RoboCupJunior OnStage Rules 2026

Teams must highlight four robot features in the work they present to the judges. Teams should present how the chosen features are integrated to enhance performance quality in unique and innovative ways.

Teams should describe and provide reasoning for their four chosen features in the Technical Description Poster and during their Technical Demonstration Video and Technical Interview ^[2]. In addition, teams should demonstrate their understanding of their systems in the Technical Interview.

More information on the selection of features can be found in the Article How to Decide on Your OnStage Robotic Features (https://robocup-junior.github.io/onstage/resources/teams/how_to_features.html).

Each selected feature must be distinct. Similar or overlapping features will be scored as a single feature.

For clarification on a teams’ features, please do not hesitate to reach out to the OnStage League committee using the RoboCupJunior Forum (https://junior.forum.robocup.org/c/robocupjunior-onstage).

Teams have up to two opportunities to perform before the judges.

The duration of the performance routine must be no less than 1:30 minutes.

Each team has a total of seven minutes on the stage. This time includes stage set-up, introduction, and performance routine, including any re-starts due to factors under the team’s control, and the time for packing up and clearing the stage. The timer only stops when the entire stage is clear with no remnants from the previous performance.

When a team is asked to come onto the stage, a RoboCupJunior official starts the timer.

If the time limit is exceeded due to circumstances outside the team’s control (for example problems with starting the music) there will be no penalty. The judges have the final say on any time penalties.

Teams wait on the side of the stage before being welcomed on stage. A technician designated by RoboCupJunior officials will start the music and the audiovisual / multimedia presentation for the performance routine.

Performances will not be live-streamed for general public viewing. Recordings will be edited and released onto the RoboCupJunior OnStage YouTube channel. Teams have an option to request not to publish the recording of their performance .

Teams are strongly encouraged to use the time while they are setting up on the stage to introduce to the audience the performance and the features of their robots.

Teams must indicate the start of their performance clearly with a “3-2-1" countdown to the judges.

Teams must indicate the end of their performance clearly once it’s over (e.g. everyone coming to the front of the stage / thanking the audience for their attention / …).

Teams can restart their performance if necessary, at the discretion of the judges. There is no limit on the number of restarts allowed within the stage-time. Penalty marks will be deducted from the score.

The team can restart without reentering the stage and with a clear countdown (3-2-1) to the judges.

Scores and deductions are reset to 0 after the team has requested a restart. Deductions for every restart will be applied at the end of the performance according to the scoresheet.

The team must leave the stage after their time on stage has expired.

Te restart must be clearly signaled verbally by a team member on stage.

Teams may use music or video to complement their performance. If a team uses copyrighted music, they should follow the Copyright Law of the region where the event is held.

Teams are encouraged to provide a visual or multimedia presentation as part of their performance. This can take the form of a video, animation, slideshow, etc. However, the content should be made by the team themselves.

Interaction between the robots and the visual display is allowed and encouraged.

A projector and screen or LED-screen is provided. The organizers cannot guarantee the height above the stage or the size of the screen.

A HDMI and 3.5 mm AUX cable is available on stage through which a laptop or other device can be connected to the display device. The length of the cable cannot be guaranteed.

If music is used, teams must provide their own audio music source. The preferred transport method is to place the sound or video file on a memory stick as an MP3/MP4 file. The memory stick should be clearly labeled with the team’s name and should hold only the required files. It is essential that the music is given to a sound technician or a RoboCupJunior official before the start of a performance session. Teams are encouraged to bring multiple copies of the audio source file.

The size of the performance stage area is a rectangular area of 5 x 4 meters (m) for robots with the 5 meter side facing the judges.

There is a [[addition-8, Added "black+} line marking {with a minimum of 19 mm width outside"]] *[red]#black+} line marking {with a minimum of 19 mm width outside#* the edge of the 5 x 4 meter stage. See Section 12, “Appendix A - Layout of the stage”.

The floor provided shall be made of a flat (non-glossy) white surface, for example, painted MDF (compressed wood fiber). While floor joints will be made to be as smooth as possible, robots must be prepared for irregularities of up to 5 mm in the floor surface. Whilst every effort will be made to make the stage flat, this may not be possible, and teams should be prepared to cope with this uncertainty.

