World Robotics Championship RoboCup RMRC: Rescue Robot

The presentation featured a self-developed rescue robot designed by students for competition in the RMRC category. The robot has been developed entirely by students from the initial idea to the concept, prototype, and testing phase. It is constructed from components using rapid prototyping technology, specifically 3D printing. The robot is engineered to navigate various obstacles on the field, such as sand, rubble, stairs, ramps, and other barriers. It is equipped with a robotic gripper to open different valves and openings, and with cameras to inspect pipes, detect movement, measure temperature, recognize colors, letters, and QR codes.

In 2023, the team achieved 2nd place in the international competition at the RoboCup RMRC 2023 World Championship in Bordeaux, France.

ROKOKO SUIT

Have you ever wondered how our movements are captured and transferred into the digital world? Who gives animated characters their movements? How are movies shot in Hollywood? All of this is possible with motion capture technology, which is also enabled by the Rokoko suit.

Gimnazija Lava at the European RoboCup Junior Championship

At Gimnazija Lava, robotics has been one of the ongoing extracurricular activities since 2011. It allows students to develop talents in areas that cannot be explored in such depth during regular classes. Besides exploring new technologies and computational thinking, the focus is on teamwork, as the work is done in teams that must function as harmoniously as possible. The main emphasis is on preparing for the RoboCup Junior Rescue Line competition, which simulates rescue operations under rubble after a natural disaster. Competitors are tasked with designing and programming a robot that must navigate various obstacles to reach the disaster area, locate victims, and then transport them to a safe zone.

Over the past ten years, our students have participated in world or European championships six times (Netherlands, Brazil, China, Canada, Online competition 2021, and Croatia), where they could exchange experiences with peers from around the world. The latest international experience was last year when members of the team Albert (Peter Potnik, Tian Vrtnik, Matija Herlah, and Maks Cizej) participated in the European RoboCup Junior 2023 competition in Varaždin. They completed six competitive runs. As the days went by, the tasks became more challenging, but the team did not give up and adapted excellently to the situation. Competing against 25 teams, they achieved an excellent 7th place in the final rankings, which we are very proud of.