CIRC 2027 Competition Tasks

For information on the regulations of participating in CIRC, please see the 2027 Rules document.

Mining Site Remote Operations

Description

A mining site beyond a steep hill at a distant outpost has gone silent. A recent radio equipment failure means it is no longer reachable and the ore cannot be loaded by the standard transport robot. A group of rover teams has been assembled to restore the link and collect the waiting backlog of ore before the equipment is damaged and the material is lost.

The site lies outside the normal operating area for a rover, so the rover must be operated over the mining site’s command and control network via a CIRC-provided network link.

The ore dispenser and ore loading site are separated by a steep grade. A LIDAR point cloud recorded in 2018 can be downloaded in Potree 2.0 format for mission planning. Changes to the terrain in 2027 should be anticipated.

To complete the task, teams must restore the control link, bring an ore trailer to the CIRC ore dispenser, load it with ore at the dispenser, and unload ore at the weigh scale site.

Requirements

Operate the rover over the CIRC network link:
1. All operator command, control, and video traffic must traverse the CIRC-provided link (see Link Information). Rovers must demonstrate Minimum Operating Capability as defined by the Communications rules.
2. Rover operators must be located at CIRC Central.
3. Crew at the task site are permitted for repair and recovery only, per the Interventions Guide. Normal intervention scoring applies.
4. Communication with the field crew by cell phone or other personal device is permitted only during set-up and takedown, and from the starting area during an intervention. A basic cell phone will be provided by CIRC. Displays, indicators, and other devices carried on the rover are permitted at any time.
Place the provided relay beacon in the vicinity of the ore dispenser:
1. Dispenser controls will be provided by CIRC to operators at the base station, and remain locked until the beacon’s received signal strength at the dispenser clears a minimum threshold provided at the start of the task.
2. The beacon must be placed by the rover for full points. If the threshold cannot be achieved, judges may enable the dispenser as a modification intervention.
3. Documentation regarding the size and mass of the beacon will be provided in advance.
Operate the remote ore dispenser:
1. The dispenser is a remote operated conveyor (screw auger); it loads ore for as long as it is run.
2. Any amount of ore may be loaded over multiple trips.
3. Spilled ore is not worth any points but may reduce the maximum achievable points.
Haul ore:
1. Ore will be Washed Pea Rock sized 3-10mm.
2. If a trailer is used (see Ore Trailer below), the trailer must be returned to the starting area at the end of the task; it may not be left in the field.
3. Ore will be weighed at the weigh scale site. The ore may be delivered in a trailer or on the rover, but only the net ore weight is scored.
4. Multiple runs are permitted between unloading ore at the weigh scale site. If this can not be done automatically or by the rover, teams may manually unload the ore as a modification intervention.
5. Up to 100kg of ore will be scored for maximum points.
6. Documentation regarding the weigh scale site will be provided in advance.

Ore Trailer

Teams are encouraged to field a trailer in addition to their rover. The trailer is not counted as part of the rover’s scored mass, but can not exceed 15 kg as weighed during setup.
The trailer must be approved according to the Rover Safety Requirements and be included in the submitted safety report.
The trailer may not have onboard batteries. It may be unpowered, or powered by the rover with a non-latching connector which disconnects when pulled.
The trailer must be permanently latched to the rover during the task. The suggested attachment point for the trailer is a DIN 580 M10 eye bolt (25 mm eye diameter), however custom attachments are permitted.
Teams may alternatively operate without a trailer, or integrate carrying capacity into the rover.

Link Information

This task uses the CIRC Backhaul, per the Communications rules. The team provides the Last-Hop from the rover to the antenna site. The antenna site is not at the starting point.
A bandwidth limit of at most 100Mbit/s and at least 50Mbit/s will be applied, announced at the start of the event. The bandwidth limit will be applied by CIRC equally for all teams.
CIRC provides a test endpoint at the task site. Basic information such as performance counters (packet counts, data rate, throughput) will be available to verify link readiness throughout each attempt.
The shared live video feed of the task site may be used as a fallback driving view. It is a shared, coarse view visible to all participants and spectators.

Multiple Teams

During the task, two teams may be operating at the same time at the same site. Team pairings will be announced at the start of the event.
Each team will have their own ore dispenser and weigh scale site and may only use these as assigned.
CIRC will not coordinate frequency spectrum use at the task site, the use of interference-tolerating protocols and cooperation between teams is strongly encouraged.
Teams must not intentionally interfere with other teams during tasks, such as blocking or damaging an opponent’s rover. Competitor Conduct Penalties apply.

