The atmosphere at the University of Aerospace and Aeronautics of Beijing (UAAB) was electric with thousands of screaming spectators cheering and stamping their feet after the referee blew his whistle.

The two rival groups, consisting of two players to a team, entered the court and prepared to do battle. Head-on clashes and screaming spectators all added to the thrill of the first-ever robot event. On the court were flashy, unrelenting robot contestants who were vying to conquer the summit of the chess board-like square court.

Seventeen steel cylinders were placed around the chess board, where contestants were roaming about putting red and blue balls in the cylinders.

Each ball placed inside the cylinders earned one side a fixed number of points -- the deeper the cylinder inside the chess board-like court, the higher the score -- with the cylinder at the center representing the highest of 4 points.

The better-scoring group within the three-minute-long contest would win.

In the past year, 32 teams from 27 universities across the country have worked hard to show off their robots that they have made with their own hands.

Finally, the make-or-break day had arrived.

Last weekend, the 32 teams arrived in Beijing to participate in the first China University Robcon, a contest of automatic and remote-controlled robots intended to promote scientific creations.

Sponsored by China Central TV Station (CCTV), the event is the first national robot contest to be held in China.

A team from the China University of Science and Technology walked away with the trophy.

The champions of the contest will now go on to take part in an international robot contest sponsored by some of Asia's major TV stations including CCTV to be held in Tokyo in late August on behalf of China.

"A technologically superior robot contestant does not necessarily become the winner," said Zong Guanghua, an official for the contest. "It is equally important to select proper tactics in the contest that makes the best of the technology." Zong is also director of the Institute of Robot Research under the UAAB, the host of the event.

The 32 teams were divided into eight groups and played in two separate sections, with winners of each section vying for the championship.

Each team was allowed to dispatch a combination of automatic robots and remote-controlled ones with a specified total weight.

To make the best of the rules, many teams focused on creating robots that could spawn as many balls into the cylinders as possible. Some robots were designed in the shape of a fishing rod, set up to hurtle the balls as far as possible, others were equipped with automatic launchers.

Some worked well while others, though innovative in design, flunked.

The fishing-rod-like automatic robot designed by Shanghai Jiaotong University, called "flying goddess" stood out for its creativity, but broke down in the first match only to see its rival sail through.

"Red Spider," the automatic robot designed by the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, however, displayed remarkable efficiency when it went straight to the central point and, after positioning itself, lowered its multitude of arms and dropped balls into the surrounding cylinders to thunderous applause from spectators.

Its remote-controlled partner, "Cobra," then roamed around the court in a race with its opponent to drop balls.

As Red Spider stayed in control of the center of the court after dropping the balls, its opponent, the pair from Shanghai Jiaotong University, could not help but watch Cobra fill up the remaining cylinders.

"Our tactics are simple," said Wan Yonghua, one of the key designers of the robots who is also a second-year graduate student of electronic engineering at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China. "Most teams choose to zigzag their way into the center of the court to score the highest points. Our tactic is to have the Red Spider hold the key area while letting the Cobra clear the surrounding targets."

The students have spent over six months on design, placing an emphasis on the efficiency of ball-dropping. "We've never done designs like this before," said Wan, "It's a totally new and exciting experience for us all."

In fact, their robot was the underdog but went on to become the only team to score two knockouts in the first morning of the contest, breezing through the first round.

"Our robots may not be the most exquisite, but they work well," said Zhang Wei, another member of the team. "That's what makes robot contests more exciting than robot exhibitions."

The pair, however, failed in the second round due to a breakdown.

Zhang and his teammates rushed to the rescue when they found Red Spider's battery running low in the second-round.

Whilst hurrying to get the robot up and running again the team pushed the plug into the wrong socket. The robot broke down.

"It's such a pity," said Shen Xiaorong, head of the team, "We have performed well, but flunked because of our inexperience."

In fact, their robot was the only one to beat the champion of the contest in all 63 matches.

Had it not been for the breakdown, they would have probably been the contenders for the championship. "We'll make it next time," Shen said.

(China Daily June 18, 2002)