BattleBots – RoboJackets

RoboJacket’s teams Anxietii, Chonkiv, and Tsunamii compete at the 2024 NHRL April tournament.

Everyone has seen the hit T.V. show BattleBots, which pits two robots against each other in a gladiator style arena. However, many people don’t know the process behind building one. RoboJackets’ Battlebots team strives to build competitive robots which are strong enough to deal and take damage in battle while also instilling engineering knowledge into its members. The task is simple: build a robot to fight one-on-one with another robot of the same weight class. To accomplish this task, we manufacture most parts in shop and heavily focus on the mechanical components of the robot alongside the internal electrical components and controls. We are constantly pursuing improvement of our line up to make them more robust and dangerous than ever before.

Currently, two teams are designing hobbyweight (12lb) robots and one team a featherweight (30lb) robot equipped with destructive weapons, durable chassis, and creative designs to compete in national competitions and championships. Simultaneously, students are preparing their two featherweight and one hobbyweight robots for the 2025 NHRL World Championships in December. To improve our modeling and manufacturing capabilities, a research division focuses on testing novel ideas for robot controls, electrical schemas, and material composites. The 3-lb program prepares students to compete on larger featherweight robot teams by providing BattleBot design experience while teaching fundamental design and analysis principles.

The Competitions

National Havoc Robot League (NHRL)
NHRL attracts teams worldwide to compete in 30lb, 12lb, and 3lb combat robotics divisions in Norwalk, Connecticut. Each year, they host several competitions to qualify for the year’s World Championships. In 2025, two of our 30lb teams and one of our 12lb teams won the event and qualified for the World Championship. Additionally, our 12lb and 30lb teams this year are expected to compete in 2-3 competitions during the 2026 year to qualify for the 2026 World Championships.

RoboJackets Jacket Racket
RoboJackets is hosting a 3lb weight class competition on October 25, 2025. Teams from all over the nation will be invited to compete in this event at Georgia Tech. Sign up here.

Georgia Spring Smash
The Georgia Spring Smash is a small competition in Athens, Georgia. Our 3lb program, consisting of 6 robots attended this exciting and challenging robot combat event. Our 3lb program this upcoming year will compete in a similar tournament.