No Driver No RC!

Nicknamed
'Alice', a Ford
E-350 van
converted
into a 'No
Driver No
Remote
Control'
Robot Car by
students and
faculty team
of Caltech
(Pasadena, CA)






Tomorrow in Mojave desert 23 teams will participate in the 2005 DARPA
Grand Challenge, a desert race for robot cars (no driver no remote
control) with a $2 million prize sponsored by the Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the research arm of the U.S
Department of Defense.

The DARPA Grand Challenge race is intended to hasten the research and
development of autonomous ground vehicles that could ultimately be used
to ferry supplies to the front lines or transport wounded soldiers. The
technology is also likely to have ramifications for future automobile
technology, especially for helping disabled drivers and it will likely have an
impact on future autonomous space exploration as well.

The race is open to individuals and organizations, and has a $2 million first
prize. This year's desert racecourse will be similar to last year's (which
was a 142-mile race from L.A. to Las Vegas through desert roads ), but
participants won't know the exact route until two hours before the race.
To win the race the course needs to be completed in 10 hours.

To know more and to keep track, visit DARPA site.