The DARPA Urban Challenge & Team Autonomous Solutions
In 2007, DeVivo participated in the DARPA Urban Challenge as a part of Team Autonomous Solutions. The DARPA Urban Challenge was the third event in a series of Unmanned Ground Vehicle competitions sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) for the purpose of hastening the development of technology for autonomous ground vehicles. In the first two competitions, vehicles were required to navigate desert terrain. The 2007 event heightened the challenge by holding the race in an urban environment.
Early in 2007, Team Autonomous Solutions was one of 11 Teams teams awarded $1 Million contracts with DARPA to build
competition vehicles for the Urban Challenge. Team Autonomous Solutions completed all milestone events and competed in the final qualifying challenge held in October. During the final competition event, each Challenge vehicle was required to drive autonomously a total of 60 miles within 6 hours on city streets. The vehicles followed basic traffic rules, navigated busy intersections, merged into moving traffic and avoided obstacles - all without human intervention.
Team Autonomous Solutions was comprised of Autonomous Solutions, Inc. of Logan, Utah; Sarnoff Corporation of Princeton, New Jersey; and DeVivo Automated Systems Technology of Huntsville, Alabama.
The $2 million dollar top prize for the event attracted teams from all over the world. Team Autonomous Solutions performed well and was one of the last teams to be eliminated in the semi-final event.
TEAM AUTONOMOUS SOLUTIONS
Autonomous Solutions, Inc.
Logan, Utah
Sarnoff Corporation
Princeton, New Jersey
DeVivo AST, Inc
Huntsville, AL