Robotics has been identified as one of the key technologies that will have a transformative impact in various new markets and on diverse human social aspects. Modern robotic systems are being deployed to tackle multiple application domains such as disaster response, hospitality, healthcare, domestic tasks, transportation, space exploration, manufacturing, and construction. However, there is still a gap between the current state of robotic capabilities and the requirements that must be met to enable practical and impactful robotic deployments in the envisioned applications.

As the world faces increasing environmental challenges, the need for innovative and sustainable solutions has never been more critical. This edition of the Emirates Robotics Competition will focus on Environmental Cleaning and will serve as a platform for showcasing cutting-edge advancements in robotics and their potential to make a positive impact on the environment. By focusing on environmental initiatives specifically tailored to the unique challenges faced by the UAE, this competition encourages teams to devise creative solutions that contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable future.

This competition brings together talented teams from across the region, united by a common goal: harnessing the power of robotics to address the pressing issue of environmental cleaning. Robotic technologies must be developed using a human-centric approach to allow these robots to operate autonomously in dynamic, unstructured environments while collaborating and interacting with other robots and humans. We aim to focus on some of these enabling technologies by providing a demanding set of benchmark robotics challenges. This robotics competition aims to inspire undergraduate students from local universities to work on tackling robotic challenges relevant to modern societal and industrial problems. The second version of this competition is co-organized and sponsored by the Khalifa University (KU), Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), and Dubai Future Labs (DFL).

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