UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is preparing to host a large-scale combat robotics competition this spring, bringing together 12 student teams from across Penn State’s University Park and Harrisburg campuses to design, build and battle custom-engineered robots.
The event, officially titled ASME Combat Robotics Tournament, will be held from noon to 3 p.m. on April 11 on the Engineering Quad Lawn outside of the Engineering Design and Innovation Building at University Park. In the event of inclement weather, the competition will be moved inside the Engineering Design and Innovation Building throughout the entire first floor. The event is free and open to the public, and ASME encourages anyone who is interested to attend and RSVP, including local K-12 robotics programs, alumni, sponsors, faculty and students from across Penn State.
The event’s itinerary includes a robot showcase, mixer and free pizza from noon to 12:45 p.m., the opening presentation from 12:45 p.m. to 1 p.m., the competition from 1:10p.m. to 2:45 p.m. and the event wraps up at 3 p.m.
Teams come from various engineering societies, including five from ASME, two from the local Chapter of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, one from the local chapter of Society of Women Engineers, one from E-House, one from the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, one from the Wind Energy Club and one from the Penn State Harrisburg ASME Chapter.
The competition, modeled after televised combat robotics events such as BattleBots, will feature 12 teams representing seven student clubs and organizations. Each team is currently designing, fabricating and testing its robot in preparation for the head-to-head matches.
“This competition is more than just an engineering challenge,” said George Kuney, president of the Penn State Chapter of ASME and a third-year mechanical engineering major. “It is a large-scale collaboration between College of Engineering clubs and organizations. To me, it embodies what Penn State is all about: unity and creativity. We have brought together hundreds of people who might never have met otherwise, and we intend to continue that trend by inviting the entire community to our competition.”
Participants are responsible for every aspect of their robot’s development, from mechanical design and materials selection to electrical systems and control strategies. The event provides students with experience in systems integration, rapid prototyping and iterative testing, mirroring real-world engineering workflows.
“PSU ASME Design team's mission is to build technical confidence with no experience required,” said Landon Zimmerman, the ASME Design Lead and a second-year student studying mechanical engineering. “I proposed the combat robotics tournament to ASME because there is a huge opportunity to build up our engineering college through multidisciplinary engineering projects. ASME has enabled this incredible competition, and the College of Engineering is welcoming it. I hope this success will lead to more Penn State clubs collaborating together to build the next generation of engineers and raise the college up in the process.”