The European Rover Challenge is an annual international space & robotics competition. It brings together teams from universities worldwide to compete in tasks similar to those performed by rovers on Mars and the Moon. The event combines a rover design competition with scientific and technological shows and workshops.

The ERC offers a valuable opportunity for students looking to advance their careers in the engineering and robotics industries. The ERC is designed to be a benchmark for planetary robotic activities and a platform for professional career development. It allows students to improve their competencies and gain real-world experience in their field. Participating in the ERC enables students to showcase their skills and knowledge to a broader audience, including representatives of the science and business communities and potential employers. The interdisciplinary nature of the ERC provides a holistic and comprehensive approach to exploring the challenges and opportunities in the space industry.

The competition is divided into two separate formulas: on-site & remote. Participants can enter one or both formulas. Each formula demands a dedicated approach and challenges participating teams with different tasks. Learn more about competition tasks here: ERC Robotics Competition.

On-site formula rulebook is available here: LINK
Remote formula rulebook is available here: LINK

[ON-SITE] competition status: Registration is closed.
[REMOTE] competition status: Registration is closed.

Learn more about the #ERC2023 participants: LINK

News

Let’s talk about ERC remote! Q&A incoming

Let’s talk about ERC on-site! Join the Q&A

ERC’23 on-site registration is open!

News

Let’s talk about ERC remote! Q&A incoming

Let’s talk about ERC on-site! Join the Q&A

ERC’23 on-site registration is open!

RULES & REGULATIONS

If you have any questions regarding the ERC2023 competition, please contact Konrad – ERC Team Coordinator at teams@roverchallenge.eu. The ERC2023 rulebook is available below.
[on-site] Rulebook & file repository
[remote] Rulebook & file repository

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Is participation in the ERC free?

Yes! Registration and participation in the competition are free of charge and do not require any fees.

Who can apply to participate in the competition?

ERC is a university team competition, therefore, a minimum of 75% of the team must be students, Ph.D. students, or recent graduates. Collaboration with specialists from different fields and university professors is allowed to some degree (please refer to the competition rules for details). Unlimited number of teams may register from the same university. What's more, you can form a team made of multiple divisions and universities!

How can we apply?

So you want to register to the next edition of the ERC? Great! Please get familiar with the competition rules & regulations which can be found on this page (above). If your team meets the requirements, please download and fill all attachments carefully, and send them to Konrad (ERC Team Coordinator) at teams@roverchallenge.eu. Be aware, that you are required to send all attached documents in order to register successfully.

Do you have any advice for unexperienced teams?

Sure! First of all, take into account the phase of preparing the documentation. Many teams treat it as an introduction to further activities, but it is an essential element of the competition:

1) The ability to prepare documentation is essential in the work of most engineers.
2) The number of teams that will participate in the competition is limited, and the jury will decide whether you will be part of that group based on documentation.
3) We know it might sometimes be overwhelming, but don't give up! The failures and lessons you learn from them make you a good engineer!

Check our Team Coordinator's article titled "10 tips for a better start in the ERC!"

Will you help us with the financing?

Unfortunately, we do not provide such support. Searching for sponsors on your own is a crucial step in any project's development. It is worth considering from the beginning whether and how you can commercialize your work to prove to potential sponsors that it is worth investing in you. Also, check for additional financing opportunities at your university & public institutions in your country.

Is the ERC dedicated to engineering students only?

It's up to you to decide who makes the best fit for your team! The ERC is an interdisciplinary experience – your team can be formed of students with different backgrounds and majors. While engineering is a crucial element of the competition, your team will greatly benefit from people dedicated to your team's management, financing, electrical engineering, software development, and PR.

What if we can't manufacture a rover?

Those interested in the competition that can't design & manufacture a functional rover should consider applying to a separate, remote formula of the ERC! Teams taking part in the remote formula will all use standardized equipment during the competition (and develop their own software) with which they will connect remotely via the Internet from anywhere on Earth. Registration to ERC'23 remote is expected to be open ~April 2023.

Schedule

The table below shows the preliminary competition schedule. Please refer to the rules and regulations for the detailed competition schedule.

