the robot-ant. The ping-pong balls used represent the food and are orange in color. The fifth challenge is installed between the points A and B

Level 1: Example of a likely game area

N.B: The order of the challenges will be different on the day of the final

Level 2:

The playground area consists of a black strip of 15mm ± 3mm traced on a platform (2m x 1.80m) of light brown color. The black dot represents the entrance to the anthill: starting point of the robot-ant. Two other additional challenges are present on the path of the ant robot: it is an obstacle represented by an ant and balls that will be of two different colors: only the blue balls are requested.

Level 2: Example of a likely game area

N.B: The order of the challenges will be different on the day of the final

Important Dates

  1. Registration date: Before Tuesday, December 31, 2019.
  2. Date of sending a video clip to confirm the team's participation in the finals: Before Friday, February 28, 2020.
  3. Competition Date: Sunday, March 29, 2020.

Note:

  • All participating teams should be present at Al Akhawayn University by Saturday, March 28, 2020 at 4 P.M.
  • The chosen paths for the two categories of the competition will be communicated to all teams on Saturday, March 28, 2020 at 5:30 P.M.
  • Finals will start on Sunday, March 29, 2020 at 9:30 A.M.