Automated Demolition and Clearing

Description

The significant amount of meteorite activity on Mars has resulted in debris and dangerous materials being scattered throughout our settlements. To rapidly remove the debris we will need many rovers cleaning up autonomously, with no human supervision.

Requirements

Your rover must be able to complete the operations below, with only a single input by a judge, and no further input from a judge or any member of your team.
1. Your team must provide a user interface running on your operations that allows the judge to click on a labelled button to trigger the operation.
2. When operations accept additional input, such as distance, bearing, or GNSS co-ordinate, they must provide a text box for entry, accepting the units listed in the rules for that operation.
3. When operations return values they must match the associated units
4. All buttons must be labelled in English, with either the short name or full name of the command as listed in the descriptions below in the format “[shortname] long name”.
5. Each phase of the mission lists a set of operations needed to complete the phase, but not in the expected order. Operations may occur in any order, and may be used multiple times during a phase.
Your rover may make multiple attempts at each operation, and you will be permitted to reset the rover to its starting pose (position, orientation, and mechanical configuration) between attempts without penalty.
1. The first attempt at each operation will result in the full score for the operation. Subsequent attempts will be allowed, with a point deduction (listed in the rubric) applying to that operation.
2. The starting position for each operation will be the intended finishing pose of the last operation, and starting positions will be marked on the ground.
3. Judges will inform operators whether the rover successfully completed each operation.
4. You may skip one or more operations, positioning your rover at the starting location of a future operation as a modification intervention. You may also return to previously skipped operations the same way.

The operations your rover will need to complete are grouped into several mission phases.

Exit the base:
1. Due to high traffic near the mars base your rover must be able to follow precise navigation commands while entering or exiting the base.
2. The commands your rover will need to support are
  1. [Store Home] Store your arm and end effector to a defined home position
  2. [Drive Forward] Drive forward N meters, where N may be 1, 3, 5
  3. [Drive Backwards] Drive backwards N meters
  4. [Rotate] Rotate your rover by N degrees relative to its current orientation
  5. [Rotate and Drive] Move your rover N meters in the direction M degrees clockwise from where it’s currently facing
  6. [Face Bearing] Rotate your rover so it is facing absolute bearing N (eg 50 degrees)
  7. For monitoring purpose, you will be regularly asked to report your rover’s
    1. [Report Bearing] Current bearing
    2. [Report GNSS] Current GNSS position
Travel To the Jobsite to the work assignment board
1. Your rover will travel autonomously to a provided GNSS location to receive its work assignment.
2. There will be natural objects in the path of the rover and it is recommended to have obstacle avoidance capabilities in order to attempt this journey solo.
3. An obstacle-free path will also be provided, but travelling that path will be slower (and score half points) compared to the more direct route.
4. The commands your rover will need to support are:
  1. [Drive to Waypoint] Travel so that your rover’s position reference is within 3m of the waypoint at provided GNSS coordinates.
  2. [Drive to Marked Waypoint] Travel so that your rover’s position reference is within 1m of the tower labelled with Aruco marker #3 (Drawings will be provided), located at approximately these GNSS coordinates.
  3. Any command listed from previous sections
Read your Job Assignment and Clock in
1. At the entrance to the job site is a work assignment board which will display information needed for future operations.
2. The jobsite board will contain 5 aruco markers, in a single row, to be read from left to right, oriented with the top of the marker closest to the sky.
3. The commands your rover will need to support are:
  1. [Read and Store Markers] Read Aruco markers in front of the rover and display the identifier to an operator, and remember the identifier for later
  2. Any command listed from previous sections
Travel to your worksite
1. A GNSS co-ordinate will be provided, and may require information from the aruco markers at the job assignment board.
2. Your worksite is off-roads and may have challenging terrain and obstacles
3. The commands your rover will need to support are:
  1. [Retrieve Markers] Return the previously recorded aruco marker IDs from the most recent [Read and Store Markers] call
  2. Any command listed from previous sections
Complete your Rover Operational Check
1. Your rover must complete a self-inspection to check that it is able to handle material at the worksite using its arm and end-effector.
  1. All coordinates are measured in meters relative to the installed indicator package.
  2. +x is forward driving direction, +y is right and +z is up.
2. The operations your rover will need to complete are:
  1. [EFF Max Height] Raise your end effector to its maximum height above the ground
  2. [EFF Min Height] Lower your end effector to its minimum height above the ground
  3. [EFF Position] Position the end effector horizontally at a specified height above the ground and distance from the front of the rover’s body (not wheel or chassis).
  4. [Store Home] Store your arm and end effector to a defined home position
  5. [EFF Open] Open end effector to a width of at least N centimeters, where N will be at most 10cm
  6. [EFF Close] Close your end-effector’s gripping mechanism completely
  7. During the check, you will be asked to record
    1. [EFF Report] End Effector’s current position relative position to the indicator package
Place Explosives
1. Your rover will be asked to collect a piece of TNT from a location specified with GNSS co-ordinates and place them at a designated location, where both locations may require information from the job assignment aruco markers.
2. The rover will need to support the following additional commands, in addition to those listed previously
  1. [EFF Pickup] Pick up a thing from the specified location on the ground, relative to two aruco markers as shown in a diagram to be provided
  2. [EFF Squeeze] Close your end effector around an object, handle, or lever
  3. [EFF Set Down] Put down a thing at a specified location on or above the ground, relative to the rover’s position reference
Detonate the Explosive
1. To detonate the explosive, your rover must travel to the Detonation Station at a provided GNSS co-ordinate and press the detonate button.
  1. A drawing of the detonation box will be provided, it will consist of a flat face with a button, and four aruco markers in fixed positions relative to the button. The face, button, and aruco markers will be roughly perpendicular to the ground
2. The rover will need to support the following additional commands, in addition to those listed previously
  1. [EFF Press Marked Button] Push the button located relative to Aruco markers #N and #M according to the supplied drawing

