Singapore Announces Robot Challenge

Singapore's Defense Science and Technology Agency, DSTA, has announced a competition to encourage scientists and engineers to design a robot for urban combat.

The objective of the TechX Challenge is "to inspire and engage the wider community of engineers and technologists, challenging them to defy conventional thinking and stretch the boundary of science and technology for defence and national security." The winner will get S$1 million (US $650,000).

The competition will be for robots to find targets in an urban setting in a limited time. The robots will be required to operate autonomously. They will need to negotiate obstacles outside and inside buildings and be able to climb stairs and take an elevator.

The robots will be tasked to go to a specified floor of a building, find the target, mark the target with a squirt gun and return to the starting point. Iif no one completes the mission within an hour there will be no prize awarded.

The contest is open to everyone. Every team manager must be a Singapore citizen but team members can be from anywhere.
Also, there will be a qualifying round of events before the final competition.

Each team must complete their application by May 2007. The first qualifying rouunds will be in May 2008 with the final competition in August 2008.