Robots Sumos

Dedicated to Sharing Their Passion for Electronics Thanks to Robot Wrestlers

We must all fight our own battles, as the saying goes! And this is especially true in the case of the Sumo Robots, born entirely of the creative genius of four students at the École de technologie supérieure de Montréal. What makes these Sumo Robots so special? When they enter the arena, they autonomously launch an attack to bring down their opponent!

Obtaining a first and third place in the main category at the last Canadian National Robot Games, a third place at a competition held in Calgary earlier this year and ranking first two years in a row at Concordia University, the Sumo Robots team, made up of Philippe Tremblay, Charles-Richard Allix, Pier-Marc Comtois-Rivet and Jean-Sébastien Léard, are pleased with their remarkable achievements.

“Our project has enabled us to set ourselves apart in our favourite field, that is to say electronics. We were all robotics enthusiasts before embarking on the project but we have now acquired the kind of knowledge and independence that we would never have been able to obtain without being fully committed to this project,” asserted Philippe Tremblay.

Pierre Rivet, director of cooperative education services at ÉTS, is forever singing the praises of the four young students. “Unlike other teams who purchase ready-built modules, the students designed and built all the parts and programmed the microcontrollers that command the robot’s brain. The avant-garde concept has enabled them to distinguish themselves and this at a very low cost.”

Though their results were indeed excellent, winning is not the sole source of motivation for the members of the Sumo Robots team. The four future engineers are also proud of the impact that their work has had on high school students. Last year, the students visited Montréal high schools in order to pass on their passion for electronics to young people.

“At each meeting, we present our project and introduce the different robots we’ve made or are in the process of creating. We also show videos of competitions we have participated in and then offer a demonstration of the robots in action,” explained the team’s spokesperson, adding that the youngsters are always fascinated by their robots.

Realising that not much effort is required to arouse the interest of young people in science and technology, the foursome decided to assign their robots an educational mission. The Sumo Robots creators thus built simplified versions of their robots which are offered in the form of assembly kits and available to all students who wish to discover the fascinating world of electronics. With minimum knowledge, the youngsters can now assemble a small 500-gram sumo robot that they can even enter in competitions.

“Needless to say, this parallel activity carried out at the same time as our own robot project has been a highly rewarding experience for all the members of the team. To be able to share our passion is extremely stimulating and allows us to appreciate the overall project and its achievements all the more,” concluded Philippe Tremblay.

Robots Sumos