[QCWA] winners of the autonomous vehicle 2007 Urban Challenge are announced

[Richard Rucker]

You may recall this:

> From: Richard Rucker <rrucker at mac.com>
> Date: September 27, 2007 5:08:06 AM EDT
> Subject: expected improvements in global navigation for civilians
>
> The benefits of and the challenges to improving Global Navigation  
> Satellite Systems (GNSS  to support civilian applications is  
> summarized here:
>
> http://www.gpsworld.com/gpsworld/content/printContentPopup.jsp? 
> id=460524
>
> Included in this list are two existing GNSS systems:
>   GPS (U.S.)
>   GLONASS (Russia)
>
> and two on their way, assuming funding continues and technical  
> objecitves are met:
>   Galileo (European Community)
>   Compass (China)
>
> The challenge of building vehicles that can navigate and drive  
> themselves is discussed in the context of the Grand Challenges run  
> in 2004 and 2005 where autonomous vehicles operated over desert  
> terrain:
>
> 2004: all vehicles failed within the first few miles
> 2005: only a few vehicles completed the course
>
> and an Urban Challenge planned for late 2007
>   "a 16 mile course in an urban setting complete with traffic"

Here's a link to the first report I've seen on the results of the  
Urban Challenge for 2007:

http://www.gpsworld.com/gpsworld/content/printContentPopup.jsp?id=470103

Some highlights:
=============
2007 Urban Challenge was conducted on Saturday, 3 Nov, in Victorville CA
Of the 35 teams vying for $3.5M in prize money, 10 were winnowed out  
before the start.

Points were deducted of a vehicle failed to:
      Stop completely at stop signs and for pedestrians
      Yield the right-of-way to other vehicles
      Obey all speed limits
      Not remain separated from other objects and vehicles
      Stop and ponder too long about what to do next
      Stay the course

0730: Race started in 40 degree temp. First vehicle out of the gate  
was Oden from VA Tech, Blacksburg.

0913: CarOLO from Braunschweig U. ran off the course and got stuck in  
sand

0952: All vehicles were put in Pause mode by DARPA Control because  
two vehicles ended up almost head-on and inches from each other

1000: Three vehicles were retired because each elected to pause and  
not resume the race quickly enough

1010: MIT's Land Rover, "79", loaded with obstacle sensors, ran into  
difficulties when dust kicked up by other vehicles on the off-road  
section blinded its sensors.

1018: Victor Tango from VA Tech was first to arrive back at the start  
line to begin Phase 2.

1024: CarOLO and 79 stopped nose-to-nose and each refused to yield  
the right-of-way.

1043: Only seven vehicles remained on the course after DARPA paused  
all vehicles to allow the nose-to-nose vehicles to be manually driven  
away and to remove another that had rammed a building (mockup).  The  
two nose-to-nose vehicles ended up the same way a short while later  
and were retired.

1145: Victor Tango was the first to finish Phase 2. "Boss" from  
Carnegie-Mellon successfully completed the parking test in a parking  
lot, though "it would have run over about 10 other cars doing that in  
a normal lot."

1151: Victor Tango was the first to return to the start line to begin  
Phase 3. There the team was given 5 minutes to wipe dust off its  
sensors, etc, before rolling again.

1230: First collision occurred when one vehicle was passing another,  
and the other vehicle pulled out into the passing vehicle's path.  
DARPA paused all vehicles, then restarted them 12 minutes later, and  
allowed the two colliding vehicles to rejoin the race.

1344: "Junior," Stanford U's entry was the first to cross the finish  
line. Boss from Carnegie-Mellon crossed a minute later. Total scores,  
not just finish time, would determine the winners.

1351: Oden from VA Tech crossed the finish line. "Everyone assumed  
that their other entry, Victor Tango, would cross first, but that did  
not happen."

The winners were announced on Sunday:
  1st:   Carnegie-Mellon's "Boss" - $2M prize
  2nd: Stanford's "Junior" - $1M prize
  3rd:  VA Tech's "Victor Tango" - $0.5M prize