IEEE Robotics and Automation Society
IROS 2021
IEEE Robotics and Automation Society
The International IROS conference is a regular event that brings together experts from the robotics field. For the first time in IROS history, the event was held in Central Europe. Due to the pandemic, the client unfortunately decided in spring 2021 that the conference would take place entirely online. The biggest challenge was adapting the gCon platform to meet the client’s requirements. The conference thus enabled live meetings, discussions, forums, workshops and tutorials, competitions, exhibitions, sponsorship programs, virtual tours, and other online interactions.
Platform – As mentioned above, the platform was adapted based on the client’s requirements. For the workshops, we used the gCon conference platform and ZOOM. Unlike other conferences, almost every participant was an author or co-author of submissions. They had access to the platform one month before the event. They could upload their work in video format, which other participants could view prior to the event. Program – The five-day conference featured an exciting and diverse program. The first and fifth days were dedicated to workshops, tutorials, and forums. The remaining three days included technical sessions, plenary meetings, and keynote talks. Each author had a few minutes to present their submission, followed by discussions. The conference was opened and closed with ceremonies. The opening ceremony was streamed from a virtual studio in O2 Universum. The closing ceremony featured a presentation of Prague, accompanied by Bedřich Smetana’s Vltava. Competitions and Awards – Three competitions were held during the conference. The robotics competitions provided an ideal opportunity to learn from others, interact with teams, and enhance skills. Teams had to solve real-world challenges in a short timeframe. One example was the Navigation and Manipulation challenge for young students using Webots for robot simulation. During IROS 2021, 14 awards were presented in various categories, such as Best Paper & Best Student Paper Award, Best RoboCup Paper Award, or the Toshio Fukuda Young Professional Award. Workshops, Tutorials, and Forums – All parts of the program were live. Forty-eight workshops, each lasting two hours, were held on gCon or ZOOM and were full of participant interaction. Four tutorials provided participants with hands-on educational sessions and updates from the robotics field. Additionally, five two-hour forums were organized, including roundtable discussions and Q&A sessions. Exhibitors and Partners – Each exhibitor could choose and set up their virtual booth according to partnership packages, many showcasing a video about their company, uploaded brochures, and more. In total, there were 17 exhibitors and partners. Collecting leads online was easier than ever thanks to the live chat feature. CIIRC CTU Prague selected a 3D booth, which became the most visited, with the entire room resembling their official university space. Entertainment – The Czech Republic offers many landmarks, and Prague is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We wanted to make sure participants didn’t miss out. We prepared Prague Plaza, giving them an exciting opportunity to explore Prague and the Czech Republic at least virtually.
IROS 2021 was a great success, with a total of 2,167 participants. The largest representation came from the United States with 569 participants, followed by Japan with 270 participants and China with 200 participants. A total of 1,143 participants attended the workshops. This event provided participants with new insights from the world of robotics and allowed them to share ideas and experiences with one another.