Kingdom to host international robot contest
THIS year’s ABU Robocon 2023 will kick off in August at Angkor Wat. The Cambodian hosts have selected a traditional ring toss game as the central feature of this year’s challenge.
The Asian-Oceanian college robot competition was founded in 2002 by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU).
Khim Vuthy, director-general of the National Television of Cambodia (TVK), has formally accepted the ABU Robocon flag from former hosts India, paving the way for the Kingdom to host this year’s event. TVK is cooperating with the ABU, which is based in Tokyo, Japan, and the Japanese state broadcaster, NHK TV.
“The ABU has 14 or 15 member countries, although four of them are delaying their applications as they have issues with the terms of entry,” said Pang Nath, adviser to the Ministry of Information.
He explained that the students of several universities and institutes of technology in different countries are already designing and building robots for the contest. The media in each nation will promote a domestic competition, the winners of which will become the finalists that meet at Angkor.
This year, the challenge the robot’s designers will face is a traditional Cambodian ring toss.
After speaking with the organisers, the hosts selected a task which is based on an ancient legend – about a rabbit and an elephant who worshipped at Angkor Wat.
“This year we modelled two robots, an elephant and a rabbit, in line with a very old example of Khmer folk law,” said Nath.
“Each of the teams must construct a robot which will throw rings at a pole. As the rings are only slightly wider than the pole, it is a difficult task for a human, never mind a handmade robot. The team whose robot lands the most rings on the pole will
be declared the winners,” he added.
Nath acknowledged that Japan are often considered to be the most techno-savvy country in the region, but said they have only claimed victory once since the contest began.
“The country we are expecting to provide the greatest challenge is Vietnam – they have won three times already. China, Hong Kong and Indonesia are also very strong,” he added.
The Kingdom was first mooted as a potential host for the competition after attracting a lot of interest in its 2017 debut. As unknown newcomers, the Cambodian team knocked tournament favourites China out of the contest.
The Cambodian team placed third, behind Japan and hosts Vietnam. The podium finish on debut attracted a lot of interest from tech companies offering special awards.
This year’s contest is also special as it will be the first post-pandemic contest to be held in person.
Nath remembered watching the competition with interest in its earliest years.
“At that time, no institutes were offering robotics courses, although we were producing some very good mechanical engineers,” he said.
“Robotics is a combination of mechanics and software engineering.
Until 2014, Royal University of Phnom Penh was the only place [in Cambodia] offering software courses,” he added.
From 2014, several institutions began offering robotics classes, which led TVK to begin a domestic contest.
“2017 was our international debut, and we have achieved remarkable results. Under the conditions set by the ABU, each country must hold a national competition to select a representative team. In the international final, only one team from each nation may compete,” he said.
“There is one exception – the hosts are entitled to enter an additional team. Our final two teams will be selected following the nationals, which will held in the third or fourth week of June,” added Nath.
Though applications have not yet been opened, he estimated that 12 teams from seven educational institutions will sign up for the competition.
The Kingdom is prepared for a hectic 2023 schedule, as it hosts the 32nd SEA Games, the ASEAN Para Games, a national election and the regional robotics competition.
“Although this competition may not be as well-known as the SEA Games, we are intent on promoting it to the youth of Cambodia, and the region,” said Nath.