What is the DARPA Grand Challenge?

Driven by a Congressional mandate to convert one-third of the military vehicles to driverless computer-driven mode by 2015, the Department of Defense's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) authorized the Grand Challenge series of races. Many believe the future holds great promise for autonomous vehicles to perform missions that put our men and women in uniform at risk.  The race series is designed to foster private investment and to accelerate the solution to the autonomous driving challenge.

What is the Urban Challenge?

The Urban Challenge is the third in the series of Grand Challenge events.  The first 2 races in 2004 and 2005 featured vehicles that navigated a 132+-mile course through the Mojave Desert. Although none of the vehicles completed the course in the first Grand Challenge, 5 teams completed the course in 2005. Insight Racing placed 12th in that event.

North Carolina State University (NCSU) sponsored Insight Racing Team is one of the select few invited to participate in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Urban Challenge National Qualification Event in October.  The race posting $3.5 Million in prize money will pit driverless autonomous vehicles in an urban race to complete missions over 60 miles of city driving conditions.  The final race is scheduled to be conducted on November 3rd of this year. Insight Racing is the only team from the Carolina’s eligible to compete and they will be there with a sleek Lotus Elise.

What is an autonomous vehicle?

An autonomous vehicle is one that drives itself without human intervention or remote control. IThe Lone Wolf is an autonomous vehicle and is completely driven by computers within the vehicle and uses sensors to detect where it is and what is around it. It may also be thought of as a robotic vehicle.