The day when roads are filled with self-driving cars may not be far off, thanks to the Ben Franklin Racing Team, a group of engineers from Lehigh and the University of Pennsylvania.
The team has earned a trip to the semifinal round of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Urban Challenge, a nationwide competition to design, build and successfully race an unmanned, autonomous vehicle. In its third year, the DARPA Challenge moves from the desert to the city streets, presenting an even greater challenge for participants.
DARPA, the competition’s sponsor, is the research and development arm of the U.S. Department of Defense, according to its Web site.
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