Judge’s Commentary

All operations must be completed autonomously, no points will be available for manual operations.
All distances are in meters unless otherwise specified
All bearings will be provided in degrees with geographic North being 0 degrees
- The magnetic declination for Drumheller Alberta can be found online
All GNSS coordinates will be in WGS 84 Decimal Degrees (EPSG:4326)

Meteorite Search

Description

Recently near the Center for Inspection of the Rahe Crater meteorite activity has been getting worse and worse. During the night large quakes were felt shaking the nearby laboratory. Assuming the worst, your rovers have been dispatched to explore the source of these quakes. Based on data collected at the lab there are five general locations where these meteorites have landed. Due to the lack of GPS in that area, your team must submit a pre-mission briefing going over the exploration plan, and the experiments your team plans to conduct and why you feel they are best suited to analyzing the meteorites and impact sites. The rover must then explore as many sites as possible, collecting samples along with meteorite fragments at each location. In addition to the integrated sensors of your team’s rover, an external Geiger counter calibrated against previous meteorites will be provided to assist in your search.

The physical connector used for the Geiger counter will be a ¼” TRS connector. The exact pinout, position, and connection details will be provided later. GPS will not be allowed to be used for any aspects of this task. Teams must use alternative methods, like the Geiger counter, when finding the meteorites.

Requirements

Pre-Mission Briefing

Prior to the competition, teams will submit a document covering:

Their exploration plan:
1. Intended approach to searching for the meteorite impacts.
Their rover’s sensing capabilities
1. The instruments on board your rover.
2. The operational or scientific significance of the onboard instruments.
Experimental motivation and procedure:
1. The experiments you plan to perform.
2. The procedure for each experiment.
3. The operational or scientific significance of the experimental results.

Exploration Mission

During the task time, teams will:

Locate 3 meteorite impact sites using the provided map (to be delivered at a later date), their integrated sensors, and the provided instrumentation.
Document the impact sites:
1. Photograph the impact site from at least two angles separated by at least 90°.
2. Take a panoramic photograph of the impact site and its surroundings.
Recover a meteorite fragment for study.
Take a sample with a mass between 10 g and 100 g from the surroundings for study.
Record the location of the meteorite relative to the starting point and at least two other landmarks.
1. The use of GPS data to calculate these distances is not permitted.
Return to the starting point with the collected samples and meteorite fragments.

Post-Mission Report

Following the task time, teams will have two hours to write and submit a document covering:

Map the route taken in the field and differences from the planned route:
1. Starting location
2. Locations of impact sites
3. Other landmarks, obstacles, or other observed features
4. Scale and cardinal directions
Explain any changes from the planned exploration approach and what conditions in the field necessitated them.
Describe the environmental measurements taken using the provided instrument and any on-board sensors.
Specify the measured relative locations, including both distance and direction from the referenced landmarks, of the selected impact sites
1. Include the work on calculating these values. Specify how the rover’s instrumentation provided this information.
Findings at the impact sites
1. Panoramic images
2. Detailed photographs of the interesting features of the site
3. Nearby landmarks
4. Description of the impact site and the meteorite.
Describe the sample taken from the site:
1. Mass
2. Physical characteristics
Describe the meteorite fragment recovered
Experimental observations and results
Summarize your observations and experimental measurements and compare the impact sites.

