article_snippet.sent: Later this year, seven of the robots will compete in a 'robo oylmpics' - designed to recreate natural disasters the robots could one day be sent into.
article_snippet.sent: A total of $3.5 million in prizes will now be awarded to the top three finishers in the DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC), the final event of which will be held June 5-6, 2015, at Fairplex in California.
article_snippet.sent: Aside from the previously announced $2 million grand prize, DARPA plans to award $1 million to the runner-up and $500,000 to the third-place team.
article_snippet.sent: DARPA expects at least twenty teams to compete in the DRC Finals. '
article_snippet.sent: The goal of the DRC is to generate groundbreaking research and development in hardware and software that will enable future robots, in tandem with human counterparts, to perform the most hazardous activities in disaster zones, thus reducing casualties and saving lives,' DARPA said.
article_snippet.sent: Gill Pratt, of DARPA want the finals to be more like real disasters, the robots will have to do all these tasks in sequence with no human help.
article_snippet.sent: Given the robots identical hardware, the robots will have to differentiate the robots through software, control interfaces, and competition strategy.
article_snippet.sent: the robots will have a few options on the selection of tasks the robots choose to attempt and the order the robots do the robots—and must manage time and battery life during the robots runs—but DARPA expects that the top-placing teams will complete all of the tasks.
article_snippet.sent: Teams are likely to keep Teams robots connected to fall arrestors during much of the remaining months of training as a safeguard against premature damage to the robot.
article_snippet.sent: It's up to the robots to decide what chances the robots're willing to take during training and risk falls and damage, but come the DRC Finals, the cords are cut.'