The "TUM Autonomous Motorsport" team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) entered the Autonomous Challenge @ CES in Las Vegas as defending champions. In a previous race in Indianapolis last October, the TUM team won with an average speed of 218 km/h, earning a million dollars in prize money.
Five teams competed again in the Autonomous Challenge at CES. The TUM racing car, controlled by artificial intelligence, reached top speeds of up to 270 km/h in the final race, earning the Munich team not only second place but also prize money of 50,000 euros.
“Never driven so fast”
Prof. Markus Lienkamp, owner of the Chair of Automotive Engineering at TUM, commented on the race as follows:
"We are all extremely pleased with the result. In this race, we were able to demonstrate what our autonomous vehicle can achieve in conjunction with other vehicles at such extremely high speeds. We have never driven as fast as we did today. I am very proud of our placing. But what really matters is the progress we were able to achieve here today. This is a victory for autonomous racing as a whole."
Five university teams competed in the Autonomous Challenge at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway during CES. They faced a very special challenge: two autonomous Racing cars engaged in a head-to-head race on the track for several laps – including overtaking maneuvers and potentially risky interactions with other cars. The vehicle of the "TUM Autonomous Motorsport" team reached its limits in the final lap against the Polimove team from Milan.
"First, we approached the opposing vehicle and performed controlled overtaking maneuvers. Then we gradually increased the speed. However, the interplay of perception, motion planning, and control resulted in minor problems, which ultimately led to exceeding the limit and ultimately sending the vehicle off course,"
says team leader Philipp Karle.
“But it must be said that this was the first time we drove against another racing car at such high speed and we consciously wanted to test the limits.”
$50,000 prize money
The TUM team received a prize of $50,000 for their placement. The plan for what they'll do after this second-place finish is already in place. Prof. Markus Lienkamp explains:
"We now want to bring the technology to the road. To do this, we are making our research available as open source. At the same time, we have founded the software company Driveblocks with former doctoral students led by Alexander Wischnewski, which is responsible for series implementation."
And also TUM President Thomas F. Hofmann congratulates the team:
"What a tremendous success! Curiosity and team spirit, the conscious dissolution of the boundaries between theory and practice, and the connection of disciplines and nations – this is what our young talent initiatives stand for in global technology competitions. I wholeheartedly congratulate our team of students, doctoral candidates, and postdocs led by Prof. Markus Lienkamp."