Teams should come prepared to calibrate their robots for the venue condition. Examples of things to consider:

Robots must perform autonomously.

Laptops, notebooks, mobile phones, tablets, Raspberry Pi, and other similar devices can be used as autonomous robotic controllers.

Teams should construct their own robot rather than using the instructions that come with a commercial kit. Teams are encouraged to design their robot appearance by themselves. If a team wants to use a famous character as their robot, the team should pay attention to the copyright of the character.

A team may have and use any number of robots. Robots may be of any size. However, using multiple robots does not necessarily result in obtaining higher points. Large robots do not count for more.

Robots started from outside the performance area will not be considered for judging during the whole performance.

^[4] Teams are encouraged to design robots that communicate with each other during the performance. Suggested communication protocols are infrared (IR), Bluetooth (LE and classic), ZigBee, RFID or other localization platforms.

There must be no communication between off-stage and on-stage devices.

It is the team’s responsibility to make sure that their communication function does not interfere with other teams' robots when practicing or performing.

Teams should prepare for disruptions in communication protocols before and during the setup and stage performance.

Any localization beacons or markers for a robot’s localization system should be placed within the confines of the stage.

^[5]

Props are optional for the performance. Teams are welcome to add props to their performance, including interactive props to add value to the performance.

The kind of props that are considered "interactive" are:

^[6] All props must be in the performance area.

^[7] Props which are not an integral part of the performance are discouraged since the focus of the performance should be on robots.

Robots may be started manually by human contact, sensor interaction or with remote control at the beginning of the performance.

During the performance, remote control of a robot is prohibited, including pressing buttons, keyboards, phone applications or similar interactions with touch-like sensors. Touch-like sensors are defined as passive sensors that have a logical single function dependent on human actions.

Humans directly influencing sensors to trigger the progression of the performance will not be rewarded highly.

Intelligent interaction should be used to dynamically alter the robot’s behavior. Robots that interact with their environment and respond accordingly will be highly rewarded. Natural human-robot interaction using sensors responding to human gestures, expressions, sound, or proximity is encouraged.

Interaction between robots is highly encouraged. Robots are allowed to physically touch and can interact through sensors and wired/wireless communication.

All robot interactions must be visible to the judges for the entire performance. This includes the initial manual start of each robot.

Any clarifications regarding this ruling should be directed to the committee before the competition to ensure the interaction is permitted.

Human team members may perform with their robots on the stage during the performance. If so, they should make sure not to hide important components of their robot counterpart(s) from the judges/audience.

In order to keep the focus on the robots, humans on stage should make sure to follow basic acting guidelines (not blocking the view, not standing with their backs to the audience) and be professional on stage.

Refer to the scoresheet for the list of deductions.

All robot movements or interactions that happen outside the performance area will not be considered for the scoring, but will not lead to deductions.

Robots started from outside the performance area will not be considered for judging during the whole performance.

Humans using a touch-based sensor during a performance ^[8] will be considered remote-controlled interaction and therefore will be considered an unplanned human interaction.

^[9] The performance that violate the rules may not be scored at the judges discretion.

It is the responsibility of the team to ensure that the music and video/presentation is playing correctly before their first performance by liaising with the RoboCupJunior OnStage officials.

Depending on the configuration of the stage and the sound system at the venue, it is possible that the human starting the robot will not be able to see the RoboCupJunior OnStage official starting the audio source and vice versa. Teams should come prepared for these conditions.

The main performance stage is available for teams to practice on. In fairness to all teams who may wish to practice, a booking sheet is used to reserve the stage for a short practice time. Please be respectful of the allocated time.

Every team who practices on the main stage is responsible for cleaning it after use. The stage must be fully cleaned for the next team willing to use it. The team who uses the main stage just before starting the performance judging should clean up at least 10 minutes before the judging starts.

Performances should not include violent, military, threatening, criminal elements, or offensive or discriminatory elements targeting any group of people or culture. This includes inappropriate or offensive words (including music) and/or images.

