Conquer the Course: A Robotic Hurdle Challenge!

GearStorm

An offline robotic competition where teams design, build, and race wireless robots through a challenging hurdle track. Participants will test their robot's speed, agility, and engineering prowess while navigating various obstacles.

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General Guidelines

Registration Closes: 1 July 2025
Mode of Conduct: Offline
Eligible Classes: IX - XII
Team Size: 2 Students
Maximum Teams Per School: 1
Video Presentation: 3-5 minutes

Rules & Regulations

Robots will compete in a Hurdle race on a track.
Robots should be wireless. Teams must ensure reliable wireless communication.
Any type of kits/components are allowed (self-built or ready-made), but the bot must be safe and stable.
The race will be conducted on a track filled with multiple obstacles—some mandatory, some optional for bonus points.
The complete track will be revealed only on the event day.
Only two team members are allowed to participate: one handling the bot and the other assisting.
Touching or lifting the bot during the race (except in case of a reset after foul) is strictly prohibited.
A team can reset the bot once per race if it gets stuck (with a time penalty, to be specified by judges).
Only one bot per team is allowed; no switching bots mid-race.
A maximum of 5 fouls (e.g., boundary touches) are allowed. After that, the run for that attempt is terminated.
In case of a technical failure, teams may get one retry within the time limit (at the judges' discretion).
If a bot is stuck for more than 20 seconds, a team may request a reset from the nearest checkpoint (the timer will not be stopped during the reset).

Bot Specifications

The robot must fit within the given size and weight limits:
- Length: 11.5 Inches
- Width: 8 Inches
- Height: 8 Inches
- Weight: 2 Kg (maximum)

Fouls & Penalties

Bot touching the boundary line: -5 points per instance.
Skipping a mandatory obstacle: -5 points per skipped obstacle.
Damaging the track or intentionally obstructing another team will lead to immediate disqualification.
Teams must signal clearly before starting; false starts will incur a penalty of -5 points.
Manual intervention (touching the bot) without the judge's explicit approval will lead to immediate disqualification from that run or the event.

Scoring Criteria

10 points will be awarded for each mandatory obstacle successfully completed.
10 bonus points will be awarded for every difficult or optional obstacle successfully cleared.
Teams that complete all obstacles without any fouls (boundary touches, skips, etc.) will receive an extra 10 bonus points for a 'flawless run'.
Teams showing creative bot design (aesthetics, innovative mechanisms) may earn up to 5 extra points, awarded at judges' discretion.
If a team attempts all obstacles, even if some attempts fail, they may receive up to 5 'effort points' as encouragement, awarded at judges' discretion.
Final score will be calculated based on points earned minus penalties. Time may be used as a tie-breaker.