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08 October 2005
Stanford Racing and Volkswagen First to Finish DARPA Grand Challange
Stanford and Volkswagen's Touareg, nicknamed "Stanley", Finishes 132 mile course in just under 7 hours
What a difference a year makes! In 2004, DARPA held its first-ever DARPA Grand Challenge, wherein competitors had to build autonomous vehicles capable of successfully navigating DARPA'S desert course. None succeeded; in fact, most barely even made it past the starting line.
This year, most of the finalists have been able to beat the best distance travelled in last year's Grand Challenge, and at the time of this writing, two have already finished the course. The first to finish is none other than Stanley, the Touareg R5 TDI run by Stanford and Volkswagen.
Not since Herbie has a Volkswagen driven by itself, but unlike the aircooled moviestar, Stanley required no special effects to finish the race without a driver. The Volkswagen Toaureg named Stanley has served as a veritable poster boy and media darling for the DARPA Grand Challence '05, appearing in news reports and magazine articles, and Stanley's flawless finish proves that the reputation is well-deserved.
Update:
Initially, there was some confusion as to whether Stanly, did in fact win the Grand Challange because, despite being first through the finish line, the Grand Challenge is a timed race with staggared starts. Once all the vehicles were either disabled or had crossed the finish line, DARPA tallied up the scores, deducting seconds for each pause the vehicles had during the race, and confirmed that Stanly is the winner, giving the Stanford team the $2 million prize. To be exact, Stanley covered the course in exactly 6 hours, 53 minutes, and 58 seconds.
Five autonomous vehicles in total finished the course. Second and third place went to Carnegie Mellon's two entries, "Sandstorm" (7:04:50) and "Highlander" (7:14:00). Fourth was the Gray Team's "KAT-5" (7:30:16). Finally, Oshkosh Truck's huge 16-ton truck, "TerraMax" completed the course, but failed to beat the required 10-hour time.
For more information on Stanley, visit http://www.stanfordracing.org
For more coverage on the DARPA Grand Challenge, visit Tom's Hardware Guide's coverage
by: Alfonso Surroca
Stanford Racing and Volkswagen First to Finish DARPA Grand Challange
Stanford and Volkswagen's Touareg, nicknamed "Stanley", Finishes 132 mile course in just under 7 hours
What a difference a year makes! In 2004, DARPA held its first-ever DARPA Grand Challenge, wherein competitors had to build autonomous vehicles capable of successfully navigating DARPA'S desert course. None succeeded; in fact, most barely even made it past the starting line.
This year, most of the finalists have been able to beat the best distance travelled in last year's Grand Challenge, and at the time of this writing, two have already finished the course. The first to finish is none other than Stanley, the Touareg R5 TDI run by Stanford and Volkswagen.
Not since Herbie has a Volkswagen driven by itself, but unlike the aircooled moviestar, Stanley required no special effects to finish the race without a driver. The Volkswagen Toaureg named Stanley has served as a veritable poster boy and media darling for the DARPA Grand Challence '05, appearing in news reports and magazine articles, and Stanley's flawless finish proves that the reputation is well-deserved.
Update:
Initially, there was some confusion as to whether Stanly, did in fact win the Grand Challange because, despite being first through the finish line, the Grand Challenge is a timed race with staggared starts. Once all the vehicles were either disabled or had crossed the finish line, DARPA tallied up the scores, deducting seconds for each pause the vehicles had during the race, and confirmed that Stanly is the winner, giving the Stanford team the $2 million prize. To be exact, Stanley covered the course in exactly 6 hours, 53 minutes, and 58 seconds.
Five autonomous vehicles in total finished the course. Second and third place went to Carnegie Mellon's two entries, "Sandstorm" (7:04:50) and "Highlander" (7:14:00). Fourth was the Gray Team's "KAT-5" (7:30:16). Finally, Oshkosh Truck's huge 16-ton truck, "TerraMax" completed the course, but failed to beat the required 10-hour time.
For more information on Stanley, visit http://www.stanfordracing.org
For more coverage on the DARPA Grand Challenge, visit Tom's Hardware Guide's coverage
by: Alfonso Surroca
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arty: :clap:
