Sensors

Teams are allowed to use sensors to gather information about the environment during competition trials. Sensors can be strategically placed throughout the workspace to inspect cells for defects, monitor conveyor operations, detect object presence, and guide robotic manipulation. The sensor data helps teams make informed decisions about task execution, object handling, and navigation.

Teams are given a budget for their total sensor cost. Each sensor is assigned a grade based on its parameters, and the grade determines its cost. Going over budget will incur a penalty, but staying under will reward bonus points. More information about the associated bonus and penalty can be found on the evaluation page.

Common Parameters

All sensors share the following common configuration parameters:

Common Sensor Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
NAME	string	Unique identifier for the sensor
TYPE	string	Sensor type (“break_beam”, “distance”, “camera”, or “lidar”)
POSE.XYZ	[float, float, float]	Position coordinates [x, y, z]
POSE.RPY	[float, float, float]	Orientation angles [roll, pitch, yaw]
UPDATE_RATE	int	Frequency of sensor updates (1-30 Hz)

Break Beam

The break beam sensor detects when an object interrupts an infrared beam between a transmitter and receiver. It reports binary state information (beam broken/unbroken) and does not provide distance measurements. This sensor is useful for detecting object presence at specific points, such as monitoring conveyor belts. It publishes to these topics.

Break beam sensor

Break beam sensors use only the common parameters with TYPE set to “break_beam”.

Cost and Grades

Grade	Update Rate (Hz)	Cost ($)	Notes
A	30	400	High-frequency detection
B	10	200	Standard detection

Distance Sensor

The distance sensor measures the distance to the nearest object in its detection range using ultrasonic or infrared technology. It continuously scans forward and reports distance measurements in meters. This sensor is useful for collision avoidance, proximity detection, and measuring clearances between objects. It publishes to these topics.

Distance sensor

Distance sensors use only the common parameters with TYPE set to “distance”.

Cost and Grades

Grade	Update Rate (Hz)	Cost ($)	Notes
A	30	600	High-frequency ranging
B	10	300	Standard ranging

RGB Camera

The RGB camera captures color images of the environment for object detection, identification, and scene analysis. It supports 720p and 1080p resolutions with configurable field of view settings. This sensor can be used for visual recognition, quality inspection, and monitoring tasks. It publishes to these topics.

RGB camera

RGB cameras use the common parameters with TYPE set to “camera”, plus the following additional parameters:

RGB Camera Additional Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
RESOLUTION	string	Image resolution (“720p” or “1080p”)
FOV	float	Field of view (0 to \(\pi\) radians)

Cost and Grades

Grade	Update Rate (Hz)	Resolution	Cost ($)	Notes
A	30	1080p	800	High resolution
B	30	720p	500	Standard resolution

Lidar

The lidar sensor uses laser pulses to create 3D point clouds of the surrounding environment. It performs horizontal and vertical scans with configurable sample rates and angular ranges. This sensor provides precise distance measurements, 3D mapping, and obstacle detection for navigation and spatial analysis. It publishes to these topics.

Lidar

Lidar sensors use the common parameters with TYPE set to “lidar”, plus the following additional parameters:

Lidar Sensor Additional Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
HORIZONTAL.SAMPLES	int	Number of samples in the horizontal scan
HORIZONTAL.MIN_ANGLE	float	Minimum angle for horizontal scan
HORIZONTAL.MAX_ANGLE	float	Maximum angle for horizontal scan
VERTICAL.SAMPLES	int	Number of samples in the vertical scan
VERTICAL.MIN_ANGLE	float	Minimum angle for vertical scan
VERTICAL.MAX_ANGLE	float	Maximum angle for vertical scan

Cost and Grades

Grade	Update Rate (Hz)	Sample Limit	Cost ($)
A	20	\(H \cdot V \leq 400\)	1500
B	10	\(200 < H \cdot V \leq 400\)	1250
C	10	\(H \cdot V \leq 200\)	1000

Note

For lidar sensors: \(H\) refers to horizontal samples and \(V\) refers to vertical samples

Bounding Boxes

Lidar sensors are restricted to physical inspection of battery cells and must be placed within designated bounding boxes around the inspection conveyor. The following table shows the coordinate limits for each available placement area.

	Box A	Box B	Box C
X (min, max)	(0.5, 1.1)	(0.5, 1.1)	(0.5, 1.1)
Y (min, max)	(0.7, 0.95)	(1.05, 1.3)	(0.95, 1.05)
Z (min, max)	(0.42, 0.62)	(0.42, 0.62)	(0.52, 0.62)

Visualization of the bounding boxes

Configuration Example

For complete sensor configuration examples showing all sensor types with valid parameters, see the Sensors Configuration Reference.