March 14th, 2023

[on-site] Registration start

April 1st, 2023 (4PM CET)

[on-site] Q&A session #1

April 5th, 2023

[remote] Registration start

April 14th, 2023

[on-site] Registration deadline

May 5th, 2023

[remote] Registration deadline

May 10th, 2023

[on-site] Update of the Rules (e.g. Scoring) / Update Report #1

May 19th, 2023

[remote] Preliminary Report Delivery

May 20th, 2023 (4pm CeST)

[on-site] Q&A session #2

May 26th, 2023

[on-site] Preliminary Report Delivery

May 29th, 2023

[remote] Qualification A

June 30th, 2023

[on-site] Qualification announcement

June 30th, 2023

[on-site] Update of the Rules #2 / Update Report #2

~July 2023 (TBC)

[remote] 1st Test Drives (Navigation & Maintenance)

July 9th, 2023 (TBC)

[on-site] Q&A session #3

July 17th, 2023

[remote] Update of the Rules

July 30th, 2023

[on-site] Video Delivery

July 30th, 2023

[on-site] Final Report Delivery

July 30th, 2023

[on-site] RF Form Delivery

~August 2023 (TBC)

[remote] 2nd Test Drives (Navigation & Maintenance)

August 6th, 2023

[remote] Video Delivery

August 13th, 2023 (TBC)

[on-site] Q&A session #4

August 21st, 2023

[remote] Qualification B & Environment Update Delivery

August 25th, 2023 (TBC)

[on-site] Update Report #3 (incl. details about Mars yard)

September 3rd, 2023

[remote] Final Report Delivery & Autonomous software delivery

September 8th, 2023 (TBC)

[on-site] Science Planning Report

September 10th, 2023 (TBC)

[on-site] Q&A Session #5 (pre-ERC briefing)

September 13–15, 2023

[remote] Remote finals

September 15–17, 2023

[on-site] On-site finals

September 17th, 2023

[both] Closing ceremony

Jury board

Marcin Wygachiewicz

Head of the Jury board

Marcin has been working at SENER Poland since 2015. Previously, he worked as a Design Engineer for one of the leading manufacturers of turbine components for the Oil & Gas and aviation industry. Then he worked as YGT in the Mechanisms Section of the European Space Agency in ESTEC, Netherlands. At SENER Poland, he is responsible, among others, for developing deployment mechanisms, hold-down and release mechanisms (ATHENA, PROBA-3, SAOCOM), and the clamping mechanism (e.Deorbit). One of the founders and former Chairman of the Board of the Polish Space Professionals Association – PSPA (2016–2022). Chairman of the PSPA's Audit Committee since 2022.

Krzysztof Walas

Head of ERC remote

Assistant professor at the Institute of Robotics and Machine Intelligence (IRIM), Division of Control, Robotics and Electrical Engineering, Poznan University of Technology. He obtained a doctorate in technical sciences in 2012 in the discipline of Automatics and Robotics, specialization in Robotics. His scientific interests are walking robots and the perception of the robots' environment that allows them to interact with the environment based on the laws of physics – recognizing materials and modeling their properties. His internship took place at the University of Birmingham, UK.

Anna Łosiak

Main judge of the science task

Ania is a planetary geologist working at the Polish Academy of Sciences in Wroclaw (currently at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston and previously at the University of Exter). She focuses on studying impact craters and surficial processes on Mars. She is also involved in various outreach activities and Mars analog missions. She studied geomorphology and sedimentology at the University of Warsaw, geology and meteoritics at the Michigan State University, and finally, she obtained Ph.D. at the University of Vienna. She received multiple different grants, including Fulbright Graduate Student Award and recently a Fulbright Senior Award, two grants from National Science Center, Poland, a grant from The Foundation for Polish Science, and Marie Sklodowska Curie Individual Fellowship. She is actively popularising planetary sciences in Poland – on TV, radio, and multiple youtube channels, during Pyrkon and many other events. And most importantly, Ania has been a main Science Judge and a proud designer of Marsyards for the European Rover Challenge since 2019.

Robert Lubański

Marsyard coordinator

Since 2016, the president of Mars Society Poland, with which he has been associated with since 2007. He supports the development of robotics among Polish students, among others, by co-organizing their trips to the University Rover Challenge and coordinating the project to popularize the idea of ​​building Martian robots at Polish technical universities. From the very beginning, he was involved in the organization of the European Rover Challenge in Poland.

Szymon Dzwończyk

I'm a cofounder of Leo Rover. I came a full circle from being a coordinator of Project Scorpio team (Wrocław University of Technology) who won the first ERC and didn't win twice in URC, then being a judge and a commenter in two ERCs, running a company in mobile robotics and ended up coming back as a partner of the competition. I've been on both sides of the Challenge and can honestly say: it's great to be back.