ROBOT WARS

Joris “West Side” Favie

ROBOT WARS

• Robot Wars was invented in California in 1992 • It then moved to the United Kingdom to be

televised on the BBC• The show was very successful and attracted

millions of viewers• Two Dutch series were produced by BNN,

featuring yours truly• After six seasons on BBC the ratings dropped

substantially• The BBC then sold the UK show to channel

Five• Ratings did not pick up and finally Robot Wars

was CANCELLEDCANCELLED • No further TV shows are planned, but there are

many LIVE EVENTS in the United Kingdom and in Holland

DEAD METALWeight - 112kg Length - 160cm Width - 100cm Height - 70cm Speed - 12mph

Dead Metal weighs in at a sturdy 112 kg and is driven by a battery powered engine and a thermonuclear starter motor.

His weapons consist of pneumatically driven pincers - designed to immobilise all opponents - and a circular saw turning at over 3000 rpm. He's quicker than his fellow robots moving at a speed of 5.4 metres per second. Anything slow enough to get in his way is usually ground to a halt! Dead Metal is protected by a steel exoskeleton consisting of jagged armour plates and spiked struts as wheel guards. This exoskeleton offers the ultimate in protection now, although in previous wars a great deal of internal wiring was exposed and open to attack. This design oversight - considered to be one of Dead Metal's few weaknesses - has now been rectified. His internal linkage system has also been improved to increase the power distributed to the cutting disc and jaws.

Fast, deadly and by far the ugliest of the house robots with a grungy, corroded, rusty look. When the sparks fly, robots usually die!

SHUNTWeight - 105kgLength - 130cmWidth - 110cmHeight - 70cmSpeed - 10mph

Shunt might be a lightweight in house robot terms - weighing in at a mere 105 kg - but he is a heavyweight when it comes to havoc.

He moves at a speed of 4.5 meters per second and has a prototype cold fusion engine capable of dragging a fully loaded Land Hummer from a standing position to a speed of over 6mph.

Shunt may be the lightest of the house robots, but no opponent is going to get off lightly when they're at the receiving end of a deadly diamond edged axe blow with a force of over 500kg per square centimeter.

His design is reminiscent of a bulldozer, with a rear-mounted scoop and fearsome axe, both powered by pressurized carbon dioxide. Shunt's chassis and scoops are made of steel, while his superstructure is moulded fiberglass.

Shunt's extremely resilient structure and low profile ensure that he can take just about anything thrown at him.

MATILDAWeight - 116kgLength - 140cmWidth - 66cmHeight - 66cmSpeed - 8mph

The charmingly named Matilda may not be able to waltz like her Australian namesake, but does have hydraulic tusks. New for this year, she has had her tail-weapon transformed into an interchangeable weapons arsenal that can take either her deadly chainsaw or a state of the art flywheel weapon that weighs over 60 lbs. Truly a sting in her tail! And as she's powered by a rechargeable battery unit and moves at over 3.6 m/s, dancing with her is not recommended.

Matilda is always a favourite with the audience. She is fashioned from fiberglass matting - a material that is more resistant to heavy blows than steel. She is driven by a 12-volt motor and her tusks are operated by a powerful pneumatic carbon dioxide system. A 76cc motor drives her steel chainsaw tail when fitted.

Matilda's greatest strength is the extreme toughness of her skin, which is capable of resisting just about any form of attack. Her outer structure is smoother and less complicated than the other house robots - and attacking blows tend to glance off, rather than penetrate.

However, she is vulnerable to being overturned and as viewers of the show will know, certain competitors take great delight in ‘lifting her skirts'

SGT. BASHWeight - 120kg Length - 140cm Width - 90cmHeight - 90cm Speed - 8mph

Sergeant Bash is the flame-filled, militaristic machine of war powered by four batteries running in parallel. Conduits attached to his flame-thrower also vent heat to power a secondary steam engine.

Sergeant Bash weighs in at a mighty 120kg and moves at 3.6m/s. This camouflaged, armour plated annihilator has a tank-like forward section and pneumatically driven, front mounted pincers. His primary weapon is a propane-fuelled flame-thrower mounted on a 360 degree turret which promises to warm the throttles of any robot's heart!

Internally, Sergeant Bash is built from more complex components and equipment than any of the other house robots. His sophisticated weapons require the inclusion of gas bottles to power the flamethrower, in addition to valves and numerous carbon dioxide reservoirs.

The flamethrower and pneumatically driven pincers all contribute to Sergeant Bash's increased weight and he requires an extremely long wheelbase to support the mass of internal engineering. But this year, those front pincers have been replaced high spec surgical steel jaws, to exact destruction with his own brand of surgical precision!

