The Indianapolis Motor Speedway has announced a new race, scheduled for October 2021. It will be their first race without any drivers, dubbed the Indy Autonomous Challenge. Or to be more specific, there won’t be a human driver sitting in the vehicle cockpit. The race will offer $1.5 million in prizes for participating college/university teams.
It’s less about the vehicle and more about the digital brains. Each teams will develop their own autonomous racing software for their vehicles. The main goal is to develop software that “can ensure precision control of vehicles at high speeds during the competition and reduce fatalities and pollution on public roadways afterwards.”
While the efforts go toward improving automotive safety, the power and speeds are still Indy-worthy. Each vehicle will sport a 4-cylinder engine with potential speeds up to 200 miles per hour. According to Mark Miles, president of Penske Entertainment, this high speed action is WHY we can make the road safer.
“If we can go- 240 mph and keep cars from colliding on the track, surely we can make highways safer.”
Simulation races (meaning software only) will take place in late May, followed by practice races at the speedway in June and then September. The actual race itself will take place on October 23, the winning team will earn $1 million.
This is a fascinating advancement in technology. We can't wait to see how it goes.
