⚠️ RULE ZERO – Zero Tolerance & Common Sense
In all sports, Rule ZERO applies, which states:
➤ "If you are not sure whether something is allowed, then it is probably NOT allowed."
All rules are based on common sense, the spirit of the sport, and the safety of all participants.
Any deliberate misinterpretation, violation of the meaning of the rules, or attempt to exploit gray areas for unfair advantage will not be tolerated and may lead to team disqualification from the competition.
🎯 GOAL
The goal of Robot Bowling is for the robot to knock down the pins using the ball, operating autonomously.
The winning team is the one that knocks down the most pins with the fewest attempts.
👥 TEAM – COACH
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Participation in the competition is team-based, not individual.
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Each team may consist of two (2) to three (3) members.
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Each team must designate up to one (1) Robot Athlete Technician. Only the Robot Athlete Technician is allowed in the waiting area or competition area. The rest of the team must remain in the competition venue but cannot wait in line. ➤ In other words, they cannot occupy an additional spot. If a team fails to comply with this rule, it will be disqualified.
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The team is allowed to change the designated Technician before each attempt on the track, to give all members the opportunity to be actively involved in the sport, although this is not mandatory.
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All team members must be at least 10 years old (equivalent to 4th grade of primary school or above).
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The team’s coach must be at least 20 years old.
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To ensure smooth participation in the competition, the coach must have 1 assistant for every 3 teams they register in the competition.
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Each team is allowed to have only one robot. Changing the robot during the competition is not allowed.
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Teams are not allowed to share the same robot.
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If a team encounters a serious technical issue with their robot, they are allowed to replace only the microcontroller or the electronic components, after obtaining permission from the Head Judges.
🤖 ROBOT ATHLETE – ROBOT CATEGORY
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The Competition is for Robot Athletes regardless of the robotic package or hardware used.
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Do It Youself Robot Athletes are also allowed.
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All Robot Athletes compete together in each age division.
⚙️ ROBOT ATHLETE REQUIREMENTS – SPECIFICATIONS
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The Robot Athlete must be autonomous. This means it should adjust the arc height when the start button is pressed, not manually.
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Τhe bow should be in a vertical position, just as an archer would hold it. Not in a horizontal position like a crossbow.
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Its maximum dimensions must be 20 cm Width x 20 cm Length and its mass up to 2000gr.
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To confirm the specifications listed above, the Robot Athlete will be weighed and must comfortably fit into a control box.
➤ The control box measures (20 x 20) centimeters plus two (2) millimeters tolerance.
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The Athlete Robot should be placed in the control box without applying pressure.
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The Robot Athlete must have a start and stop button.
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The Robot Athlete must have any kind of sensors to detect lines and colors (ball).
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The use of pneumatic devices in the construction is strictly prohibited.
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Regardless of the robot category, only 1 processor, 6 motors, and 4 sensors are allowed.
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In robotic kit categories where the microcontroller’s ports do not support more than 4 motors, the use of port expansion components is allowed (e.g., multiplexer).
🧪 TECHNICAL INSPECTION
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The initial technical inspection takes place on the day of the competition, during the Robot Athlete’s first attempt.
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During the initial inspection, the team will be asked questions about the critical parts of the robot's program.
➤ The team must have their laptop with the robot’s program open.
➤ If it becomes clear from the answers that the team does not understand the program, they will receive a penalty equal to -20% of the score they achieve in the event. -
The technical inspection includes a robot examination based on the specifications described above.
➤ If the robot does not meet the requirements, it will not be allowed to compete and will be automatically disqualified from the event. -
After the completion of the initial inspection, the Robot Athlete is assigned its unique ID code.
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If a team is not present at the time of the initial technical inspection, it will result in automatic disqualification from the competition.
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A secondary technical inspection is also conducted before each attempt, performed by the assistant referee.
🏟️ ARENA – LANE & PINS
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Lane length: The total length of the playing field is 4 meters.
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Width: The arena is 80 cm wide, providing enough space for the ball and robot navigation.
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Bowling lane: A 3.65 m wooden-textured lane inside the arena, where the ball must roll towards the pins. The lane surface is smooth and simulates a real bowling alley.
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Side gutters: Located on both sides of the lane. If the ball falls into a gutter, it is considered invalid and no pins are counted.
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Ball Retrieval Area: A 20cm × 8 cm rectangular zone, placed on the side of the starting area, where the balls are positioned before each attempt. The robot must autonomously collect the ball from this area.
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Start Zone: A 20cm × 20 cm square where the robot begins its attempt. It must move from here to the Ball Retrieval Area, collect a ball, and then proceed to the lane.
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Pins: 10 bowling pins arranged in the standard triangular formation (1–2–3–4). The objective is to knock down as many pins as possible with each attempt.
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Foul line is the double black line marked across the width of the lane, located at the beginning of the bowling lane.
🎳 BALL & PINS
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Ball
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A standard tennis ball is used.
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Diameter: 6.5 – 6.7 cm
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Weight: 56 – 59 g
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Material: Rubber core with felt covering.
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Pins
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Each lane is equipped with 10 bowling pins, arranged in the official triangular formation (1–2–3–4).
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Height: 17 cm
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Base diameter: 5 – 5.5 cm
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Maximum diameter (shoulder): ~6.5 – 7 cm
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Neck diameter: ~3 cm
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Weight: 100 g ± 15 g
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Material: 3D printed PLA.
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Standardization: The official 3D model (STL file) for the pins will be provided on the competition website for download. Teams must use this design to ensure uniformity.
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Pin Setup
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The pins are placed in a triangular arrangement, with one pin at the apex and subsequent rows of 2, 3, and 4 pins (1–2–3–4 formation).
