Posting a top speed of more than 171 mph, the University of Virginia Cavalier Autonomous Racing team roared into the winners’ circle at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, claiming the first victory for an American team in the speed trial portion of the Indy Autonomous Challenge.
UVA’s Robot Race Car Wins in Record-Setting Fashion
Paul Mitchell, CEO, Indy Autonomous Challenge
Today, we have one of our U.S. teams, that got an incredible time of 171 miles per hour, setting a new record.
The University of Virginia.
Madhur, here you go, you've earned it.
While UVA’s “CAVCAR” team had success earlier this year, taking second place in a major international race in Las Vegas, the team faced tough competition at the famed “Brickyard” from Germany, Korea and Italy, and other U.S. universities including Michigan State University, Purdue University, Auburn University and the University of California, Berkeley.
UVA School of Engineering and Applied Science professor Madhur Behl leads the CAVCAR’s team of students, who programmed the unmanned Indy racing car, built on a Dallara IL-15 chassis. The car clocked a record-setting lap time of 52.62 seconds around the famed oval track with an average speed of 171.011 mph – a new record at the speedway for an autonomous vehicle. In the final lap, the team hit a top speed of 184 mph while crossing the start-finish line.
For more details about the triumphant run, read the Engineering School’s in-depth coverage.
UVA Today accompanied the team to the historic racetrack and captured these images of preparations and performance.
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October 3, 2024