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Robot combat is a hobby in which two or more custom-built machines use varied methods of destroying or disabling the other. As of today, in most cases these machines are remote-controlled vehicles rather than autonomous robots, although there are exceptions, particularly in the field of robot-sumo. Robot combat enjoyed a period of mainstream exposure in the late 1990s and early 2000s when several television shows broadcast the robot fights. Either the public or the TV network administrators lost interest, and the shows dropped from the airwaves. The most well-known of these shows were ''Battlebots'', ''Robot Wars'', and ''Robotica''. Although the mainstream was lost after the cancellation of those shows, robot combat has a large dedicated cult following and there are still dozens of smaller competitions around the UK, USA and in other countries every year. Combat robots have received mention in the press and entertainment shows from time to time as well. In the summer of 2015, the American television network ABC aired a brief sixth season of Battlebots. Robot builders may be of any age and come from any walk of life. The robots themselves can range from modified remote controlled toys weighing less than a pound to three-hundred plus pounds of exotic metallurgy and sophisticated electronics. Although building a combat robot can cost thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours, some schools use the construction of combat robots in their courses to teach mechanical design and technology. For schools that shy away from the violence of combat robots, there are robotic competition alternatives such as the cooperative competitions FIRST and BEST Robotics. Robot competitions such as RoboGames, offer a mix of combat and non-combat events. In 2015, the United States-based robotics company MegaBots with their giant robot Mark II challenged a Japanese-based robotics company ''Suidobashi Heavy Industry'' with their giant robot Kuratas to a one-to-one combat, a challenge that ''Suidobashi'' accepted. The duel is expected to take place in June 2016. ==History== Among the oldest robotic combat competitions extant in the United States are the "Critter Crunch" (founded about 1987) in Denver and "Robot Battles" (founded in 1991) based in the southeastern U.S.〔(History of Robot Battles )〕 Both events are run by members of the "Denver Mad Scientists Society". 1994 - Marc Thorpe organized the first ''Robot Wars'' competition in San Francisco.〔(Robot Wars )〕 Four annual competitions were held. 1997 - Rights to the ''Robot Wars'' name is transferred to British TV production company who produce the ''Robot Wars'' television series. Early seasons feature competitive games and obstacle courses as well as simple combat. The series aired 151 episodes across 12 series from 1997 to 2003. Special series were produced for the United States and the Netherlands. 1999 - Former ''Robot Wars'' competitors in the U.S. organize a new competition named ''BattleBots''. The first tournament was shown as a webcast, with the second tournament shown as a cable 'Pay-per-view' event. 2000 - BattleBots is picked up as a weekly television program on Comedy Central. It would span five seasons ending in 2002. 2001 - Robotica appears on The Learning Channel as a weekly series. The format features tests of power, speed and maneuverability as well as combat. The show ran in three series, ending in 2002. 2002 - Foundation of the Robot Fighting League, a regulatory body composed of the organizers of robot combat events in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. The body produces a unified set of regulations and promotes the sport. 2004 - Robot Combat is included as an event at the ROBOlympics in San Francisco, California, with competitors from multiple countries. 2008 - ROBOlympics changes its name to RoboGames and, while most events are not combat related, Robot Combat is significantly featured. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「robot combat」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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