Participants are asked to carefully consider the wording and messages communicated in any aspect of their performance. What seems acceptable to one group may be offensive to friends from a different country or culture.

A team whose routine may be deemed inappropriate to any particular group will be asked to change their performance before being allowed to continue in the competition. Teams who wish to clarify their performance theme or elements of their performance may contact the OnStage League Committee before the competition. Failure to remove inappropriate content will result in disciplinary action.

Participants should design their robot(s) to be a size that they can easily carry by themselves. Robots should be of a weight that team members can carry and lift onto the stage with ease.

Robots with flying capabilities, such as drones, must be inside of a safety net or tied to an object that’s weight exceeds the drones maximum lifting capacity. The safety rope or net needs to be made of a material that can not be damaged by the drones rotors and needs to prevent the drone from leaving the boundaries of the stage at any time. No free-flying robots are allowed in the venue. Any team planning to use a flying robot must consult with the OnStage League Committee prior to coming to the competition.

To protect participants and comply with occupational health and safety regulations, routines may not include anything that could be considered a projectile, explosions, smoke, or flame, use of water, or any other hazardous substances (contact the committee through the forum when in doubt).

A team whose routine includes any situation that could be deemed hazardous, including the possibility of damaging the stage, must submit a report outlining the content of their performance to the committee two weeks before the competition. The Committee may also request further explanation and a demonstration of the activity before the stage performance. Teams not conforming to this rule may not be allowed to present their routine.

All teams will have up to 25 ^[10] minutes of technical interview judging during the competition. Which will take place as an in-person meeting with the judges in a separate room at the venue.

Interviews will be judged by at least two judges ^[11] who have also scored the technical description poster and technical demonstration video ^[12] beforehand.

The Interview Score Sheet is used in the interview judging. It is strongly suggested for teams to review the Technical Interview Score Sheet before the interview to make effective use of the interview.

Teams should have all physical robotic systems present at the interview with copies of all their work in a format that can be easily viewed. This includes any programs, CAD/CAM designs, PCB designs, or wiring diagrams, in the formats that are easy for judges to review during the interview. Each team member must be prepared to answer questions about the technical aspects of their involvement in the robot design, construction, and programming.

Teams must be prepared to conduct a live demonstration proving that all four chosen features are fully working. Teams are asked to do a live demonstration of the four features and other functions of the robots during the interview. The goal of the live demonstration is for judges to review how the team execute the four chosen features and robotic functions.

Teams are required to submit the software of all their robots together with their technical documentation before the event.

The files may be changed in between their submission and the competition when necessary.

The code is expected to be documented and include comments that explain the basic purpose of its functions/methods.

Teams need to clarify which third party code and/or libraries, including the use of AI, were used for their performance and why.

The Technical Interviews take place in English. If teams require a translator, they should inform the RoboCupJunior OnStage officials prior to the event to allow translators to be organized.

Extra time will not be given for teams with a translator.

If the judges consider it necessary, teams may be asked to complete a second technical interview.

Teams are required to submit a recorded demonstration to showcase the capabilities of their robots. The aim of the technical demonstration is to showcase how well the team integrated their robotics creations into a perfect performance. They should demonstrate and describe the capabilities of their robots such as interaction with humans or with each other using mechanisms, sensor systems, and algorithms that have been developed by the team.

The maximum length of the video is 6 minutes. If it is longer than 6 minutes, it will be cut to that time for judging.

Robots should be presented without their costumes and the four features used should be visible to the audience.

The team should explain how the capabilities have been developed, the challenges overcome, and the technologies integrated. Teams should also provide examples of solutions to any problems/issues during their project development.

Teams will also be required to outline their chosen four features that they wish to be scored on during their OnStage performance (See Section 1, “Overview”).

Video editing is allowed and should be used to create a technically engaging and informative demonstration of all robots. ^[13] Teams must present their video in English, including voice-over and on-screen text, with English subtitles or transcripts recommended for clarity.

All team members are encouraged to be actively involved in the presentation.

The Technical Demonstration is assessed according to the Technical Demonstration Score Sheet.

