The future of roboting

[blazerbotics]

Re: The future of roboting

Yup! We take the mechanoid (and sometimes a heavy on display) and drive around the shopping centre, mainly to get abit of free press. Does attract attention especially when people thinks its a bomb disposal robot!

[gilbert]

Re: The future of roboting

It is nice to see some serious suggestions being made to try and secure the robot scene.
I have already emailed and phoned my contacts in the Wigan area informing them about the U.K.finals being held there, with promises of at least eight people turning up!
I would love to hand out flyers to work coleagues freinds etc. for an event in my area unfortunately there hasn't been an event in Kings Lynn (Norfolk)for about four years, you can't get people on low incomes to drive hundreds of miles to spend two hours pay for a two hour show. Maybe an event in Norwich, Peterborough or back in Kings Lynn would be successfull. I would certainly help.
Flyers work best if they give the holder a discount. additional discounts for buying next show or all three shows for a weekend event would also increase sales. The public have been brainwashed by the supermarkets to expect money off offers or B.O.G.O.F. it works for them it could work for us.
We could also start a Get Robotwars back on T.V. campagne Inviting all show visitors ( and anybory else ) to sign a petition to be sent to BBC programs director.
If we can get some t.v. coverage the crowds would return.
Steam fairs. I know they pay all expenses to get the steam engines there. Langport and Yeovil (Somerset) steam fair used to host a robot event. That might be a usefull area to investigate. They certainly draw some large crowds. Anyone got any contacts in that area.

Finally Swanny is obviously too shy to tell you, Envy managed to oota Iron-Awe. It was of course Iron-Awe 6 (driven by me). Not Iron-Awe 5 (driven by Robert) When I've learned to drive the pesky thing I'll return the compliment.

Gilbert Team Iron-Awe
P.S. All phone your local Radio stations and tell them where and when you will be competing!!! you might have some local fans that would be interested.

[anukhet]

Re: The future of roboting

Hey people - lets tell them what we do, add your comments...........
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8109163.stm

[robotwars]

Re: The future of roboting

This thread is being set up so anyone who runs a robot at events can say how things are and how they see them changing in the future. I know in a recession it is easy to be all doom and gloom but try and keep the posts here as optimistic as you can. Remember there will always be changes to this sport/hobby so lets try and predict how things will be in say 1 2 & 4 years time

So we've gone round a big circle, hopefully people now know that your two major event organisors are already trying everything in the book to sell tickets. ALthough I now have a couple of new ideas to try.

Back on topic... read above !!!

[craig_colliass]

Re: The future of roboting

Thanks Jonno

One thing I thought of for 4 years ahead

How about a robot league for outside events a sort of all terrain robot wars event, I don€™t know what size of robot would work you decide, but the idea would be instead of armoured plated slugs getting caught on a bit of the arena floor having tank style machines that could whack each other or turn each other over, crush you know the usual stuff. But also be able to go over rough terrain instead, this could be quite easy to set up the events, as you would not require the same type of arena. No lights a, simple sound system and some screening as normal.

The ideas keep coming; you could have water hazards
amphibious machines,
walkers,
tracks,
or rolling devices
even ejectors to get your robot out of a sticky situation.

Think out side of the Robot Wars Box!!!


We are inventors after all :shock: :shock:

[blazerbotics]

Re: The future of roboting

That is a format that has come up before in discussions. I do like the sound of it, im just starting to build a big version of my Omega (built for UK Robotic Games) that i can take up the woods, through fields etc. The problem is that it requires everybody to build new machines, robot numbers are going down and how many teams would be willing to build a new machine for a new format, unless it was for TV of course.

[craig_colliass]

Re: The future of roboting

Thanks for the feedback Alan

We could call it Robot Warriors



I was thinking the first type of robot could be the Featherweight class, this way they would not be too expensive to build and they could fight in today€™s arenas as well like The Mighty Seraphim.

I don€™t know but in that class there may be robots that could be adapted to run in an all terrain situation, an all wheel drive pusher with bigger wheels!!
Also there is no reason why you couldn€™t run private events in your own back garden, you know get other roboteer friends around for a BBQ, a beer and a few rounds of Robot Warriors.
Should be a good laugh

[ady]

Re: The future of roboting

i like the sound of that, would be good, didnt roger plant have a off roader of some sort. i seem to remember a vid of it going through mud chucking it everywhere.

[craig_anto]

Re: The future of roboting

Back in 2004 I built a 4WD beach bot for a holiday, 4 big pneumatic wheels acrillic body box section frame and 2 massive 12v batteries, it would run for about an hour and made an impression on the beach I'll dig out my pics

[gilbert]

Re: The future of roboting

I hate to pour cold water on what at first seems like a good idea but...Rough terrain robots.
Roger plant did indeed build one, complete with on board camera for remote driving. and a paint ball gun to score points against the opponent. Great fun!!!
The problem is how do you get the public to view in safety? and pay up for the privelage.
Rough terrain robots are not cheap to build and would be trying to reach an audience more inclined to go to stock car demolition derbys or off roading and rally events.

Maybe we should all become shareholders in a robotting company so sharing the work load and the profits (or losses) Maybe we should avoid the costs and audiences and just fight among ourselves on any bit of flat ground that we can corden off for a few hours.
I just want to keep on fighting robots.

[craig_colliass]

Re: The future of roboting

Thanks for the responses so far

The idea is not going to be with out problems to overcome.

What I had in mind was to have the arena space the same (or smaller for just featherweight sizes) as we have now, the same polycarbonate sheets could be used to cordon off the area for the audience watching.

As far as people going to see this type of robot combat it may be different, there maybe more people we just don€™t know until we try. But the robots in this format could use ordinary arenas as well. So retaining our core audience.
The idea is to expand the size of the net because the fish are fewer.

What ever we as a community decide to do I will support.
But if the whole thing goes belly up! Then this format could re-start as a grass routs fighting robot format. Who knows as such it may get even more media coverage than the old format gets now.

We the roboteers can plan together our future and the EO€™s can help in this.
Remember
€If you always do what you€™ve always done,
you always get what you€™ve always got€ :shock:
If your lucky and luck may soon run thin.

[dgr]

Re: The future of roboting

There are people who build RC tanks with paintball guns that go at each other in field combat, that wouldn't be a big step away from Craig's idea. They don't really have an audience though, they just do it for the hell of it.

I always liked the idea of a sort of robot wars on water, building model boats with armour and weapons and trying to sink your opponent. Would take a while to sort rules out, but would be fun.

[robotwars]

Re: The future of roboting

I'm with Gilbert ! I want to fight robots, and get to flip Envy oota every weekend !!

My PERSONAL prediction for in 3 years time......

The whole thing does a full circle, and we end up playing robots in pub carparks !!

Unless something changes.

John

[craig_colliass]

Re: The future of roboting

Works for me John name the pub

I think the audience numbers will recover a little.
But I do think there is room to move away from the Robot Wars formula to something better, or a better match for the circumstances we now face.
I still think that the featherweight robots will be the preferred size for the medium term 2-4 years and the heavies will become the fossils of the robot world, but i think they will be popular again in say 4 years.
Like I say with all terrain feathers, you can have an event in a back garden with friends and family plus you don€™t have to pay pub prices!!!

[dgr]

Re: The future of roboting

How much cost difference is there between running something like the featherweight champs with Robots Live's little arena to running a full heavyweight competition?

Such a shame EO unity will never happen, that would save everyone time, effort and money.