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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowOrganizers for the Indy Autonomous Challenge on Wednesday announced that 37 universities around the world have signed up for the event, which is scheduled to take place on October 23, 2021, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Announced in November, the high-speed autonomous vehicle race will cap a two-year competition for $1.5 million in prize money.
The event will be a five-round competition among universities to create software that enables self-driving Indy Lights race cars to compete in a head-to-head race on the IMS track.
In addition to the $1 million top prize, the second-place finisher will receive $250,000 and the third-place car will get $50,000.
The event is being conducted by IMS and Energy Systems Network, with help from race car manufacturer Dallara Automobili and the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research.
The 37 universities have formed 31 teams to enter the first-of-its-kind challenge.
“This is an extraordinary challenge, calling on the best and brightest of our university students and faculty worldwide to engineer software that will have a significant impact on the future of all classes of transportation,” said Paul Mitchell, president and CEO of Energy Systems Network, in written remarks. “The diversity of the teams, representing 10 countries on four continents, shows the brilliance and ambition of our young people around the world.”
The primary goal of the event is to advance technology that can speed the commercialization of fully autonomous vehicles and deployments of advanced driver-assistance systems.
The entrants represent 15 international and 22 U.S. universities:
International universities
– Austria: Graz University of Technology;
– Canada: University of Waterloo;
– Germany: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Technical University of Munich;
– India: Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham;
– Israel: Ariel University;
– Italy: University of Pisa, University of Modena, Politecnico di Milano;
– Poland: Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw University of Technology;
– South Korea: Kookmin University, Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology;
– Switzerland: Eth Zurich.
U.S. universities
– Alabama: Auburn University, University of Alabama;
– California: University of California Berkeley, California Polytechnic State University;
– Colorado: Colorado State University;
– Florida: Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, University of Florida;
– Georgia: Kennesaw State University;
– Hawaii: University of Hawaii;
– Indiana: IUPUI, Purdue University;
– Massachusetts: Massachusetts Institute of Technology;
– Michigan: Michigan State University, Western Michigan University, University of Michigan-Dearborn;
– New York: Rochester Institute of Technology, U.S. Military Academy at West Point;
– North Carolina: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill;
– Pennsylvania: University of Pittsburgh;
– Texas: Texas A&M University;
– Virginia: University of Virginia;
– Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Teams will present a white paper in the first round. In the second round, teams must demonstrate vehicular automation by sharing a short video of an existing vehicle or by participating in Purdue University’s self-driving go-kart competition at IMS.
The third round will consist of a simulated race featuring $150,000 in prize money. Teams will test their actual vehicles at IMS in the fourth round.
“Testing technology for next-generation vehicles is in our DNA, so the Indy Autonomous Challenge showcases our continued presence as a catalyst and proving ground for motorsport and transportation innovation,” said IMS President Doug Boles in written remarks. “We are proud to provide the racing world’s biggest stage for the first head-to-head autonomous race in history.”
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