January 2026 - RoboCup-athome - lists.robocup.org

RoboCup German Open 2026 (March 10-14, 2026): Call for Participation
by Sven Wachsmuth 21 Jan '26

21 Jan '26

*R**oboCup German Open 2026* Call for Participation - Major Leagues https://robocup.de/german-open <https://robocup.de/german-open> Cologne Trade Fair, Cologne, Germany The 23nd RoboCup German Open 2026 will take place from March 10-14 in Cologne. *Cologne **with its welcoming vibe**offers a captivating mix of culture, architecture, **history, **and lively atmosphere.* From the awe-inspiring Cologne Cathedral — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — to its dynamic art scene and riverside cafés along the Rhine, the city invites exploration. For example, visitors can enjoy world-class museums, the walkable old town with many bars, or festive events like the Cologne Carnival. Cologne is a perfect destination for both history lovers and urban adventurers and a great host for RoboCup German Open 2026. Every regional and international Major team is cordially invited to take part in the event. ---------------------------- RoboCup Major Leagues (international teams) ---------------------- After the team setup on March 10^th, the competitions will take place from 11^th to 14^th of March 2026 in the following main leagues: * RoboCup Humanoid Soccer League * RoboCupSoccer Small Size League * RoboCupRescue Robot League * RoboCupIndustrial Smart Manufacturing League * RoboCup@Home League For Major team registration please visit: https://portal.robocup.de/registry Registration deadline *** January 31st, 2026 *** Late registration deadline (team members only) *** February 28th, 2026 ***. Teams are advised to arrange their own accommodation *** as early as possible *** as cost of accommodation is expected to rise in the run-up of the event. Most recent rule developments in all leagues, especially the Soccer and Smart Manufacturing Leagues will be considered for the competitions. ------------------------------- Further information on co-located events ------------------------- RoboCup German Open 2026 will be embedded in didacta 2026, which is Europe's largest education fair and most important continuing education event for teachers. Over 700 exhibitors from more than 60 countries will present their offerings in Cologne. Participants tickets to RoboCup German Open will include didacta tickets as well. The 2nd German Robotics Conference on AI-powered robotics, organized by the Robotics Institute Germany, will take place from March 11 to 13, 2026, parallel to the RoboCup German Open and in close proximity to it. ---------------------------- RoboCup Junior (German teams) ----------------------------------- From March 12-14, 2026 the final event of the German RoboCupJunior Championship will be held at RoboCup German Open 2026 in Cologne. The best teams that have qualified in the nine previous German qualifying tournaments will take part. The best German Junior teams in the 2026 German Junior Final will qualify for RoboCup 2026 in South Korea and for the European RoboCupJunior Competition 2026 in Austria. ----------------------------- Organization Committee ---------------------------------- * Oskar von Stryk (General Chair) * Julian Werner (Project Lead) * Alexander Ferrein (German RoboCup Committee, Spokesperson Major) The Major Leagues Organizing Committee: * Heinrich Mellmann (Humanoid Soccer League, former Humanoid & Standard Platform Leagues) * Nicolai Ommer (Small Size League) * Johannes Pellenz, Stefan May, Thomas Sander (Rescue Robot League & RMRC) * Sven Wachsmuth (@Home League) * Alexander Ferrein, Christoph Steup (Smart Manufacturing League) The Junior Leagues Organizing Committee: * Lara Trappmann * Oskar Kirmis * Niko Lockenwitz * Michelle Bialdyga * Christian Häußler * Lena Eickhoff * Stefanie Haupt * Christian Rieseberg ---------------------------- Co-located Events ------------------------------------------------------ Parallel to the RoboCup German Open 2026 the second German Robotics Conference of the Robotics Institute Germany (RIG) will take place. The conference will bring together the leading German researchers in AI-based robotics. The education fair “didacta”, will also take place in Halls 6 to 8, between March 10-14, 2026. All participants will also have access to didacta. ---------------------------- Important dates ---------------------------------- * 2025-12-01 Major teams early registration starts * 2026-01-31 Major teams registration deadline, team member registration deadline * 2026-02-28 Late registration deadline (team members only) * 2026-03-10 Set-up day Major League teams * 2026-03-11 to 14 Competition days * 2026-03-14 Major and Junior finals The event is open to the public during all days from 9 am to 5 pm ----------------------------- Contact ---------------------------------- Please contact _germanopen(a)robocup.de_ <mailto:germanopen@robocup.de>for any questions. See you all at the 23rd RoboCup German Open 2026! Best regards, German RoboCup Committee

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Extension of Participation Confirmation Deadline
by Lammers, Kathrin 20 Jan '26

