[meteorite-list] NASA-WPI 2013 Robot Prize Competition Registration Open

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu, 25 Oct 2012 11:30:08 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <201210251830.q9PIU8uF028987_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

Oct. 25, 2012

Sonja Alexander
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1761
sonja.r.alexander at nasa.gov

Eileen Brangan-Mell
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, Mass.
508-831-6785
ebmell at wpi.edu

RELEASE: 12-377

NASA-WPI 2013 ROBOT PRIZE COMPETITION REGISTRATION OPEN

WASHINGTON -- NASA and the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in
Worcester, Mass., have opened registration and are seeking teams to
compete in next year's robot technology demonstration competition,
which offers as much as $1.5 million in prize money.

During the 2013 NASA-WPI Sample Return Robot Challenge, teams will
compete to demonstrate a robot can locate and retrieve geologic
samples from a wide and varied terrain without human control. The
objective of the competition is to encourage innovations in automatic
navigation and robotic manipulator technologies. Innovations stemming
from this challenge may improve NASA's capability to explore a
variety of destinations in space, as well as enhance the nation's
robotic technology for use in industries and applications on Earth.
The competition is planned for June 2013 in Worcester, Mass.,
attracting competitors from industry and academia nationwide.

NASA is providing the prize money to the winning team as part of the
agency's Centennial Challenges competitions, which seek
unconventional solutions to problems of interest to the agency and
the nation. While NASA provides the prize purse, the competitions are
managed by non-profit organizations that cover the cost of operations
through commercial or private sponsorships.

"We've opened registration and are eager to see returning teams, and
new challengers, enter this second Sample Return Robot Challenge,"
said NASA Space Technology Program Director Michael Gazarik at the
agency's Headquarters in Washington. "Contests like NASA's Centennial
Challenges are an excellent example of government sparking the engine
of American innovation and prosperity through competition while
keeping our nation on the cutting edge of advanced robotics
technology. Teams from academia, industry and even citizen-inventors
are all invited to join the competition and help NASA solve real
technology needs. With a $1.5 million prize purse, we're looking
forward to seeing some great technology that will enable our future
missions and advance robotics right here in America."

The first Sample Return Robot Challenge, which took place in June,
also was held at WPI. While almost a dozen teams entered the
competition, none qualified to compete for the prize purse. NASA and
WPI are partnering again to repeat and advance the competition, which
is expected to draw more competitors and greater technological
innovation from among the teams.

"We're honored and excited to once again host the Sample Return Robot
Challenge," said WPI President and CEO Dennis Berkey. "This year,
7,000 people turned out to watch the competition, which was the first
of its kind on the East Coast, and to enjoy WPI's fantastic Touch
Tomorrow Festival of Science, Technology and Robots. This university
is a hub of expertise and innovation within the area of robotics, and
it's a pleasure to engage people of all ages and backgrounds in the
wonders of this competition, this festival, and this emerging field."

There have been 23 NASA Centennial Challenges competition events since
2005, and through this program NASA has awarded more than $6 million
to 15 different challenge-winning teams. Competitors have included
private companies, student groups and independent inventors working
outside the traditional aerospace industry. Unlike contracts or
grants, prizes are awarded only after solutions are successfully
demonstrated.

WPI is one of the only universities to offer bachelor's, master's, and
doctoral degrees in robotics engineering. In 2007, the university was
the first in the nation to offer a bachelor's degree program in this
area. Through its Robotics Resource Center, WPI supports robotics
projects, teams, events and K-12 outreach programs. Each year, WPI
manages at least seven competitive robotics tournaments and also has
sponsored programs that foster the use of robots to solve important
societal problems and encourage consideration of the societal
implications of this new area of technology.

For more information about the Sample Return Robot Challenge and WPI,
visit

http://challenge.wpi.edu

The Centennial Challenges program is part of NASA's Space Technology
Program, which is innovating, developing, testing, and flying
hardware for use in NASA's future missions. NASA's Space Technology
Program and the Centennial Challenges are creating new technological
solutions for NASA and our nation's future.

For more information about NASA's Centennial Challenges and the Space
Technology Program, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/challenges
        
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Received on Thu 25 Oct 2012 02:30:08 PM PDT