Combat Robotics in the Hackspace
What is Combat Robotics? Do you remember Robot Wars from TV? You might be surprised to know that the UK still has a vibrant robot fighting scene; it’s just got smaller and gone underground. The Hackspace has a group of members who build combat robots at various weight classes. In addition to competing at events around the country we often run our own events in the space, ranging from tournaments to robot building workshops. The robots you’ll have seen on Robot Wars or Battlebots are Heavyweights and have a 110kg weight limit. There are a small number of live shows in the UK featuring Heavyweight robots, but the cost of building and transporting robots of this size limits the number of entrants and the level of destruction on display. Without the funding from TV, events generally run in smaller arenas. The most popular weight classes these days are Antweights where robots are limited to 150 grams, Beetleweights with a 1.5kg weight limit, and Featherweights with a 13.6kg (30lb) weight limit. Antweights are the smallest and most accessible weight class, and Antweight e