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University of Rhode Island Captures 3rd AUV Competition Title
First-time Entry Takes Top Prize Among Stiff Competition
Arlington, VA, July 10 , 2000 -- In a "David and Goliath" scenario, a team from the University of Rhode Island used a Lego-based autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) costing approximately 1,000 to defeat 11 other schools, some with vehicles costing more than $25,000, in the 3rd International Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition.
The event, sponsored by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and the U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR), was held July 7-9 at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
For the competition, conducted in a fresh-water lagoon approximately 500 ft. across, four targets were randomly placed on the bottom of the lagoon. Each target consisted of a strobe light, an acoustic pinger, and a circular hoop. The mission required each vehicle to locate the one target activated after the vehicle was in the water. Once the vehicle detected and located the active target, it was supposed to retrieve the hoop and surface, all autonomously.
Teams earned points in three major categories: journal papers, static presentations (which included design and other areas), and performance, with the last category accounting for the most potential points.
On the final day of the event, the URI team was the only team to successfully report the flash rate of the strobe - the most heavily weighted performance measurement - while Cornell and MIT were the only teams able to detect the acoustic ping rate, landing the two in a tie for second place.
Final Standings:
- University of Rhode Island
- (tie) Cornell and MIT
- US Naval Academy
- University of W. Florida
- Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
- Amador Valley High School
- University of Florida
- Stevens Inst. of Technology
- Florida Atlantic University
- University of Colorado - Denver
- Ecole de Technologie Superieure (Montreal)
The Competition was an unqualified success, attracting 12 teams - up from 5 teams in 1999 - and including the first international entrant and the first high school team. Planning for the 2001 event is already underway and the organizers are preparing for another significant increase in the number of entrants as well rapidly growing public interest in the event.
All information pertaining to the Competition including rules, an entry form, highlights from previous competitions and a complete list of the 2000 entrants is available at: http://www.auvsi.org/competitions/water.cfm
The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, founded in 1972, is a trade organization of more than 2,000 corporate and individual members of the unmanned vehicle community. AUVSI members represent industry, government and academia from more than 20 countries and seek to further the technologies and application of air, land and maritime unmanned vehicles.
For more information:
Daryl Davidson, AUVSI 703.920.2720 or davidson@auvsi.org
Dr. Tom Curtin, ONR 703.696.4119 or curtint@onr.navy.mil
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