One of the interesting aspects of robotics is that it mixes fun with science and technology. This is exactly what the RoboCup is all about: a scientific initiative to push robotics forward by means of competitions where roboticists have fun while facing concrete challenges. Initially, the RoboCup was dedicated to soccer with the long term goal is to foster robotics and eventually have a team of robot beat the human soccer World Cup champions by 2050. While this goal still holds, RoboCup has now four competitions. Beside the RoboCup Soccer there is:
- RoboCup Rescue is about having robots rescue humans after natural or industrial disasters such as earthquakes.
- RoboCup @Home aims at developing robots for domestic applications such as elderly care.
- RoboCup Junior was introduced for purpose of education, in order to encourage young students to study science and technology.
This year, the Robocup was held on 18-24 June 2012 in Mexico City. It was a huge event, and probably a nightmare for organizers. For each of the four RoboCup competitions we listed above, there are several leagues. And for every league, there were several competing teams. You can find online the results as well as descriptions of the various leagues. We hope that our selection of videos will provide you with a taste of this exciting event.