The rulebooks for the ERL challenges were updated, and we changed the names of the challenges slightly to recognise the increasing convergence between ‘service’ and ‘industrial’ robots. Hitherto, industrial robots were typically arms with little ability to sense their environment or deal with changes, but new developments in the growing ‘Industry 4.0’ and, more widely, the possibility of adopting robots to commercial purposes outside factories, means that robots in commercial applications may need the same human-robot interaction capabilities and cognitive abilities as robots working in homes in e.g. assisted living applications. The new names of ERL Consumer (was ‘Service’) and ERL Professional (was ‘Industrial’) reflect this convergence, and the fact that robot forms and functionality used in one set of domains might be reused to great effect in the other.
In the process of updating the rulebooks, we have moved ever closer to a consistent bench marking and awards structure for the ERL. We have organised and supported a number of tournaments throughout Europe, which have been supported by the development of further infrastructure to help gather benchmarking information about robots, to record robot performance and assist with the smooth running of events, and to visualise robot performance during competitions to assist public engagement and communications. In doing this we have drawn on current developments of the robotics community through the network of professionals we have established.
We have also developed our new challenge, ERL Smart Cities. The first ERL Smart City Event took place during Period 2 in Milton Keynes, UK at Centre:MK, one of Europe’s largest enclosed shopping centres in September 2019. We identified Middleton Hall, a large open space as the ideal site balancing safety, cost, and visibility, and worked from that basis to develop a series of contests we call ‘episodes’. An initial list of 12 episodes refined down to five, allowed us to demonstrate much, though not all, of the functionality offered in the three ERL Challenges.
The first SciRoc challenge was enormously successful both in terms of technical results, and in terms of outreach and visibility, due to the location of the event in the Milton Keynes shopping mall and to a suitable communication strategy which outlines how events are promoted and their results disseminated. Our sponsors all reported their satisfaction with the outcomes of the event, and in some cases their enthusiasm to support similar events in the future.
Our second Smart City event, taking place in September 2021 (Period 3), was held in Bologna, Italy at Palazzo Re Enzo, a historic building within the heart of the city. Bologna was selected as our second city host after a successful call for interest. The second SciRoc challenge has been a key milestone towards the establishment of a self supported robotic competition at the EU level. For the first time the competition was organised by a host city, which provided all the resources (human and financial) to run the event, with the only exception of the technical and scientific support of the SciRoc Consortium in setting up and running the five episodes. This is an unprecedented achievement, which led to a very successful event. In addition, the technical solutions implemented to face the uncertainty brought about by the COVID-19 pandemics, namely simulation environments and remote participation with execution on the onsite robots, contributed to a significant step forward in the technical organization of robotic competitions focused on, but not restricted to Smart Cities.
In order to support the work mentioned above, we developed a communications plan which outlines how events are promoted and their results disseminated. We have seen an increased influence in social media as a result of this, and members of the consortium have presented results at numerous conferences in workshops, presentations and in print. Alongside this, we have developed and refined some public engagement activities which will be delivered alongside major SciRoc events. We have also developed further an international network of experts, advisors, and collaborators who add value to the project.
The sustainable future of the ERL, has been an ongoing effort throughout the lifespan of the project. Our colleagues in euRobotics have agreed to our proposal to take on the ERL as one of their endeavours, and so the stage is set for the next successful iteration of the now self-supporting ERL.
In summary, SciRoc has met its objectives, in full, during both Period One, Two, and Three.