Judge’s Commentary

Five impact sites will be present in the task area. Samples are only required to be collected from three sites, however teams may locate and document the other two.
GPS is not allowed to be used for this task. The location of the meteorites needs to be calculated using a different method, such as wheel ticks or rangefinding, to measure these distances.
A panorama must cover at least 180° to receive points, and must cover 360° to receive full points.
The soil around Drumheller is predominantly bentonite clay. Teams may wish to test their sampling implements against this soil specifically.
Individual samples must be kept isolated from one another.
The stated sample mass should not include any reagents or additional material.
Remember that the task is notionally on Mars, so plants won’t grow outside of a climate controlled greenhouse or other suitable growing chamber. Any plants at the site exist only from a navigational standpoint, but not a scientific one.
Similarly, ignore infrastructure surrounding or intersecting the task sites.
Relative locations must include distance and direction.
Maps should include indicators of direction and scale.
Include your team name in the document and file name.
Figures must be described in full, either through a descriptive caption or references in the text. Figures without proper description are not useful.
Any assumptions made in the report must be stated explicitly.
Be honest about technical difficulties when writing the report. Acknowledge when things didn’t work. If something went wrong with your rover that prevented you from completing the task, please provide a brief explanation of what went wrong.
Clearly state what is fact and what is speculation in your report. For example, describing the site as “rich in coal” would be accurate only if a sample of the rock was obtained and tested or closely examined by an expert. If this was not done, a team should simply provide a physical description of the rocks, and may add that it resembles coal.

Prison Break

Description

Your rover has been imprisoned in Rover Jail. A meteorite has just landed nearby, taking out the prison’s primary power generator, along with most of the lighting and their RF jamming systems. Your remote access to the rover has been restored! You must bypass the remaining security measures and escape!

You will be provided with a map of the prison at the start of the task. The exit is blocked by a door with a large keypad. The exit code is derived from several clues, each of which can be acquired in any order. The clues consist of a pattern involving different colors. In addition, you will need to disable the exterior cameras to be able to escape undetected.

Requirements

Security Console

The rover can interface with a security console via a serial port. There will be a female ¼” TRS connector mounted on the front of the security console, and the rover will need to bring their own male connector. The exact pinout, position, and connection details will be provided later. The serial port will expose a linux-like terminal, and the exit code section will be found somewhere within.

High Security Area

One of the exit code sections is held within a special high-security area of the prison. The rover will be detected if it emits any light on the ground (IR included) around the rover in this area. Indicator lights and an illuminated estop are exempt. Spotlights will detect the rover if the rover crosses their field of view. Pressure plates will detect the rover if it stays on top of them for too long. Illuminated markers will be present around the area and can be used to help navigate.

Console with Tiny Little Screen

One of the exit code sections is displayed on a screen, however the screen is too small to display the entire code. An attached joystick can be used to view different parts of the pattern. The joystick does not physically move, but the view will move at a speed proportional to the force applied to the joystick.

Offline Backup

To eliminate the risk of power failures and protect against hacking, one of the code sections is stored within an entirely mechanical safe. Fortunately for you this does not protect against incompetence, and the key is stored next to the safe. You will need to insert the key and rotate it, then pull the door open.

Exterior Power Redirection

To complete your escape, you must disable the power to the exterior cameras. On the Exterior Circuit Panel, you must identify and cut the correct wire to disable the cameras. However, this will trigger an alarm countdown. You must then identify the alarm type from a display, compute the deactivation code, and enter it within a short time interval. You will enter the deactivation code via pressing a sequence of large buttons on a vertical panel. (There isn’t an exit code segment here, but it’s necessary to complete this section before leaving the prison)

Reactor Recovery

Description

The recent rapid expansion of the Martian colony has created an increased need for electrical power to run the ever-growing array of scientific equipment, automated demolition machines, ore dispensers, seismographs, and the newly established Rover Jail. A team of Earth-based researchers at the Centre for Spacebound Turbine-Assisted Generators was tasked with shipping an additional power source to augment the existing solar arrays. Unfortunately, the only solution they could procure on such short notice was an experimental nuclear power source named the Cheap Improvised Reactor Contraption.

Shortly after the installation of the reactor, an entirely unforeseeable disaster struck: an issue with the alignment of the control rods caused an explosion, destroying the reactor and leaving radioactive pieces scattered across the Martian regolith.

While all astronauts were able to safely escape the vicinity before the explosion occurred, one astronaut is currently trapped in a valley where the only traversable exit route passes through the wreckage area, making escape impossible due to the radiation risks. You have been tasked with using a rover to clean up the site and transport this astronaut to safety.

