Vehicular intelligence

       The Robotics Society, in collaboration with Seagate Technology (Thailand) and the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), held the final round of the Thailand Intelligent Vehicle Challenge 2009(TIVC)at the Bangkok Racing Circuit, on July 29.
       This year eight teams from seven universities competed in the driverless-car race.
       The challenge was designed to foster creativity and innovative skills in Thai university students through robotic automation and automotive technologies. To compete in the competition, each team had to design and construct an unmanned intelligent vehicle.
       Driverless race
       The cars could not have a driver,nor could they be controlled remotely.The teams had to programme their cars to travel along the planned course,exceed the distance set and avoid obstacles as defined by the cars' programming that is designed to assist the cars during self-navigation along the prescribed route.
       In the race, the teams paired up to compete in each round. Two cars started from different starting points about 900 metres away from each other.The team whose car comes at least 100 metres closer to the finish line than their opponent's car would win.
       Alternatively, the car that could cover the longest distance within 20 minutes would be the winner. Cars that could avoid obstacles placed along the way would get a 100-metre bonus per obstacle.
       It was the first time that the competition divided the teams into pairs,with one team in a pair competing against the other.
       The speed was limited to 43km per hour."Someday we expect that the cars can be applied in real-life situations," said Assoc Prof Dr Manukid Parnichkun, chairman of the contest's organising committee.
       Winners
       The victorious team was the Khenchai team from AIT. It was awarded a 300,000-baht cash prize and a trophy. The first runner-up position went to the Air Force II team from the Royal Thai Air Force Acad-emy, which received 200,000 baht in cash and a plaque.
       Both the Khenchai and Air Force II teams were worthy rivals. The winner was selected by comparing the distances the two cars had covered.Khenchai ran a total of 7,901.2 metres and obtained 1,800 metres in bonuses by avoiding several obstacles on its tracks, while Air Force II scored 7,161.4 metres plus 1,400 metres in bonus points. As a result, Khenchai won by a narrow margin.
       The other teams that received prizes included Arrive-II from Mae Fah Luang University, Pakchee from AIT and Duck Riders from King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok. They won the Excellent Technique Award, Excellent Creativity Award and Excellent Energy-saving Design Award,respectively.
       The challenge
       "In a normal robotic challenge,students need to apply their mechatronic, mechanical and computer skills, however, in this competition,they must have in-depth knowledge of automobile design as well," Prof Manukid said, explaining the challenges that the contestants had to surmount.
       Methee Srisupundit, a member of the Khenchai team, said that this year's most-daunting hurdle required the teams to incorporate speed in their cars as well.
       He explained that last year, the winner of the competition was the car that simply covered the greatest distance.
       "When we programme the computer installed in the car, we have to seriously consider the safety and stability of the electronic components.We have to ensure that these devices can work effectively despite frequent use over a long period of time and do not give rise to any problem," said Methee, talking about what he considered was the most important lesson he learned from participating in the competition.
       He recommends that those interested in taking part in the competition next year practise assembling a vehicle regularly."The more you practise,the more problems you can come across and find solutions to," Methee said.