2009 RULES AND REGULATIONS
III TCFFHRC Expert Division: House-on-Fire
Chapter 1 Awards
Chapter 2 Specifications
Chapter 3 Scoring
Chapter 4 HOF FAQ
This contest encourages development of
fire-fighting robots that can extinguish real fires in the presence of obstacles
on an outdoor course.
Chapter 1 Awards
The scoring system emphasizes reliability by
grouping robots according to the number of successful runs. Robots are then
ranked by score within each reliability group. To earn a cash award a robot must
complete at least two successful runs. Only one cash prize will be given to any
winning robot, however, a robot may win both a cash prize and one or more
special prizes (Cost Effective, etc.).
Chapter 2 Specifications
2.1 Arena
2.1.1 Water Supply
2.1.2 Garage
2.1.3 Automobile
2.1.4 House
2.1.5 Obstacles
2.2 Robot
2.2.1 Sensors
2.3 Ambient Lighting
2.4 Power
2.5 Tethered Operation
2.6 Fires
2.7 Tiki Torch
2.1 Arena
This competition will take place on an asphalt
parking lot in a 5 x 5 m area.
A white lattice fence approximately 60 cm tall bounds the
arena area.
The arena contains the following items, which
will be in the locations shown in the diagram. To view the arena,
Click here.
2.1.1 Water Supply
A backyard, above-ground pool 0.7 x 0.5 m x
0.15 m deep filled with water. The robot must use only that water to put
out flames.
2.1.2 Garage
A scale model garage 0.7 x 0.5 x 0.6m.
An alarm near the garage emits an audible 1000
Hz ±5% tone whenever it detects a fire. The pulse period will be approximately
one second.
Click Here to view a picture of the garage and house.
2.1.3 Automobile
A scale model automobile measures
approximately 56cm x 33cm x 38cm.
An alarm near the automobile emits an audible
2000 Hz ±5% tone whenever it detects a fire. The pulse period will be
approximately one second. Click
Here to view a picture of the automobile. The scale is indicated by the
yardstick and garage.
2.1.4 House
A scale model house 1.5 x 1.0 x 0.9 m.
An alarm near the house emits an audible 3000 Hz
±5% tone whenever it detects a fire. The pulse period will be approximately one
second.
Click Here to view a picture of the house. The scale is indicated by the
yardstick.
2.1.5 Obstacles
Two or fewer (perhaps none) obstacles, which
may vary in location, size, and shape from run to run.
The obstacles will represent objects typically
found around the exterior of a house; for example, trash cans, bushes, trees,
and benches. The size of each object generally will be in proportion to the
sizes of the house, garage, and automobile.
2.2 Robot
Robots of any size may enter this Division.
However, at the start of every run each HOF robot, whether operating
individually or as a member of a swarm, must be contained inside a cube 50
cm on a side.
There is no scoring deduction or penalty for
using a swarm.
2.2.1 Sensors
There is no restriction on the type of sensors
that may be used as long as they do not violate any of the other rules or
regulations.
Robots that use laser-based devices must take
measures to prevent eye damage to team members and to observers. If, in the
opinion of the qualification Judges, effective safety measures have not been
taken, the robot will be disqualified from competing. The Judges may require the
team to remove the laser device from the robot.
Contestants are not allowed to place any
markers, beacons or reflectors on the walls or floors, whether inside or outside
of the arena, to aid in the robot’s navigation.
2.3 Ambient Lighting
During the course of the contest, sunlight
might shine directly on the arena.
Many video and still cameras transmit infrared
light as part of their automatic focusing systems. Flash units produce bursts of
UV that may trigger the popular Hamamatsu UV-Tron flame sensor. The contest will
have many, many cameras at all times: verify that your robot will operate
correctly when it’s being photographed.
If a robot uses light sensors to find the
flame or detect walls or furniture, it is the robot builder’s responsibility to
design their robot to prevent these and other unintended UV, visible and IR
sources from interfering with its operation. Part of the challenge of this
contest is to design a robot that can find the flame and ignore everything else.
2.4 Power
The maximum electrical requirements for any
system needing electricity at the arena will be 10 amps at 120 VAC, 60 Hz from a
single US-standard outlet.
2.5 Tethered Operation
Robots tethered by wires to computers, power
supplies, or other devices are not allowed in the 2009 competitions, so there is
no Tethered mode.
Robots may communicate through a wireless
link, but must operate autonomously. Remote control by a human operator is not
permitted.
2.6 Fires
Fires will consist of small Tiki torch flames
positioned throughout the house, the garage, and the automobile. Each flame will be
produced by a Tiki wick 1 cm wide x 2 cm long. A small reservoir of
petroleum-based Tiki lamp oil provides fuel for each flame.
