RoboCup 2008

The 12th annual RoboCup International Symposium was held during July 15–18, 2008 in conjunction with RoboCup 2008 Competitions and Demonstrations. The symposium represents the core meeting for the presentation and discussion of sci- tific contributions in diverse areas related to the main threads within RoboCupSoccer, RoboCupRescue, RoboCup@Home and RoboCupJunior. Its scope encompassed, but was not restricted to, research and education activities within the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics. A fundamental aspect of RoboCup is promoting science and technology among young students and researchers, in addition to providing a forum for discussion and excitement about Robotics with practitioners from all over the world. Since its first edition in 1997 in Nagoya, the RoboCup Competitions and Symposium have attracted an increasing number of researchers and students from all the world and today it is a major event in robotics worldwide. Due to its interdisciplinary nature and theexploration of various and intimate c- nections of theory and practice across a wide spectrum of different fields, the sym- sium offered an excellent opportunity to introduce new techniques to various scientific disciplines. The experimental, interactive and benchmark character of the RoboCup initiative created the opportunity to present, learn and evaluate novel ideas and - proaches with significant potential. If promising, they are then rapidly adopted and field-tested by a large (and still strongly growing) community.

This book includes the proceedings of the 12th RoboCup International Symposium, held in Suzhou, China, on July 15-18, 2008 in conjunction with Soccer, Rescue, @Home and Junior competitions and demonstrations. Papers presented at the symposium focussed on diverse areas related to the main RoboCup threads and to Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in general.

The 36 revised full papers and 20 revised poster papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 91 submissions. The contributions provide a valuable source of references and inspiration for R&D professionals interested in robotics and artificial intelligence.