TORC Technologies, LLC, (TORC), a research and development company focusing on unmanned vehicle systems for industrial and military clients, announced the successful completion of its DARPA Urban Challenge site visit. The TORC and Virginia Tech team was awarded a 1-year $1M contract from the DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) to develop and demonstrate an autonomous ground vehicle system to compete in the DARPA Urban Challenge. During this site visit, the TORC and Virginia Tech team successfully demonstrated the capabilities of the autonomous vehicle Odin. Odin autonomously passed disabled vehicles, negotiated 4-way intersections with other traffic, and performed 3-point turns. The TORC and Virginia Tech team continues to develop more advanced behaviors such as parking lot navigation, merging with moving traffic, and autonomous parking. "Dr. Charlie Reinholtz and Dr. Al Wicks of Virginia Tech have put together an exceptional team of graduate and undergraduate students for this project," says Michael Fleming, CEO of TORC Technologies. "Virginia Tech has been instrumental in the success of this site visit. It is a true joy to work with the Virginia Tech faculty and students who share the same passion and drive for robotics as TORC."
