A short summary of the official regulations. The full document is the final authority — ask the organizers for the current version.
Key rules
01
Participants
Age: 13 to 21 years. Team: 2 to 5 people.
Organizers: USTEM Foundation and KAES.
Pre-registration through the online form is mandatory and closes on the date announced for each event.
Travel, accommodation and meals are paid by participants or their sending organization.
The BrawlerBot platform is an optional ready-made base for teams without experience.
02
Size and weight
The robot must fit freely into a 250 × 250 × 250 mm calibration cube at inspection and before every fight, with no pressure on its walls.
Standard class (wheels, tracks): 1500 g nominal, up to 1600 g allowed. 1601 g or more is not accepted.
Walker class (Shuffle Drive): 1800 g nominal, up to 1900 g allowed.
Weighing is done fight-ready: the robot on the scales must be identical to the one entering the arena, batteries included.
A transforming robot may expand only after the start signal and must return to the starting size by remote control within 10 seconds.
03
Shuffle Drive
Movement must come from lifting and stepping mechanical feet driven by cams, eccentrics or levers.
Hidden wheels, rollers or ball bearings that allow passive rolling are strictly forbidden.
Friction pads (silicone, TPU, rubber) on the feet are allowed.
The head judge approves the walking type at technical inspection. A robot that actually rolls is moved to the standard class.
04
Materials
Body, chassis, frame and passive armor: non-metal only — plastics, TPU, rubber and composites (carbon fiber, FR4/G10, fiberglass, micarta and similar).
Metal is allowed for the active weapon, bearings, shafts, gears, springs, motors, servos, solenoids and all fasteners.
05
Weapons and fire
Every robot must have an active weapon: an independent mechanism with its own drive (spinner, lifter, etc.). A low-power decorative one is accepted.
The moving part and its drive must be on the outside of the body, in view of the judges.
A flamethrower is an auxiliary weapon: gas fuel only, flame up to 80 cm, and a manual shut-off valve within easy reach.
Organizers may ban fire depending on the venue; the decision is announced 2–3 weeks before the event.
06
Electronics and safety
A hatch must give quick access to the battery and to the main power switch-off.
The battery connects through a quick-release power connector (e.g. XT60) so that full power-off takes under 30 seconds.
All boards, controllers and wiring must be fixed and insulated — no bare wires or open contacts.
A weapon lock must immobilize every weapon: at most 180° of play for spinning weapons and 15° for others, and it must insert with one hand.
LiPo batteries are charged only inside LiPo bags or on fireproof surfaces.
07
Fights
All fights are 1-vs-1: qualification, repechage bracket, then a final elimination bracket.
Arena: closed 1.8 × 1.8 m with a transparent safety wall and a 35 × 35 × 35 cm pit that opens one minute after the start.
A round lasts 3 minutes.
A fight ends by knockout (10 seconds without controlled movement), tap-out, a robot failing to climb out of the pit within 15 seconds, a judge's stop for safety, or the head judge's decision.
The head judge decides on aggression, damage dealt, arena control and showmanship.
A Support Bot may separate stuck robots, only on the head judge's command.
08
Pit zone and spare robots
Repairs are allowed any time between fights until the team is officially called to the arena.
Emergency repair right before a fight: 5 minutes. If the team is late, the judge may send it to the losers' bracket or declare a technical loss.
No work with power connected or an unlocked weapon in the pit zone.
A spare robot is allowed only at technical inspection on event day. It must be identical to the entered robot, share the same base chassis, pass inspection and carry an ID sticker. The account registers one robot.
09
Conduct
Zero tolerance for: serious safety violations, ignoring officials, vandalism, unethical behavior, hiding defects or modifying a robot after inspection.
Deliberately attacking the Support Bot means disqualification.
All disputes go to the Disciplinary Committee; its decision is final.
Sanctions range from a warning or penalty points to disqualification and a temporary ban from organizers' events.
Frequently asked questions
Still have questions? Announcements and technical Q&A happen in the KAES Community group.