20 Jan '26

Dear Teams, We are writing to inform you that, as we have been informed of issues regarding information on shipping costs for the robots, the participation confirmation period has been extended until the 27th of February 2026. Teams that have already confirmed their participation but find that they need to withdraw due to unexpected issues with shipping costs may do so without penalty until the 27th of February as well. We hope this extension provides additional flexibility as you finalize your arrangements. A further extension, however, will be difficult, as we will need to know the number of teams we can assign a spot in the 2nd Call by the extended date. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or require further clarification. Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to hearing from you. Kind regards, Kathrin Lammers and the RoboCup@Home OC

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[meetings] [CFP] HRI 2026 Special Session by Meta - Applications Due January 22, 2026
by Ross Mead 15 Jan '26

15 Jan '26

Hi all, I am excited to share a Call For Participation for the HRI 2026 Special Session on “HRI and Consumer Robots: Building Robots that are Useful and Acceptable” <https://humanrobotinteraction.org/2026/special-session-by-meta/> (sponsored by Meta) taking place on March 16, 2026 in *Edinburgh, Scotland, UK*. Applications <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdaKZUswUDXvhZ5GwM5fNAQg55BSL2ZiyZ…> (required) and paper submissions <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfYQn0iKqQerMqhrTXPCHY6R1ZtS4C3jy4…> (optional) are due on January 22, 2026. The session is open to academics and industry practitioners and is free to attend, but has limited space. Meta is also providing travel support of up to $1,500 per person for people who submit an 1-2 page paper that is accepted. See below for details. — Session Title: “HRI and Consumer Robots: Building Robots that are Useful and Acceptable” Organizers: Danny Ullman (Meta), Laura Trutoiu (Meta), Sarah Papazoglakis (Meta), Ross Mead (HRI 2026 Partnership Chair) Date: March 16, 2026 (first day of the Human-Robot Interaction Conference) Location: Edinburgh International Conference Centre, in Edinburgh, UK Webpage: https://humanrobotinteraction.org/2026/special-session-by-meta Application (required): Link <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdaKZUswUDXvhZ5GwM5fNAQg55BSL2ZiyZ…>; deadline January 22, 2026 (limited space) Paper Submission (optional): Link <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfYQn0iKqQerMqhrTXPCHY6R1ZtS4C3jy4…>; deadline January 22, 2026 (required to be considered for travel support) Notification of Workshop Attendance: January 29, 2026 Notification of Paper Acceptance: January 29, 2026 Session Overview: The HRI 2026 conference is hosting a special session workshop sponsored by Meta that will explore what it means to build household robots for consumers—robots that provide people with meaningful value in everyday life. Together, we will explore how we can translate insights from academia into foundational framing which could help guide industry approaches to building robots that are both valuable to people and acceptable to people for in-home use. If the HRI community could offer guidance or principles to the humanoid robotics industry, what would it be? (See additional details on the webpage <https://humanrobotinteraction.org/2026/special-session-by-meta/>) -- Ross Mead, PhD *Partnership Chair <https://humanrobotinteraction.org/2026/partners>* *HRI 2026 <https://humanrobotinteraction.org/2026>* <https://semio.ai>

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Second Call for Participation | RoboCup@Home 2026
by Lammers, Kathrin 09 Jan '26

09 Jan '26

Dear all, We hereby publish the Second Call for Participation for RoboCup@Home 2026, which will take place from June 30 to July 6, 2026 in Incheon, South Korea. RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots through competitions (RoboCup@Home, RoboCup Soccer, RoboCup Rescue, RoboCup@Work and RoboCup Junior). The RoboCup@Home league aims to develop service and assistive robot technology with high relevance for future personal domestic applications. It is the largest international annual competition for autonomous service robots and is part of the RoboCup initiative. A set of benchmark tests is used to evaluate the robots’ abilities and performance in a realistic home environment setting. Focus lies on the following domains but is not limited to: Human-Robot-Interaction and Cooperation, Navigation and Mapping in dynamic environments, Computer Vision and Object Recognition under natural light conditions, Object Manipulation, Adaptive Behaviors, Behavior Integration, Ambient Intelligence, Standardization and System Integration. Important dates: Jan. 9, 2026 Publication of the Call for Participation Feb. 3, 2026 Deadline for submission of participation intention. Feb. 10, 2026 Deadline for submission of qualification material. (Team Description Paper, Team Video, Team Website). Mar. 6, 2026 Qualification announcement Apr. 6, 2026 Deadline for Participation Confirmation Further Information is published in the Call for Participation: https://athome.robocup.org/second-call-for-participation-robocuphome-2026/ You should also consult the official RuleBook, which is still subject to change until the competition: https://github.com/RoboCupAtHome/RuleBook/releases/latest Updates and reference material can be found on the official RoboCup@Home website: https://athome.robocup.org/ With kind regards, and looking forward to seeing your team in Incheon, The 2026 RoboCup@Home Organizing and Technical Committees

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