Media Advisory: Carnegie Mellon's Tartan Racing Team Vies For Spot in DARPA's Robotic Vehicle Competition

Byron SpiceWednesday, June 13, 2007

EVENT:Tartan Racing's self-driving SUV, named Boss, will demonstrate its street savvy during a site visit and inspection by representatives of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Tartan Racing is one of 53 teams contending for a spot in DARPA's Urban Challenge, a Nov. 3 race that will pit autonomous vehicles against each other on a course that simulates an urban driving environment. The top prize is $2 million.

Boss, which is now dressed in race-day paint and decals, will perform four demonstrations designated by DARPA to test its ability to navigate and handle traffic in a setting similar to the competition. The vehicle's performance will determine whether Tartan Racing is named one of 30 semi-finalists invited to a qualification event this fall. Team members will be available for interviews throughout the event and, once the official demonstrations are complete, additional demonstrations will be performed.

WHEN: 9:30 a.m., Monday, June 18.

WHERE: Robot City, located on the former LTV site in Hazelwood.

DIRECTIONS: From Downtown, head south on Second Avenue. From Oakland, take Bates Street to Second Avenue and turn left. Follow Second Avenue past the Hot Metal Bridge. To enter the LTV site, continue to go straight when the main road veers sharply to the left. (Do not go through the underpass.) Follow the signs to the parking area for the DARPA site visit.

About Carnegie Mellon: Carnegie Mellon is a private research university with a distinctive mix of programs in engineering, computer science, robotics, business, public policy, fine arts and the humanities. More than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students receive an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration, and innovation. A small student-to-faculty ratio provides an opportunity for close interaction between students and professors. While technology is pervasive on its 144-acre Pittsburgh campus, Carnegie Mellon is also distinctive among leading research universities for the world-renowned programs in its College of Fine Arts. A global university, Carnegie Mellon has campuses in Silicon Valley, Calif., and Qatar, and programs in Australia, Greece, Japan, Portugal, Singapore and Taiwan. For more, see www.cmu.edu.

For More Information

Byron Spice | 412-268-9068 | bspice@cs.cmu.edu