The demonstration needs to be recorded and the video file must be uploaded by the deadline set by the OnStage League Committee.

Each team is required to submit a Technical Description Poster by the deadline set by the OnStage League Committee, which is before ^[14] the RoboCupJunior competition. The purpose of the poster is to explain the technology used, particularly highlight the four chosen features, as well as to showcase the robots’ software and hardware. Posters should be made in an interesting and engaging format, as they will be viewed not only by the judges but also by other teams and visiting members of the public. Poster content must be presented in English.

Teams must submit a digital copy of their poster in PDF format (≤ 10 MB).

Areas that are useful to be included in the poster are:

The judging criteria and allocation of marks are given in the respective score sheets.

Teams must read the Score Sheets carefully so that their robot performance , technical demonstration video, technical description poster and interview cover as much judging criteria as possible,

The total score of each team is calculated by combining the weighted scores as described in the scoresheet document ^[15] from the team’s Technical Interview, ^[16] the Technical Demonstration Video, the Technical Description Poster, and the OnStage Performance.

If more than one performance is scheduled, the highest of all performance scores will be used.

RoboCupJunior OnStage competition aims to promote awareness of and encourage sustainable practices in robotics and technology. To support this goal, we have established a Sustainability Scoring criterion encouraging all participants to consider environmental impact when developing their projects. Sustainability will be evaluated through all judging criteria during the competition. Unlike other judging criteria that are weighted, sustainability scores are awarded as direct bonus points added to your final score. This means every sustainable choice teams make, from material selection to energy-efficient design, can boost your overall score and contribute to a better future.

The stage performance will be judged by a panel of at least three officials. At least one of these judges is a RoboCupJunior official who has judged the Technical interview and documentation as well.

The judging panel should consist of representatives from each super region and should be selected from a wide range of regions when possible.

It is expected that all participants, students, and mentors, will respect the RoboCupJunior mission, values, and goals.

It is not whether you win or lose, but how much you learn that counts. Choosing not to take this opportunity to collaborate with students and mentors from all over the world means missing out on a lifelong learning experience. Remember this is a unique moment!

The judges ^[17] will act within the spirit of the event.

The judges ^[18] shall not have a close relationship with any of the teams in the league they judge.

Each team is required to have a mentor to assist with the communication among the team and facilitate their learning. The mentor receives communications from the committee leading up to and during the competition via the email address used for their registration.

If a problem is encountered that is beyond the team’s capabilities and is clearly beyond the reasonable ability level of a student to repair, mentors may request assistance from the OnStage League Committee, including supervised support to conduct repairs.

Mentors are not allowed in the student work area and interview room except to assist in carrying equipment in or out of the area on the arrival and departure days.

Mentors are not allowed to set up equipment on stage, as this should be the responsibility of team members. Teams should design all robots and any additional equipment to be carried by team members only.

Disciplinary action will be taken should a mentor be found mending, building and/or programming the robot(s), and/or directing choreography. Judges may question the team’s originality if this occurs and teams may risk deductions or disqualification.

It is understood that RoboCupJunior events with rich technological and curricular developments should be shared with other participants.

Sharing information furthers the mission of RoboCupJunior as an educational initiative.

If any rule clarification is needed, please contact the International RoboCupJunior OnStage League Committee, using the Junior Forum (https://junior.forum.robocup.org). Once the inquiry is posted on this forum, OnStage League Committee members will respond as soon as possible.

If necessary, even during a competition, rule clarifications may be made by members of the RoboCupJunior OnStage League Committee.

Teams will be responsible for checking for updated information during the event. Methods of communication during the event will be announced to the registered mentors via email before the competition.

Teams are strongly encouraged to check the RoboCupJunior Forum which conveys information about the competition before the competition.

If special circumstances occur, such as unforeseen problems or capabilities of a robot, these rules may be modified by the RoboCupJunior OnStage League Committee Chair in conjunction with available Committee members, if necessary, even during competition.

If any of the team leaders/mentors are not present at the team meetings to discuss the problems and the resulting rule modifications, they consent to the rule modifications and are not permitted to challenge them at a later time.