Carnegie Mellon's Tartan Racing team will unveil Boss, the modified Chevy Tahoe that will be its entry in this fall's DARPA Urban Challenge, during an open house from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday Jan. 23.

The team invites the entire Carnegie Mellon community to stop by its headquarters in the Roundhouse at Robot City, located on the former LTV site in Hazelwood. Team members will demonstrate Boss' autonomous driving capabilities and will be happy to answer questions and discuss their plans for the Urban Challenge.

The event, set for Nov. 3, 2007, at an as-yet-undisclosed site in the western U.S., will pit self-driving vehicles against each other on a course that simulates an urban environment. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will award $2 million to the first team to complete the challenge, encompassing about 60 miles of driving, in six hours or less.

Directions: To reach Robot City from Oakland, take Bates Street to Second Avenue and turn left. Follow Second Avenue past Hot Metal Bridge and, before taking a sharp left to follow the street through an underpass, continue straight to enter the former LTV site. At the first building, which has a sign for "Damian Hartz, locomotive repair," turn through the gate to the left of the building and continue towards the left. Follow the road down the hill, and take the second right turn at the bottom of the hill. Park on this section of road and walk along road toward the city skyline to roundhouse; entrance to Tartan Racing is on the right side of the roundhouse. (Or, Google 4170 Second Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15207)

For more information, contact Michele Gittleman: info@tartanracing.org or 412-268-6556.