Functionality Tests

Introduction:

NHRL has two functionality tests - a mobility test designed to ensure a robot is able to move about the arena in a controlled manner at a sufficient speed, and a weapon test designed to ensure a robot is able to attack and disadvantage its opponent. These tests will be performed at the discretion of NHRL staff during the Bot Inspection process at the beginning of an event.

Mobility Testing:

• Robots in the 3lb class must be able to move in a controlled manner at a rate of at least 10 feet per minute.
• Robots in the 12lb and 30lb classes must be able to move in a controlled manner at a rate of at least 20 feet per minute.

Mobility tests require a robot to move from one marked square in a test box to a second square and then return to the starting square within the time limit. Robots will be placed roughly in the center of the starting square, to the satisfaction of NHRL Staff, travel to roughly the center of the opposing box, and must return to roughly the same position in the starting square.

Weight Class	Square Size	Distance (center to center)	Time Allowed
3lb	6” x 6”	48”	48 Seconds
12lb and 30lb	12” x 12”	96”	48 Seconds

If a robot cannot demonstrate movement in a test box due to size constraints, damaged floors or other issues not relating to its ability to move in an arena, an alternative and equivalent test may be proposed by NHRL using one of the arenas.

Weapon Testing:

All segments of all robots must have an active weapon. An active weapon is defined as a weapon or mechanism that is clearly designed to meaningfully influence and disadvantage the opposing robot. If it is unclear that a given robot’s weapon is suitably effective, a weapon test will be administered at the discretion of the NHRL staff.

A rough conceptual guide for an adequate weapon is one that's function is going to be visible from 12 feet away. Built into that is the assumption that the effect for the weapon will be differentiable from the drive system.

Weapon tests are conducted by asking a competitor to use their robot to attack an object known as a DUMMY (Designated Unit to Measure Minimum Yield) in the test box. A DUMMY is intended to be a stand-in for an opponent, with design features that make it easy to assess weapon effectiveness. Each weight class will have its own model DUMMY with the following specifications:

Weight Class	DUMMY Weight	DUMMY Height	DUMMY Width	DUMMY Length	DUMMY Ground Clearance	Design Details
3lb	3lb	3.1"	6"	4"	0.44"	3lb DUMMY
12lb	12lb	3.8"	6.5"	6.5"	0.61"	12lb DUMMY
30lb	30lb	3.5	Y	Z

Note: The heights listed are approximate. They are in the ballpark of the final numbers, but may change a bit depending on the finalized design of the DUMMYs.

Each size of DUMMY will have removable test panels and features that can be attacked by the robot under test. Test panels will be retained by slotting features rather than hard-mounted. These panels are described in the following table.

Weight Class	Impact Test Panel Thickness	Impact Test Panel Material	Flame Test Feature (50% Infill PLA)
3lb	0.125 Inches	95% Grid Infill Bambu Basic PLA
12lb	0.2 Inches	95% Grid Infill Bambu Basic PLA
30lb

Weapon tests vary depending on a robot’s weapon system.

• Lifter/Flipper:
  • The robot is able to flip the DUMMY 180 degrees onto its head or in rotation without the assistance of its drive-train. All four feet of the DUMMY must be on the ground before the weapon is activated OR the DUMMY must be flipped 270 degrees.
  • Alternatively, a robot may lift or launch the lowest part of the DUMMY a minimum height off the arena floor. The minimum lifting heights are as follows:
    • 2.25" for 3lb robots
    • 3.75" for 12lb robots
    • 5.25" for 30lb robots
• Hammer:
  • The hammer is able to penetrate through or create a full depth crack in test panel.
• Crusher/Drill:
  • The crusher or drill is able to pierce a test panel.
• Flamethrower:
  • The flamethrower is able to melt the PLA test feature such that it detaches from the DUMMY, or droops 90 degrees.
• Hot Lance:
  • The robot will be allowed to preheat, and must be able to piece a solid PLA panel in 5 seconds.
• Kinetic Energy Spinner:
  • The spinner will hit a panel mounted to the DUMMY and must either pierce the panel, crack the panel, or rotate the DUMMY 90 degrees in any axis following an impact.
  • In the case of undercutters, a competitor can request that an extended length test panel can be installed that sits within 1/8" of the test box floor.
• Projectiles:
  • The projectile must fire at the DUMMY and must penetrate through or create a full depth crack in test panel.
  • Projectiles can be fired from any range requested by the competitor that is feasible within the arena.
• Front Hinged Flippers:
  • The driver may use their robot's drive system to position the DUMMY on top of the front hinge flipper. They may not use the arena walls or kick-plates to accomplish this.
  • If any of the DUMMY's four feet are not resting on the arena floor, the robot must be able to flip the DUMMY such that it is entirely inverted.
  • The robots drive system cannot be used during the flip itself.
  • The intent of this requirement is that a front hinged flipper must be able to flip the DUMMY at least 90 degrees, rounded up to the nearest 90 degree increment.

If you have a weapon type that may not fit the above categories, please reach out to NHRL so an alternative test can be made. In the event that a competitor brings a weapon type not listed above to an event and none of the above testing procedures will suffice, NHRL staff will create an appropriate test at the time of the event. Any new tests will be reviewed after an event for fairness and an additional type type will be added to the list above.