Robot on Robot Violence
a.k.a
the Rise and Fall of Battlebots
By Aaron Peter
And
Robert Mazzatto
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Started in 1994 in the US
Created by Mark Thorpe after an unsuccessful attempt
to build a radio-controlled vacuum cleaner
Partnered with the New York based Sm:)e record
company who provided funding
A legal fight later occurred between Thorpe and Sm:)e
over who owned the Robot Wars concept, Sm:)e lost
allowing for the creation of the BattleBots tv series
Became UK TV show from 1998 to 2004 running on
BBC2
Does not exist anymore
Independently organized robot combat leagues still exist
in UK
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Organized in a ‘tournament’ structure with matches
determined by bracket placement
Arena featured ‘house robots’ in the corners which would
attack anyone who entered their territory
Featured a pyrotechnic elimination pit which if a robot fell
in was automatically eliminated and flame traps
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American continuation of Robot Wars
Formed after Robot Wars left the US (due to legal fights between the
founder and a record company) by various combat robot builders
Started in 1999 as a one-off special on then ZDTV (later TechTV,
then G4 Tech TV now just G4), two months later a new competition
was a pay-per-view event
Became a regularly scheduled prime time show on Comedy Central
in 2000
TV show ended in 2002
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Started with 1.5 million viewers
Had only 500,000 by season 3
Turned as it progressed from robot fighting sport to a comedy-skit show
featuring c-list celebrities as more of an ‘entertainment product’
Contests still held, but not very regularly
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Also organized in a tournament elimination
tournament
Featured only one-on-one battles with no house
robots, except after the tournament was over
where there was a ‘rumble round’
Featured cooler looking, but less damaging
arena hazards (sledgehammers, kill saws,
pneumatic pistons, spike strips, ‘screws’, etc.)
Featured Bill Nye as a ‘technical expert’
Weapon Types
Rammers
 Flippers
 Crushers
 Axe
 Saw
 Spinner
 Wedge
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Forbidden Weapons
Radio Jamming
 High Voltage Electric Discharge
 Liquids
 Open Combustion
 Un-tethered Projectiles/Bullets
 Lasers
 Halon/Fire Extinguishers
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Weight Classes
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75g- Fleaweight
150g- Fairyweight (UK - Antweight)
1 pound (454 g) - Antweight
1 kilogram (2.2 lbs) Kilobot (Canada)
3 pound (1.36 kg) - Beetleweight
6 pound (2.72 kg) - Mantisweight
12 pound (5.44 kg) - Hobbyweight
15 pound (6.80 kg) - BotsIQ Mini class
30 pound (13.6 kg) - Featherweight
60 pound (27 kg) - Lightweight
120 pound (54 kg) - Middleweight / BotsIQ Large class
220 pound (100 kg) - Heavyweight
340 pound (154 kg) Super Heavyweight
Notable Robots
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Razer – Won the Wars World Championships
Blendo – Banned from competition for being ‘too
dangerous’ to the spectators
Deadblow – Famous for having its creator turn it
into ‘taxidermied tabby’ and various other
Mythbusters appearances
Current Combat Robot
Competitions
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Some competition organizers still
operating:
Combots
 Ohio Robotics Club
 Robowars (Australia)
 Western Allied Robotics
 Saskatoon Combat Robotics Club
 Robogames
 Battlebots
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Robot-Sumo
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In Japan, the sport of robot sumo wrestling is more
common
Standard robot size is 3kg, the weapon is a 45 degree
adjustable wedge, and robots often use a vacuum to
hold them onto the surface of the dohyo
Either Remote-Controlled or autonomous are used
(using for example IR sensors to find the opponent)
Robotica
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Short lived series on TLC from 2001 to 2002
Instead of just fighting, robots competed in a series ov
challenges, gaining points
Challenges
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Knocking over obstacles
Navigating trap filled maze
Figure 8 race
Ended with a “fight to the finish”
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Robot sumo wrestling on an elevated platform with fall away
sides
It’s Robot-fightin’ Time
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http://www.scs.ryerson.ca/