Robocar
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Roborace is still pursuing its driverless race-car dream
Clearly, Roborace doesn't believe in bad luck. Last week, on Friday the 13th, the company chose to run its self-driving Robocar in front of a feverish crowd at England's Goodwood Festival of Speed. It was only the second time the team had demonstrated its futuristic vehicle publicly, following an unassisted lap in Paris roughly 13 months ago. There was no room for error. The absence of a human cockpit gives the car an unusually low profile. Its delicate curves were drafted by Daniel Simon, a concept-vehicle designer who has contributed to science-fiction blockbusters including Tron: Legacy, Prometheus and Oblivion. The robot racer's shape resembles a Formula 1 car, the Batmobile and a heat-seeking missile mashed together. The machine moved slowly, though, up the famous hill-climb course. Well, slowly compared with the other vehicles that had tackled the Goodwood track that day. Roborace had capped the car at 125 KMH (roughly 78 MPH) to ensure it completed the route safely. In the world of motorsport, that's pretty slow. The robot's racing line, too, was conservative. It stuck to the center of the road, leaving plenty of tarmac on either side as it both entered and exited each corner. Ayrton Senna da Silva, it was not. Still, the drive was a milestone for the British startup. Thousands hugged the track-side hay bales and watched as the car zipped toward the finish line. In a little under two minutes, it had completed the course and returned to its dormant state. The Roborace team could breathe a sigh of relief.
How Roborace is building driverless race cars
The lights dimmed and a hush fell over the crowd. The last hour had been building to this. Denis Sverdlov, CEO of Roborace, and Daniel Simon, chief design officer, took a step back as some knee-high panels were taken away and a silky cloth was lifted, revealing a mechanical monster underneath. More than a year after the project's announcement, the pair had finally revealed their first production-grade Robocar: a fully electric, driverless race car built from the ground up for a new breed of motorsport. One where the heroes are programmers, concocting the smartest and most competitive AI drivers.
Roborace unwraps its driverless electric car
The team behind Roborace has taken a big step toward introducing a fully driverless racing competition. At a press conference in Barcelona, chief executive Denis Sverdlov and chief designer Daniel Simon revealed the final design for its track-ready "Robocar." We've seen images of the vehicle before, but they were merely renders; a hint of what the company was working on. The unveiling of a real car, all curves and carbon fiber, is our best evidence yet that the futuristic motorsport will actually happen.
ZMP RoboCar ditches driver, creates own map (video)
How does a self-driving car know where it's going? By using a map, of course -- preferably a self-generated one. In yet another video exemplifying breakneck golf-cart-like speeds, the ZMP RoboCar shows us that it doesn't need a driver to know where it's going. At least, not the second time it goes there. After a few minutes with a fleshy friend behind the wheel, the autonomous automobile can safely steer itself around curves, roundabouts, and fountains. It may not be able to keep pace with Google's tire-squealing, automated Prius, but at least we know it can see where it's going.
ZMP RoboCar MEV seats only one but can drive even when alone (video)
Watch the video below and you'll see that this thing is clearly not going to win any land speed records, and with nary a door it's hardly all-weather compliant. But, the RoboCar MEV from ZMP is more of a research vehicle, a self-driving car that's built on an electric microcar platform. It uses GPS and a plethora of front and rear sensors to know where it's going, an evolution of the Linux-powered 1/10 scale model we saw back in 2009. Just, you know, bigger. And pricier. Way pricier. Yes, you can buy one, but you're looking at about $35,000 for the simplest version, the Type A, which only has automatic speed control. The Type B has steering control as well and costs about $59,000, while Type C is a whopping $84,000 and adds automatic braking control along with a full suite of imaging and intertial sensors. Order now for delivery in about two months -- in Japan, naturally.
ZMP RoboCar G soon to be available to researchers
You may not be able to buy Honda's sci-fi-styled 3R-C electric three-wheeler anytime soon, but it looks like you will be able to get behind the wheel of ZMP's new RoboCar G this year -- if you're a researcher interested in working on next-generation vehicles, that is. According to the company, the vehicle will be available on a limited basis starting in November, and it will be able to be equipped with a whole range of sensors that will either help the driver, or let it be operated as a computer-controlled "robot vehicle." No indication of a price, or any word of availability to the general public -- although you may just be able to talk your into getting one for yourself if you can foot the bill. Exceedingly brief video after the break.
ZMP's RoboCar is Linux-based, cute as hell
It looks like ZMP, a Tokyo-based robotics company that's graced the (figurative) pages of Engadget from time to time, has just introduced a Linux-based RoboCar for testing autonomous auto technologies. Which only makes sense, we suppose -- better to test all of those autonomous algorithms you've been crankin' out on a six pound model before moving up to a three thousand pound family sedan (if a lot less fun). This guy is 17-inches long and packs an AMD Geode LX800 processor, WiFi 802.11b/g/n, stereo CCD cameras, eight IR sensors, three accelerometers, a gyroscope, and a laser range finder under the hood. Prices start at $7,000, but you have to jump on this -- according to Linux Devices, only two hundred units will be sold this year. Peep the video after the break.[Via Linux Devices]
Mike the emotional robot, transforming RoboCar on display in Brazil
By way of Tech Digest, we caught wind of that angry-looking fellow you see pictured above on the left. Why is he so pissed? We wish we could tell you: all that's known about "Mike the emotional robot" created by computer science and electrical engineering students at Brazil's FEI Mauá college is that its LCD "face" changes color based on mood (red for anger, green for happy, and orange for sad), though how those moods are determined is beyond us or the press release announcing Mike's public unveiling. We should know more sometime after today, though, as this is the start of the Robótica - International Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Fair in São Paulo, where Mike will be displayed alongside other bots and techie attractions like robot sumo and RoboCup-style tournaments, the old Hug T-Shirt we've seen in several iterations, and most promising of all, RoboCar the life-size Transformer (pictured right). If any of our Brazilian readers are brave enough to risk Mike going all Itchy and Scratchyland on you and your fellow attendees, we'd love for you to send in some pics and details (via our Tips form) from what sounds like a dangerous-but-fun gathering.[Via Tech Digest]
VW's Golf GTi "53 plus 1" is fully autonomous
You might think Volkswagen, of all car companies, would argue the best part about driving is the bit where you're driving (i.e. "fahrvergnugen"), and that drivers are, you know, wanted. Not so any longer, friends; looks like the higher ups got the Stanley bug and pimped their ride -- though not in any normal sense of the vernacular. They've begun showing off a new cloak and dagger prototype vehicle dubbed the VW Golf GTi "53 plus 1" (you're allowed not to catch the Herbie reference), which apparently uses a rig of laser sensors, GPS, and a radar net to drive itself at speeds of up to 150mph. We'll give you a moment to let that sink in. Now, why they had all this technology under wraps while Stanford was busting ass overhauling one of VW's own Touaregs for the DARPA Grand Challenge is beyond us, but unlike those "driving pleasure" types, you can give us a safe (clean burning) robo-car any day of the week. Except Sunday, that's drivin' day.[Via GoRobotics]
