Here we answer various questions regarding the 3D simulator and the UTAustinVilla code base.

Is there something missing? Something you want to add? Email us, and we'll add it.

• Penalty Kick Shootouts: A penalty kick shootout occurs when two teams are tied after both regulation and overtime periods when a tie must be broken. Each time gets 5 attempts to score with a lone shooter against the other team's goalie. At the start of an attempt the ball is placed at the center of the field and the shooter has 45 seconds to score. The goalie for the defending team trying to stop the shooter is not allowed to leave the penalty box (the shooter is allowed to enter the penalty box). After the 5 scoring attempts by each team the team with the most goals wins. If the teams have the same number of goals after 5 attempts each then they continue alternating scoring attempts until one team scores and the other doesn't.
  • How do I create a penalty kick shooter? You can edit the methods in the PKShooterBehavior class in pkbehaviors.cc. In order to start a penalty kick shooter run the start_pkshooter.sh script.
  • How do I create a penalty kick goalie? You can edit the methods in the PKGoalieBehavior class in pkbehaviors.cc. You may find the isOutsidePenaltyBox() method useful which lets you know whether a location is inside the penalty box. In order to start a penalty kick goalie run the start_pkgoalie.sh script.
• I want to run repeated trials of an agent doing something and then measure X. Is there an automated way to do this? We have created agents for doing this sort of thing for reinforcement learning.
  • Look in the optimization directory. Here you will find scripting files for what we call optimization agents. Optimization agents perform some behavior (potentially determined by an input file) and then write out some output to a file. Check the README file for some pointers as to what is going on here.
  • Run the optimization/run-opt.sh script. This will by default run an agent that measures how far it can walk forward in 15 seconds.
    Example usage: run-opt.sh /tmp/out.txt
  • Checkout optimizationbehaviors.cc. Here you will find the behavior classes for the optimization agents. Methods for the classes are beam() to initialize where an agent starts, selectSkill() to control an agent's behavior, and updateFitness() to monitor and write out data.
• How can I play two teams against each other and automatically record the score from the game? We have a script for doing this which plays a single half between your team and an opponent team and then writes out the score.
  • Look in the stats directory. Here you will find scripting files for playing your team against an opponent team for a half. Check the README file for some pointers as to what is going on here.
  • Run the stats/run-stats.sh script. This will run your agent against an opponent agent, with your agent either starting on the left or right side of the field, and then write output to the given output file.
    Example usage: run-stats.sh /tmp/out.txt ~/opponent_dir left
  • Checkout recordstatsbehavior.cc. Here you can change the updateFitness() method in the RecordStatsBehavior class to change what data is being recorded and written out.
• Can I get an agent's ground truth position? Yes, you can use the worldModel->getMyPositionGroundTruth() method which gets an agent's ground truth position from the server. Note that this functionality will NOT be turned on during the class tournament so don't use this function in your final agent submission or you will be sorry.
• Are there any example agents I can test my agent against? Yes, you can play against the binaries from RoboCup 2010 Singapore located at http://robocup.martenvdsanden.net/singapore10/binaries/. Some of these binaries will not work on UTCS or may require some work arounds (hacks) to get them running.
• Is there a way to move the ball or players around and also change the current game state? You can use the Coach/Trainer command parser documented here. Examples of its usage can be found in move-ball.pl, stats/kickoff.pl, and optimization/beamball-and-kickoff.pl.