The fires may occur in any of the locations
shown in the figure Here. Facets of the
structures not visible in the figure have symmetric possible fire locations; the
fire may not be visible from the robot’s location. Fire locations are evenly
spaced on the surfaces and are centered on the face of each structure as shown.
A fire may start at any of the possible Tiki
locations. When fire spreads, an additional flame will be lit in the same
structure but not necessarily adjacent to an existing flame.
2.7 Tiki Torch
To view a side view showing construction of
HOF Tiki Torch Click Here.
To view front detail of HOF Tiki Torch
Click Here.
To view rear detail of HOF Tiki Torch
Click Here.
To view the materials for building an HOF Tiki
Torch Click Here.
To create a House on Fire torch
like the ones that will be used at the contest you will need the following the
following materials which can be purchased at Home Depot:
one 1 3/8” diameter hole saw
drill bit
one 3/8” NPT floor flange *
one 3/8” NPT street elbow
one 3/8” NPT 3” nipple
one 3/8” NPT cap
some 10” wide aluminum flashing
some #6 1/2” sheet metal screws
four #8 3/4” sheet metal screws
four #8 washers
some 2" drywall screws
some 1/2" plywood
a sturdy base to screw the
plywood into (e.g. a piece of 4"x4" lumber)
one Tiki (R) torch replacement
wick **
Tiki (R) oil **
The steps to assembling a torch
are:
1 - Drill a 1 3/8" diameter hole
in the plywood for the floor flange using the hole saw drill bit.
2 - Cut two lengths of aluminum
flashing 10" long.
3 - In each piece of flashing,
in the center of one of the edges cut an opening for the flange hole
(approximately 1 3/4" wide along the edge of the flashing and about 1 1/2" deep
into the flashing).
4 - Using #6 sheet metal screws,
attach the two pieces of flashing to the plywood so that they overlap slightly
and that the openings you cut in the previous step align to form a hole that
surrounds the hole in the plywood you cut for the floor flange.
5 - Using #8 sheet metal screws
and washers, attach the floor flange to the plywood. The raised, threaded
portion of the flange should protrude through the hole in the plywood (It should
point toward the "interior" of the structure.).
6 - Using 2" drywall screws,
attach the plywood to the base.
7 - Cut the Tiki wick in half,
giving you about a 4 1/2" length of wick.
8 - Insert one length of Tiki
wick into the narrow, threaded opening on the street elbow. You will have to
pinch the end of the wick tightly and use a twisting motion to get the wick into
this opening. Continue to twist and push the wick until it touches the bend in
the "elbow".
9 - Trim the wick so that
between 1" and 1 1/2" of wick extend out of the narrow opening of the street
elbow.
10 - Screw the 3" nipple into
the street elbow tightly (You may want to use some pliers to ensure the fit is
tight.).
11 - Carefully fill the 3"
nipple/street elbow with Tiki oil, and screw the cap onto the nipple tightly
(Again, you may want to use some pliers to make sure the fit is tight).
11 - Screw the wick/street
elbow/3" nipple/cap fixture into the flange. The wick should now be on the same
side of the plywood as the aluminum flashing.
Congratulations! you have just
assembled a House on Fire torch!
* If your Home Depot does not
carry a 3/8" NPT floor flange, you can get one from www.grainger.com, PN: 5P598.
** Home Depot will not have Tiki
wicks or oil at this time of year, but you can get them on www.amazon.com.
Chapter 3 Scoring
There are no penalties in this division.
Judges may, however, disqualify a robot that,
in their opinion, appears to be deliberately damaging the arena or violating
other rules.
The Final Score is equal to the Operating
Score: FS = OS.
3.1 Actual Time (AT)
3.1.1 Time Limits
3.1.2 Loops and Stalls
3.2 Procedures
3.2.1 Initialization Phase
3.2.2 Execution Phase
3.3 Scoring Example
3.1 Actual Time (AT)
The Actual Time AT is the number of seconds
elapsed from the start of the Execution Phase to the time when the robot
extinguishes all flames. The limit on each trial is five minutes, so the maximum
Actual Time for such a successful trial is AT = 300.
If the robot does not extinguish the flame
within the 300 second limit, the Judge will deem the trial unsuccessful
and assign AT = 600.
The robot must extinguish all flames
to have a successful run. The judge ignites the first flame two minutes after
the start of the trial, so the minimum AT score = 120.
3.1.1 Time Limits
The maximum time allowed for a robot to find
the candle is 5 minutes, after which the Judge will stop the trial and assign AT
= 600.
A robot operating in Return Trip mode must
return to the Home Circle within 2 minutes after extinguishing the candle, after
which the Judge will stop the trial. The AT equals the time required to
extinguish the candle.
