A notebook computer-controlled car by AIT students goes 7.9km in 20 minutes and avoids 18 obstacles to win the intelligent vehicle contest
A driverless car invented by Asian Institute of Techno-logy (AIT) students has conquered the Thailand Intelligent Vehicle Challenge 2009.
With the car's strong point being to mimick how a human thinks when driving, AIT's Khuen Chai Team beat 20 other squads from 15 institutions nationwide.
Methee Srisupundit, one of the intelligent car's three inventors, said his team had decided to programme the sedan so that it knows what its priorities are when it moves on the road or when it detects an obstacle.
Neck-and-neck final
In a neck-and-neck final, the sedan beat another driverless vehicle shaped like a golf cart, invented by the Royal Thai Air Force Academy's (RTAFA) Air Force 2 Team. AIT's car drove 7.9 km in 20 minutes and avoided 18 obstacles, whereas the RTAFA vehicle was able to drive 7.1 km and avoid 14 obstacles.
Says Methee: "Our car was able to move faster this year - 45 km per hour - compared to only 10-15 km per hour last year.
Steering past obstacles
"Its driver is a notebook computer that controls all the systems, including a microcontroller that injects fuel, and motors that control the brakes and steering wheel. The notebook 'instructs' the steering how to avoid an obstacle that's detected beforehand by a laser scanner. A GPS and electric compass are used to help the sedan change direction."
AIT provided Methee and his team Bt425,000 to invent the car.
"The RTAFA vehicle uses fewer tools than our car, so is suitable for developing for commercial purposes. We'll try to reduce the hardware in our car so that it is similar to cars used on city roads," Methee adds.
Mae Fah Luang University's Arrive II Team won the Excellent Technique Award, King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok's Duck Riders Team bagged the Excellent Energy Saving Design Award, and the Excellent Creativity Award went to AIT's Pak Chee Team.
The champions received Bt300,000 and a trophy. The first runner-up got Bt200,000 and a plaque. The excellent technique, energy-saving design and creativity award winners were given Bt50,000 each and a plaque.