NICEVILLE — The 6-inch-tall vehicle made a turn and traveled a few more inches before sweeping perfectly into a parking space.
The students intently watching its progress and grinned at each other before continuing their careful watch as the vehicle backed out and went on its way.
Students from seven Florida high schools spent months building, programming and testing the autonomous “cars” in preparation for Saturday’s Mini-Urban Challenge at Northwest Florida State College.
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The students were graded on how well their cars navigated through the mini-city, said Mark Simpson, founder of the Doolittle Institute, which sponsors the competition with the Air Force Research Laboratory Munitions Directorate. Using sensors, the cars must stop at designated intersections, stay on the road, turn and even park.
All that without a remote control to steer them.
Students were given pieces of a map to calibrate their cars, Simpson said. They were also allowed to calibrate and test their cars in the mini-city before moving into the competition phase.
The teams were graded on a presentation of the technology they used to create an autonomous car.
In this one project, students gain experience in prototyping, research and development, manufacturing, software coding, problem solving, public speaking and collaborating, Simpson said.
Jordan Downs, of the Win-gineers team from Lyman High School in Longwood, said besides learning the importance of having enough testing time, the competition taught him perseverance and communication.
“There were points we could’ve exploded,” he said with a laugh.
The competition’s biggest goal is to get students interested in science, technology, engineering and math, Simpson said.
For Adam Castro of Godby High School in Tallahassee, the challenge gave him a way to compete in something he was interested in.
“If you have the thought, you can do anything (in programming),” Castro said.
Any schools that want to participate in the challenge are given the software and LEGO Mindstorms kit for free, said Casey Miller, the national co-chairman for the Mini-Urban Challenge. They can keep the equipment even if they don’t participate the following year.
“Our goal is to reach those kids who wouldn’t have an opportunity to participate in something like this,” Miller said.
Society is moving toward autonomous technology and “the kids get a foundation” from the competition, he added.
The top two teams from Saturday’s competition will be invited to compete against the top two teams from Louisiana, Ohio, California, and Washington D.C. in a national competition in June, Miller said.