3.1.2 Loops and Stalls
Expert Division robots need not move during
the Initialization Phase; the 30-second stall rule applies only after the judge
ignites the first flame.
3.2 Procedures
Each trial consists of two phases: the
initialization phase, followed immediately by the execution phase.
The initialization phase will be exactly two
minutes long. The execution phase may last as long as five minutes.
The total maximum length of a trial is seven
minutes.
3.2.1 Initialization Phase
The initialization phase lasts approximately two
minutes.
The robot or robots will be placed in the
arena by the judge at a position chosen by the judge. All robots in a swarm will
be placed before the trial begins. When the robot or robots are in place, the
judge will activate them and begin timing the trial.
Robots may use the initialization phase in any
manner they wish. No flames will be lit during this phase.
3.2.2 Execution Phase
The execution phase follows the Initialization
Phase. The time limit on the execution phase is five minutes. At the start of
this phase the judge will light a single fire in the house, the automobile, or
the shed. At the same time, the fire alarm corresponding to that structure will begin sounding. During the
execution phase robots may extinguish any and all fires in the arena using water
from the reservoir.
If this first fire is not extinguished within
2 minutes, the judge will light another flame in the same structure, simulating
the spread of fire within the same structure.
The judge will light one additional fire each
minute until all flames have been extinguished or until the 5-minute Execution
Phase time limit has been reached. The robot must extinguish up to three flames
(lit at 2, 3, and 4 minutes) to have a successful trial.
The robot must use that water to put out the
fire. It may apply the water to the flame in any manner. Before
extinguishing any flame the robot must signal that it recognizes the flame.
Other behaviors will disqualify the run. For example, the judges will
disqualify a robot if it simply drenches the arena or part of the arena with
water.
3.3 Scoring Example
The Final Score is the sum of the Actual Time
scores for the three runs.
A swarm with three robots has three runs and
performs as follows:
Extinguishes flame after 1 minute, 12 seconds
of the execution phase. AT = 72.
Fails to extinguish first flame in 2 minutes.
Another is lit. Puts out first flame at 2:42. Fails to put out second flame by
3:00 so third flame lit. Puts out second flame at 3:14 and third flame at 3:47.
All flames extinguished. AT = 3*60 + 47 = 227.
Runs out of time after five minutes of
execution time; no flames extinguished. AT = 600.
Two successful runs. Total score = 72 + 227 +
600 = 899
Chapter 4 House on Fire
Frequently Asked Questions
1. For swarms, must all the
robots fit in the initial box? What prohibits companies like IRobot from
entering 30 machines?
At the start of every run each HOF robot,
whether operating individually or as a member of a swarm, must fit inside a
square box 50 cm. on a side.
2. During the initial 2 minutes,
is the robot allowed to take water from the pool?
Yes
3. Is the execution phase time
marked by the start of the fire or start of fire alarm?
These events
will coincide and mark time = 0.
4. Can you provide a measure of
audible at 3 meters?
It is a good question. As
of 10-20-08 we are still developing the hardware for the alarm system. We will
post more information as time develops.
5. During the initial 2 minutes
may the robot leave items, pumps, hose or sensors, near the objects?
The robot may
engage in behaviors that enable it to put out an eventual fire. As in the other
contest divisions it may not drop items in the arena.
6. Will the arena be cleaned
and/or dried between runs.
To the extent possible. We
imagine that things will get wet.
7. Are the items with the Tiki
flames subject to damage by flame?
We have designed items so
that they will not be damaged by Tiki flames.
8. Will the arena be available
for test prior to the contest?
We'll open
the arena on Saturday for practice, for most of the day. The arena must be
supervised due to fire regulations. Practice times will be published on
website.
9. Will fire be present on multiple
buildings?
No. Fire will start and spread in one building per run.
10. Will the tones be sounded simultaneously? If so, we request DTMF tones.
(Sounding simultaneous 1kHz, 2kHz and 3kHz tones will generate interfering
tones)
One place on fire at a time, so only one alarm will sound at a
time.
11. Are the Tiki lamps recessed within the surface of a building
or sitting on the surface?
No. Check out the picture we put up this week on he website. You
can get to them via links embedded in the House and Garage sections.
12. Will there be a canopy over the arena to shade it?
Yes (and to protect arena if it rains).
13. How are the flames lit? That is, will a person walk in the arena to
light flames while our robot is present?
A person will light the flames but not enter the arena to do it.
14. Can we mix foaming agent with the water before trying to extinguish
the flame?
No. Can use the water only.
Any other questions can be e-mailed to contest
director David Ahlgren at
David.Ahlgren@trincoll.edu
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