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Triangle dimensions:
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Distance between adjacent pins: 12 cm (center to center)
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Total depth of the pin triangle: 36 cm
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Total width of the last row (4 pins): 36 cm
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The pin triangle is placed at the end of the bowling lane, centered in width, and aligned flush with the back boundary of the lane.
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🏆COMPETITION
⏱️ PREPARATION
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The Robot Athlete is placed in the Start Zone (20×20 cm square) facing towards the lane, meaning towards the pins and not towards the ball.
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The ball is located in the Ball Retrieval Area (20×8 cm) at the side of the Start Zone.
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The Robot Athlete must autonomously move to collect the ball before attempting the throw.
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The Technician takes position behind the robot and may only press the Start button when instructed by the referee.
🏁 START - PROCESS OF THE RACE
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The Technician places the Robot Athlete in the Start Zone and waits for the referee’s signal.
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Upon the referee’s instruction, the Technician presses the Start button.
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After pressing the Start button, the Technician must immediately step back for safety reasons.
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From that moment, the Robot Athlete must operate fully autonomously.
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The Robot Athlete moves from the Start Zone, retrieves the ball from the Ball Retrieval Area, and proceeds to release it towards the pins.
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The ball must roll only along the bowling lane (3.65 m).
➤ If the ball enters the side gutters, no pins knocked down are counted. -
The Robot Athlete has up to 5 seconds to begin moving after activation.
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Each frame/attempt consists of up to 2 throws (as in standard bowling rules).
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If the ball does not reach the pins or leaves the lane sideways, the throw is invalid (0 pins).
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If the Robot Athlete fails to release the ball, the attempt is considered invalid.
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Only one restart is permitted during the first attempt (1st frame).
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The throw must be executed from behind the foul line.
➤ The foul line is a double black line marked across the width of the lane, located at the beginning of the bowling lane.
➤ If any part of the robot crosses the foul line before releasing the ball, the throw is considered invalid and scored with 0 pins.
🔁 ROUNDS – ATTEMPTS
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The Robot Bowling match is played over 5 Frames.
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Teams compete alternately by Frame:
➤ All teams complete their 1st Frame before the 2nd Frame begins.
➤ The playing order is determined by the referee before the start and remains the same throughout all Frames. -
In each Frame:
➤ The Robot Athlete has up to 2 rolls to knock down the 10 pins.
➤ If a Strike is achieved, the Frame ends immediately and the robot waits for the next Frame.
➤ If no Strike is achieved, a second roll is performed for the remaining pins. -
After the end of each Frame, the pins are reset by the referee to their initial triangular formation (1–2–3–4).
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The match continues until all 5 Frames have been completed by all teams.
🎳 Scoring per Roll
Strike (30 points)
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If the Robot Athlete knocks down all 10 pins on the first roll:
➤ A Strike is recorded.
➤ The Frame ends immediately (no second roll is performed).
➤ The pins are reset and the game continues with the next Frame.
Spare (20 points)
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If the Robot Athlete knocks down all 10 pins in total with the two rolls:
➤ A Spare is recorded.
➤ The Frame ends.
Open Frame (points per pin)
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If pins remain standing after the two rolls:
➤ The score is 1 point per pin knocked down.
➤ Example: if 7 pins fall in total → score = 7.
❌ END OF A ATTEMPT
An attempt ends in the following cases:
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When the Robot Athlete has completed its roll(s) for the current Frame (either 1 roll in case of a Strike, or 2 rolls otherwise).
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If the Robot Athlete becomes immobilized and cannot continue the attempt.
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If the Robot Athlete throws the ball outside the lane or into the side gutters.
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If the Robot Athlete fails to release the ball.
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If the Robot Athlete does not start moving within 5 seconds after activation.
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If the ball gets stuck and does not move further, the throw is considered finished and the fallen pins are counted.
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If the Robot Athlete is touched or assisted by the team during the attempt (except when allowed by the referee for safety reasons), the attempt is immediately terminated and scored with 0 pins.
🟥 TEAM DISQUALIFICATION
A team is disqualified from the event and must withdraw in the following cases:
➤ The team’s results will not be taken into account and will not appear in the official competition rankings.
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If a Robot Athlete does not comply with the specifications defined in the sport’s rules and the team refuses to make the required adjustments.
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If any of the Technicians behave inappropriately or disrespectfully, use offensive language, provoke, or verbally (or otherwise) attack fellow participants or referees.
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If it is discovered that a Robot Athlete is not operating autonomously, but instead is being remotely controlled via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or any similar technology.
✅ ALLOWED / ❌ PROHIBITED
✅ Allowed:
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The extension of the Robot Athlete after the start of the match by up to 10 cm from only one side (any side).
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The use of any kind of rubber bands for launching/throw the ball.
❌ Prohibited:
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Robot Athletes to use parts that can harm spectators.
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The use of adhesives to improve adhesion.
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The use of pneumatic devices.
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Breaking the Robot Athlete into pieces during the race.
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Remote control.
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The wireless connection (bluetooth/Wi-Fi) with a computer or any other electronic device during the match. Teams found to have connected their robot wirelessly (team members or coaches) during the match will be disqualified from the sport.
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The restrictions listed in the Athlete Robot technical control section.
🏆WINNERS
The 3 winners for each age category are the Athletes who achieve the highest total score after all 5 Frames.
The best score is used to determine placement in:
🥇 1st place
🥈 2nd place
🥉 3rd place
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In the event of a tie, the team with the highest number of Strikes will be ranked higher.
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If still tied, the team with the highest number of Spares will be ranked higher.
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If a tie remains, an additional tie-breaker Frame will be played.
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