Dust is easily picked up by the strong winds in the Martian atmosphere, so radioactive fallout is an important consideration in the cleanup of the site. Thankfully, your team has a report from some of the best planetary meteorologists that predicts the timing and paths taken by dust storms. Your rover will need to collect the damaged equipment to prevent further radiation exposure, but cannot risk entering areas with high winds lest you send radioactive fallout towards the settlement.

Once the radioactive debris is sufficiently cleared, your rover needs to recover the stranded astronaut. While they have been kept alive by their EVA suit, they lack the strength to return on their own and they will need to be transported to safety by the rover.

Requirements

Read the Mission Briefing provided to you at the start of your task time. This briefing will contain the following information:
1. A map of the mission site divided into Sectors, marked with GNSS coordinates. Some Sector boundaries may additionally be identified by landmarks.
2. A chart showing when each Sector is predicted to have an active dust storm, indicating whether each storm is a Mild Dust Storm or a Severe Dust Storm.
3. A catalog of each Debris Object that your team must recover from the site, including the following:
  1. A sketch showing the approximate shape of the object
  2. The recommended method for locating the object
  3. Any special handling requirements for the object
  4. The containment zone that the object must be transported to
4. The GNSS coordinates of the Astronaut to be rescued. (All GNSS coordinates provided will be in the WGS84 datum, in degree-decimal form.)
Stay clear of Dust Storms. Your rover may not enter or remain within a Sector of the mission site when a Dust Storm is active within that Sector.
1. No points will be awarded for retrieving Debris Objects or the Astronaut within a Sector while a Dust Storm is active. Points will also be deducted if a rover remains within a Sector while a Dust Storm is occurring, or if a rover enters a Sector containing an active Dust Storm.
2. Due to the unique risks posed by a Severe Dust Storm, entering a Sector containing a Severe Dust Storm will cause your rover to be emergency-stopped by the task judges, and your team must take a Modification Intervention to transport it back to the starting line.
3. The starting area, Containment Zones, and Medical Bay will not be impacted by Dust Storms during the mission.
Recover the radioactive Debris Objects from the mission site, and transport them to the containment zones near the start line.
1. The debris will be irregular in shape, size, and mass.
  1. Any objects with every dimension greater than 80 mm will have at least one grippable feature (such as a handle) with a diameter of at most 80 mm.
  2. Debris Objects have a mass of up to 5 kg; most are under 1 kg.
2. Due to the chaotic nature of the explosion, there is no record of where each piece of debris is located. Your rover will need to locate each Debris Object using the methods described in the Mission Briefing:
  1. Some debris may be identified by a GNSS location included in the Mission Briefing based on previously captured drone footage of the site.
  2. Some debris may have a visible warning light on it. This light will rotate or flash in some way, and its color will be provided to you at the start of the mission.
  3. Some debris may include a tracking beacon. Your rover will be provided with a receiver for this beacon. You may choose how to mount this receiver to your rover, but it includes an antenna that must have visibility of the sky for proper functioning. Mechanical drawings will be provided at a later date. The receiver will provide readings showing the approximate distance to the target using a UART protocol over a 1/4” (6.35 mm) TRS plug (pinout and line protocol to be released).
  4. Some debris may only be identified by a text description written by the crew that was onsite during the explosion. You will need to interpret this description relative to landmarks in the field to understand the location of the debris.
3. Not all items at the mission site need to be removed. Your rover may encounter some remnants of the explosion that are not described in the Mission Briefing. These are not dangerous, and returning them to the start line will not earn points.
4. Your rover will need to transport each Debris Object to the Containment Zones near the starting position.
  1. Some debris will require more careful handling, as contact with the ground will further contaminate the area.
  2. You may attempt to carry multiple objects at a time, but it is not required.
5. Debris Objects should be placed in the correct Containment Zone based on the level of contamination, as described in the Mission Briefing.
  1. Each Containment Zone may be a flat area on the ground, an elevated flat surface such as a table (no more than 1 meter above ground level), or a container with four sides which may require opening a lid.
  2. Transporting a Debris Object to the incorrect Containment Zone will earn partial points.
Rescue the Astronaut from the valley based on the location provided in the Mission Briefing.
1. The Astronaut must be handled gently for full points (carried above the ground instead of dragged along the ground).
2. Terrain in this area will be very difficult for rovers to traverse.
3. The Astronaut must be brought to the Medical Bay near the starting line. This area will be marked by an indicator on the ground.
4. For full points, all debris must be cleared before the Astronaut can be rescued.