Saminda Abeyruwan, Justin Stoecker, Andreas Seekircher, and Professor Ubbo Visser accept their trophy at the RoboCup in Mexico City. The College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Computer Science RoboCanes team recently placed 2nd in 3D soccer simulation at the RoboCup 2012 in Mexico City.

RoboCanes competed against 13 teams from 11 countries in the event, placing 2nd behind a team from the University of Texas at Austin.

Ubbo Visser, team leader of RoboCanes and professor of computer science, was pleased with his squad’s performance. Scientists at the competition agreed that the performance of each of the semifinalists was comparable and noted a significant improvement in game play from last year’s contest.

The RoboCup is the largest artificial intelligence and robotics event in the world. The competition is an international research and education initiative designed to foster artificial intelligence and intelligent robotics research by providing a standard problem in which a range of technologies can be integrated and examined.

The 3D simulation league focuses on team cooperation and strategy. Independently moving software players (agents) play soccer on a virtual field inside a computer. The humanoid robot models are copies of the physical robot used in the Standard Platform League. The challenge is to develop new technologies that allow autonomous robots to act appropriately in real-time and dynamic environments. RoboCanes recently qualified for the physical robot league and is preparing the robots for an upcoming competition in Mexico City.