ROS Summer School in Aachen, 2026

The event is being organised by Prof. Dr Stephan Kallweit. “It’s all about perception, navigation and movement,” he explains. During the two-week summer school, students learn how to programme the robots; in the final, the robots must complete an obstacle course. The ‘TurtleBots’ are technically similar to robot vacuum cleaners; they are equipped with cameras, laser scanners and a small computer. On the walls of the playing area are printed images depicting a bath, a bed or even a fridge. The robots must detect these objects, assign them to the appropriate room type and navigate their way through the flat.

The use of AI tools is nothing new in robotics, particularly when it comes to processing visual information. “This year, we’ve used voice control for the first time,” says Stephan Kallweit, “the teams give the robots voice commands via a microphone.” These commands are processed via an AI language model, and on this basis the robots develop the appropriate strategy – for example, to find the kitchen. “We want to show students how easy it is to use robotics with AI-supported methods,” he adds. Particularly when used in industrial settings, it is important that the robots function reliably and safely – “we can’t afford to have them ‘hallucinating’ there,” says the professor.