SIR KILLALOTWeight - 280kg Length - 120cm Width - 120cm Height - 130cm Speed - 5mph

Sir Killalot is arguably the scariest robot on Earth. He derives his power from a prototype cold fusion cell, weighs in at a massive 280kg and stands 1.3m high. At 1.8 metres per second he's slower than the other house robots, but one look at him and you'll quickly get the message - mess with Sir Killalot at your peril!

As well as his devastating appearance, Sir Killalot is armed with a highly efficient rotating drill and a fearsome hydraulic cutting claw, adapted from the 'jaws of life' which rescue services normally use to save trapped victims from car wreckage. Sir Killalot uses them to create wreckage!

The hydraulics were adapted and refined to give a much faster cutting speed. The claw is quite capable of lifting over 100 kg of weight, slicing through armour plating and cutting the axles of opposing robots in two.

Considering the complexity of Killalot's design and the formidable nature of his weaponry, he was built over a relatively short period of time - intial build was less than three months. The most recent of the house robots (apart from REFBOT), Sir Killalot was introduced to the show in 1999. He's the largest and by far the most impressive house robot in action today - although his vast size and slow turn of speed are often considered his greatest weaknesses. But is he invulnerable? Would YOU want to take him on?

GROWLERWeight - 375kg Length - 152cm Width - 130cm Height - 76cm Speed - 17mph

Growler is the robot pit bull with attitude that joined the ranks of the House Robots at the same time as Mr. Psycho. The jaws of Growler are not the place to be stuck in the arena as there is 9 tons of force snapping them shut on its victims!

The shell and chassis of Growler is predominately steel with industrial digger gauge used in the jaw. Growler has something of a reputation for being the fastest ever House Robot and that speed is due to 2 48volt 5kw motors running a 4 wheel drive motive system. 300 amp speed controllers and 6 batteries ensure that Growler never runs out of steam!

MR. PSYCHOWeight - 750kgLength - 163cmWidth - 145cmHeight - 150cmSpeed - 8mph

Mr. Psycho made its dramatic debut at the Sixth Wars and as may be noticed by glancing at the above dimensions and weight it is the biggest and most powerful House Robot ever built.

Mr. Psycho's giant claws are powered by two 9 tons hydraulic rams running at 3000 psi. They can in theory grab and lift the equivalent of two Sir Killalots!

The Hammer head alone weighs in at 20kg and is given a kick by a hydraulic accumulator and is powered by a 9 ton shoulder and elbow ram generating awesome force.

The tracks are the same type used successfully on Sir Killalot and are powered by two Briggs and Stratton 5hp electric motors run at 48 Volts, which are controlled by two 300-amp speed controllers. The chassis is constructed from thick walled steel box section and the head is fabricated in fiberglass.

CASSIUSWeight - 250kg Length - 130cm Width - 100cm Height -85cm Speed - 20mph

Cassius Chrome, the final House Robot.

Powered by 2 x24v Magnetic Motors this robot has a fierce look that is backed up with a fierce punch.

With interchangeable fists, it can be designed to batter, pummel or pierce.

Each piercer weighs in at 15Kg.

HAMMERHEAD

Weight - 100kg Length - 130cm Width - 140cm Height -30cm

Weapon - Co2 flipperMotors - 2x Bosch 750 wattArmour - polycarbonate

THE END!

Presenting the Web LectureDo’s and Don’ts

A Bad Example

• Replay the Robot Wars web lecture• Make a list of its mistakes• Before continuing, review your list• Why are the mistakes wrong?• Think of rules to avoid them

Make Your Slides Legible

• Contrast with background (brightness)• Black on white – not white on black• Use a familiar, standard font• Big enough font size (30 pixels)• Proper capitalization

More Considerations for Good Slides

• Working memory capacity (7 ± 2 chunks)• Consistent layout & style• Avoid clutter (busy backgrounds)• Meaningful text & pictures• Functional sound & animation (if any)• Progressive building for complex

schemes

Content & Structure

• Determine your objectives• Use examples & rhetorical questions

• Introduction: what will you tell?• Body: tell it!• Conclusion: what did you tell?

Body Language

• Speak with enthusiasm & conviction• Hand gestures and facial expressions• Make eye contact• Don’t read from notes• Practice makes perfect & builds

confidence

Recording the Web Lecture

• Prepare yourself & relax• Have an assistant or audience• Neutral background• Check visibility & audibility• Capture the hand gestures• Don’t show the remote

Conclusion

• Avoid common mistakes• Use common sense• Put thought into making slides• Practice your presentation• Properly set up your recording

environment