DARPA Grand Challenge Updates 156
Red Team writes "Today is the day. The official race route for the DARPA Grand Challenge was released to the first five teams at 4:00AM PST this morning. Our race planners are pouring over the race route getting ready for the launch. H1ghlander will start first at sunrise, around 6:15AM PST, followed by Stanford and then Sandstorm. For real-time updates on the race, you can track the Red Team race-day blog or catch the webcast on the official Grand Challenge page." Update: 10/08 20:57 GMT by Z : USSJoin writes "Stanford Racing, home of Stanley, has just finished the 131.2 mile DARPA Grand Challenge course. Considering that the CalTech Vehicle (Alice) jumped off the track toward onlookers only 8.3 miles in, this demolition derby-meets-AI demo has certainly been exciting."
Re:Popular Science has most recent updates (Score:3, Interesting)
We need a Google Maps Hacker (Score:4, Interesting)
Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Sensors sensors sensors (Score:3, Interesting)
A couple of teams are using stereo cameras to find there way around but the vast majority are using SICK scanning laser range finders. They show you where things are over short distances which enables you to avoid obstacles at low speeds. Red Team are also using radar to be able to detect obstacles at greater distances to enable higher speeds. Unfortunately, it doesn't pick up everything. However data fusing everything together (GPS, INS, Radar, Lidar + others) allows you to move at modist speeds using current tech. Luck is always useful but technology is what is being used today.
TGDaily.com also has a blog up (Score:5, Interesting)
With pictures
Most interesting one so far is when Caltech's Alice charged through a k-rail, knocking it over and then started up a berm towards reporters. It was E-Stopped just a few feet away from hitting the media.
Luck has nothing to do with it ! (Score:3, Interesting)
any of the contestants here? (Score:5, Interesting)
I am not at all surprised of this, since the red team is sponsored by the major military contractors and we all know how they basicaly control military procurement.
But I was wondering if similar shenanigans were happening this time around. Any of the competitors care to comment?
Google Earth (Score:1, Interesting)
3537'8.83"N
11522'39.26"W
There's a small poor resolution band going across one section. The rest isn't bad though
Re:any of the contestants here? (Score:3, Interesting)
Soldiers: Yay!; Truckers: Boo! (Score:4, Interesting)
Now that's some amazing progress.
This is great news for the soldiers soon to be removed the line of fire; "ominous" news for the millions of truckers and taxi drivers (in the US alone) who'll be quickly replaced over the next decade. [blogspot.com]
Re:any of the contestants here? (Score:5, Interesting)
Funding is more of an issue. Teams were supposed to have no Government funding whatsoever, either direct or indirect. Yet MITRE had a team, and they're a quasi-governmental agency. [nara.gov] CMU has received DARPA robotics contracts for years, as has Stanford. Red Whittaker of the CMU team is still the principal investigator on a NASA grant (#NAG5-12890) until February 2006. Stanford used software developed under DoD contract, although anyone can download it and they asked DARPA for permission. It's more of a revolving-door issue than direct diversion of Government funds.
But the real incentive for the big university teams was fear. If Joe's Auto Parts fielded a better robot than some university getting $20 million a year in robotics funding from DARPA, DARPA might well pull the plug on the school. CMU faced that prospect; originally, they weren't going to enter the Grand Challenge at all. The whole Grand Challenge was created because of unhappiness at DARPA with the rate of progress in mobile robotics. DARPA has been pouring robotics money into CMU and Stanford for thirty years, without getting much back. The head of DARPA, Dr. Tony Tether, decided that it was time to do something about that. It worked.