Metrics of Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Student Competitions

The annual Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Student Competition (aka “RoboSub”) was established in 1998 as a specific member of the class of robotic competitions. After 17 years, we now take stock and look ahead. A modified free form approach is suggested utilizing a developerss kit. Seven core competencies for autonomy are defined, and an approach for rating competition competencies in mission complexity, environmental difficulty, human independence space is suggested. The competitions are an opportunity to measure autonomy through the wisdom of a crowd of practitioners attempting to accomplish carefully designed tasks. Over 2,500 students have participated on teams in the RoboSub competitions. A complete database has been compiled of all participants. The true value of the competition can be gauged by the return on investment that this collective human capital represents.