Building and programming autonomous robots at the York Micromaze Hackathon
From 25–27 August, UK RAS STEPS members came together at the University of York’s Institute for Safe Autonomy for a three-day Micromaze Robot Hackathon.
Working in teams, participants were challenged to design, build and program autonomous robots capable of navigating a series of increasingly complex mazes. Each team used a custom Raspberry Pi Pico W robotics platform, designed a laser-cut chassis, integrated motors and sensors, and developed its control software in MicroPython.
Participants had access to ultrasonic, infrared and time-of-flight sensors, alongside laser-cutting and 3D-printing facilities. The final challenge considered maze performance, collision avoidance, robot design, code quality, wireless control and any innovative features developed by the teams.
The programme also included a tour of the Institute for Safe Autonomy, collaborative development sessions, final presentations and robot demonstrations.
Beyond the technical challenge, the Hackathon helped test an activity that could be developed into future continuing professional development for people new to robotics or an outreach programme for children and students.
Thank you to Rob Woolley, the University of York team and everyone who participated and contributed to the event.
News is gathered automatically from public robotics & AI feeds on a schedule.
Related
Small, medium or large, a robotic fish maintains its swimming ability
The scalable robot ScaFi. 2026 CREATE Lab EPFL. CC BY SA-4.0. Propeller-powered underwater vehicles have long helped scientists explore and monitor aquatic environments. But they’re limited by their own mechanics: spinning blades can snag on vegetation, stir up sediment, and startle the wildli
Video Friday: Life’s Better With a Little Robot Goose
Video Friday is your weekly selection of awesome robotics videos, collected by your friends at IEEE Spectrum robotics. We also post a weekly calendar of upcoming robotics events for the next few months. Please send us your events for inclusion. IROS 2026 : 27 September–1 October 2026, PITTSBURGH CoR
Robot Talk Episode 163 – Robots helping people, with Aaron Edsinger
Claire chatted to Aaron Edsinger from Hello Robot about their Stretch robots that can help people with mobility issues live more independently. Aaron Edsinger is CEO and Co-Founder of Hello Robot, a robotics company dedicated to developing practical, safe, and accessible robots for people. With a pa
An open source approach to physical AI from Intrinsic
Deborah Lupton / Pop Chips / Licenced by CC-BY 4.0 Intrinsic (an AI robotics group at Google) announced that the company is making parts of its platform open source. Intrinsic Core™ is a set of ROS-compatible capabilities for building sophisticated robotic applications. The capabilities included in
Mexican EPICS in IEEE Team Builds Portable Educational Platform
In Guadalajara, Mexico, many high schools have motivated teachers and talented students with an interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, but they lack access to advanced tools such as robotics laboratories. The resources shortfall limits the students’ opportunities for hands-on
What’s coming up at #IROS2026?
The 2026 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2026) will be held from 27 September – 1 October in Pittsburgh, USA. The programme includes plenary and keynote talks, workshops, tutorials, forums, competitions, and a debate. Keynote talks The keynote talks wi