Robot rage

The Seattle Center House was buzzing Saturday -- and not just with excitement. Over 300 robot enthusiasts attended Seattle Robothon 2K+1, hosted by the Seattle Robotics Society.

This year's convention lasted from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., hosting six major contests performed in front of the crowd, as well as two huge tables for displaying robots and other electronic ventures capable of interesting feats. Enthusiasts from all over western Washington came to show off their own projects and admire others'. However, it was the robots that captured the audience's attention.

A crowd favorite was Itzy, a three-inch robot built by 25-year-old Greg Hendrickson. Itzy participated in the five-square-foot line maze, trying to beat the best time of 35 seconds. Unfortunately, Itzy pushed herself up against a wall and couldn't make a retreat from this awkward position. The wired mechanical device moved back and forth in confusion as the announcer summarized the defeat: "Itzy tried, but looks like she's stuck in a rut. She tried, though."

Afterwards, an elementary-age creator placed the next contender, his "Lego Mason" at the start of the maze. Also about three inches in diameter, "Lego Mason" was able to overcome the obstacles that plagued Itzy. The robot emerged after three rounds of competition in first place, beating the previous best with a time of 32 seconds. The crowd of family and friends and other robot novices cheered loudly as the boy held "Lego Mason" high in the air in a victory whoop after the race.

While these events took place, large tables encircled the center pavilion, filled with homemade robots up for display. The talking-head robot was a favorite. Enter text onto a keyboard, and the red-eyed robot spouted it right back out. Everything from, "You make me horny, baby," and "I love you," to "What's up doc?" Red eyes batted their eyelashes, and the metal oval head twirled. The robot had a large congregation of children crowded around it -- feeding it lines for their own amusement.

Two booths away, robot sumo wrestling was available for anyone to try. Press the buttons, much like the buttons on a Nintendo keypad, and a remote controlled mouse-like robot jolted forward. Adults and kids played against one another to see who could push the enemy off the mat first. As this went on, more sumo wrestling was occurring on the stage, where the larger robots were given three tries to push the other robot out of the ring, amidst the yells and shouts from the audience.

Roaming around the lunch tables was a robot not unlike R2D2 from Star Wars. A wireless palm pilot directed its movements, and the robot could move up to four mph, as well as pick up objects and bounce off walls and other impediments.

At another table was Ryan Wistort, a junior in high school, along with his two creations: one, a dog-like robot which walked and barked, and the other a color-sensitive elephant. The elephant lifted his trunk and moved if a yellow object was in front of him. Winsort, of Gig Harbor, spent over 700 hours in 16 months building the elephant, which also had a palm pilot incorporated into the design.

With more than 200 active Robotics Society members in the Seattle area, it's no surprise that the convention was a hit. Robots interest a wide variety of people, including teachers, engineers, and kids. Additionally, the monthly society newsletter reaches more recipients than almost any other robotics club bulletin in the nation.