If you were at the 2006 JavaOne Conference, you may recall seeing a strang
looking, silver, egg-shaped vehicle.
That was Tommy,
Team Jefferson's autonomous
vehicle created for the DARPA Grand
Challange - Powered by Java, of course. You can see Paul Perone's
(of Perone Robotics) presentation
on Tommy and the technology behind it.
Fast forward to 2007 & the DARPA Grand Challenge is now the Urban Challenge
-- featuring autonomous ground vehicles maneuvering in a mock city
environment, executing simulated military supply missions while merging
into moving traffic, navigating traffic circles, negotiating busy
intersections, and avoiding obstacles.
Comprised of
University of Virginia Engineering School students, alumni and faculty
and lead by U. Va. alumni Paul Perone, Team Jefferson is once again
preparing for the challenge.
With Tommy in retirement, the team has created Tommy Jr - a tricked out
robotic Scion xB, for the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge. In August,
DARPA announced that Tommy Jr is one of 36 teams advancing to the
semi-finals. The final, competitive event is scheduled to take place on
November 3, 2007,
in Victorville, California.
The reward?? DARPA is offering $2M for the fastest qualifying vehicle, and $1M and
$500,000 for second and third place.
Team Jefferson recently released a new video on
Tommy Jr. This video shows some footage of Tommy Jr
during his DARPA Urban Challenge site visit performing passing,
intersection handling, and U-turn maneuvers.
We'll hear more on Tommy Jr as the Challenge gets closer.