Forceps-Manipulation-Challenge

 

IROS 2026 Forceps-Based Fine Manipulation (FFM) Challenge

 

IROS 2026 Competition

The Forceps-Based Fine Manipulation (FFM) Challenge aims to advance robotic manipulation of very small objects, a capability that remains challenging for robotic systems while being essential in applications such as precision manufacturing, scientific experimentation, electronics assembly, and surgical robotics.
Inspired by surgical robotic manipulation, the competition promotes the use of accessible forceps-based robotic systems, such as EndoWrist instruments integrated with robotic arms, while extending the scope beyond medical applications. These approaches can help reduce barriers to entry compared to established platforms such as the da Vinci Research Kit (dVRK), enabling broader participation and encouraging innovation across the robotics community.
The competition focuses on three key research areas: 

• Hardware Development
• Teleoperation
• Autonomous Control

 

Registration

Team Registration

Teams provide and operate their own robotic systems.   👉 Register as a Team   https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=JsKqeAMvTUuQN7RtVsVSEAr_4z6hFmdLmqnnKCyMP9pUQk9ORjJTMVZSNExPU0tBRzhPN1FNNVU1Mi4u  

Individual Registration

Individual participants evaluate and compare participating robot systems through teleoperation.   👉 Register as an Individual Participant   https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=JsKqeAMvTUuQN7RtVsVSEAr_4z6hFmdLmqnnKCyMP9pUMjIxT0UxNzdQME4zNkhRTFNVTDZZMVIzQS4u  

Participation Capacity

• Maximum 12 robot teams
• Maximum 60 individual participants   Participation is accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.

 

Prizes

Prizes will be awarded to recognize outstanding performance in both the team and individual competitions.  

Team Awards

🥇 1st Place Team Certificate, $100 Amazon Gift Card  

Special Awards

🏆 Best Autonomous System Award Certificate

🏆 People’s Choice Best Design Award Certificate, $200 Amazon Gift Card

Individual Awards

🥇 Top Individual Participant Certificate, $200 Amazon Gift Card

🥈 Runner-Up Individual Participant Certificate, $100 Amazon Gift Card

 

Competition Tasks

Task 1: Needle Threading

 

Three differently colored plastic sewing needles are inserted into randomly selected locations within an L-bracket needle holder. The orientations of the needle eyes differ by 90° in a randomized arrangement.   The order of needle threading and the insertion directions are randomly selected before each trial.

Objective

Guide a thread through all three needle eyes according to:

1. The specified order
2. The specified insertion directions

Participants may request a new randomized arrangement before starting a trial.

 

Task 2: Screw Pick-and-Place

 

Three M2 screws are placed inside a silicone dish integrated into a silicone pad fixture.   The silicone pad contains three insertion holes designed for one screw placement each.  

Objective

Pick up each screw individually and insert it thread-first into one of the holes. A screw is considered successfully inserted when:

• the screw head rests on top of the silicone surface, or
• the screw passes completely through the hole.

 

Robot Platform Eligibility

The competition is intentionally platform-agnostic. Eligible systems include:

• Single-arm robots
• Dual-arm robots
• Multi-finger robotic hands
• Forceps-based robotic systems
• Surgical robotic research platforms
• Custom-built robotic manipulators

No remote center of motion (RCM) constraint is required. Teams may place the competition scenarios anywhere within their robot workspace.

 

Competition Scenarios

The competition scenarios are based on the following components:

Commercial Components

• Fgruh 1260-piece M2 Hex Socket Head Screw Kit
• EcoFlex 00-20 FAST Silicone
• Silc Pig Silicone Pigments
• Lunarm Plastic Sewing Needles (70 mm)
• LEREATI 0.8 mm Waxed Thread

Custom Components

All custom components are manufactured using PLA on a Bambu Lab A1 Mini printer:  

• Silicone Pad Mold
• Silicone Pad Mount
• Needle Holder L-Bracket  
  Teams are encouraged to obtain identical components for testing and system validation prior to the competition.

Download

👉 https://github.com/MEDCVR/Forceps-Manipulation-Challenge/raw/refs/heads/main/IROS_FFM_Setup.zip

 

Scoring

Task 1

• Each correctly threaded needle eye is worth: 1 point
• A fully successful trial therefore yields: 3 points

Task 2 

• Each successfully inserted screw is worth: 1 point
• A fully successful trial therefore yields: 3 points

 

Team Competition 

Teams accumulate points across three competition phases:

Day 1: Team Teleoperation 

Robot systems are operated by members of the participating team.

Requirements 

• Safe system demonstration
• Minimum 2 hours teleoperation operation

Scoring Objectives 

• 10 successful Task 1 trials
• 10 successful Task 2 trials

Maximum Score: 60 points

Day 2: Independent Participant Evaluation

• Independent participants teleoperate competing robot systems (max. 6).
• Participants are assigned through a lottery process and will not operate systems from their own institutions.

Session Duration 

20 minutes per robot

Trial Structure 

• 6 Task 1 trials
• 6 Task 2 trials
• First trial serves as a warm-up and is not scored

Maximum Score 

• 30 points per participant
• Best 3 robot systems counted  

  Maximum Day 2 Score: 90 points

Day 3: Autonomous Operation 

• Teams may deploy autonomous control methods such as Imitation Learning.
• During official scoring, robot control computers may not access: Internet connections, local networks, external user inputs

Evaluation Window 

• 1 hour
• Unlimited attempts are allowed.
• The 5 best successful trials for both tasks are counted.

Maximum Score: 30 points

   

Individual Competition

Participants accumulate points through:  

Judging

Volunteer judges receive:

• 10 points per hour
• Maximum 30 points

Teleoperation Performance (Day 2)

Participants complete on max. 6 robot systems:

• Task 1 trials
• Task 2 trials

Only the three highest-scoring teleoperation sessions with different robot systems contribute to the final score (30 points each).

Maximum Individual Score: 120 points

 

Organizers

• Lueder A. Kahrs (University of Toronto)
• Peter Kazanzides (Johns Hopkins University)
• Loris Fichera (Worcester Polytechnic Institute)
• Adnan Munawar (Johns Hopkins University)
• Thomas Looi (The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto)
• Tamás Haidegger (Óbuda University; Queen’s University)
• Christos Bergeles (King’s College London)
• Michael Yip (University of California San Diego)
• Nirmal Pol (University of Toronto)
• Aban Merali (King’s College London)

 

Questions

Questions can be submitted through the official competition form:   https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=JsKqeAMvTUuQN7RtVsVSEAr_4z6hFmdLmqnnKCyMP9pUMUI0UzhRMlNKSTEyWEJYSDhWMkdBMFAyUC4u  

 

Related Competitions

The FFM Challenge builds upon concepts explored in recent robotic manipulation and surgical robotics competitions:  

• AI for Robotic Surgery, ICRA 2026
• International Challenge on Surgical Autonomy in Real-World Settings, Hamlyn Symposium 2026
• Dexterous Manipulation for Robotic Surgery, BioRob 2026  

 

References

• K. L. Schwaner et al., MOPS: A Modular and Open Platform for Surgical Robotics Research, ISMR 2021.
• M. Habeeb et al., Development of an Open Platform Adaptor to Integrate Da Vinci Si Instruments with Collaborative Robotic Systems, HSMR 2025.
• C. D’Ettorre et al., Accelerating Surgical Robotics Research: A Review of 10 Years with the da Vinci Research Kit, IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine, 2021.  

 

Sponsors and Partners

Coming soon.  

 

News

August 2026

Competition website updated with task descriptions, registration forms, and downloadable resources.