[urq] audi racing pikes peak - driverless!

[Mark J. Besso]

I'm guessing it would be something akin to an electric skateboard-type 
platform.

See: http://s3.amazonaws.com/memebox/uploads/3472/240_autonomyfuelcell.jpg

It could employ 4-wheel drive and steering.  Should it somehow flip 
over--it could reprogram itself to continue in its now-inverted state as 
if nothing had ever happened.

~Mark



Robert Myers wrote:
> Louis-Alain,
>
> Have you ever been up Pike's peak?  The road, aside from being 
> without guard rails, is pretty decent (yes, a little rough in 
> places,a little narrow in places, and a little nerve wracking almost 
> everywhere).  It's even paved part way.  It is easily passable in 
> ordinary passenger vehicles even though shoulders are narrow to 
> almost non-existent in places and drop-offs are nearly vertical and a 
> long way down there.  Truly high tech suspensions should helpful but 
> perhaps not be as much advantage as they would be running, say, the 
> Baja or the Paris-Dakar Rally.  A turbo, at 14K feet, would be a 
> definite major advantage, though.
>
> Bob
>
> At 10:18 PM 4/11/2010, Louis-Alain Richard wrote:
>   
>> *This message was transferred with a trial version of CommuniGate(r) Pro*
>> Well Huw, my question was what type of driverless car would climb Pikes Peak
>> the fastest on the actual road, hence the concerns about wheel travel,
>> strength and high speed stability...
>>
>> As an example, Would a 1/5 RC scale model with a nitro-engine be faster than
>> a 1:1 300 hp Lotus Seven lookalike shortened to eliminate the cabin and
>> fitted with long stoke suspensions ?
>>
>> Louis-Alain
>>
>>
>>
>> -----Message d'origine-----
>>
>> Considering that safety wouldn't be a concern (until the robots get
>> their universal bill of rights!), we could bring back the Killer Bs...
>> oh wait, no, they were killing the audience, not the drivers.
>>
>> The idea of an automated vehicle race bracket is very intriguing.  I
>> didn't list the trunk because it's not needed except for homologation
>> anyway.  And of course the lack of need for windows does eventually
>> imply getting rid of the middle of the car.
>>
>> I'm thinking go-karts with a CPU running them?
>>
>> Louis-Alain Richard wrote:
>>     
>>> Right Huw,
>>>
>>> Extending that : no roof or cabin or trunk is necessary either...
>>>
>>> So the next question is : what would the fastest driverless race car be
>>>       
>> like
>>     
>>> if conceived from the drawing board with that goal in mind ?
>>>
>>> Would it be much smaller than a normal car ? What would be the main
>>>       
>> problem
>>     
>>> : suspension travel ? Unibody strength to cope with a 500 hp engine ?
>>> Stability at high speeds ?
>>>
>>>
>>> Louis-Alain
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Message d'origine-----
>>>
>>>       
>>>> Well, if one day a driverless car can drive Pike's Peak faster than
>>>>         
>> Walter
>>     
>>>> or Michelle, then it will be a very sad day... unless you enjoy being a
>>>> copilot !
>>>>         
>>> A driverless car can be so much lighter... no human cargo, seat, fire
>>> extinguisher, windows, door, control interfaces, gauges, or headlights!
>>>
>>>