Today was the first day of the actual competition. We arrived this morning, unloaded the robot and set up our pit area. We passed the qualification run in the early afternoon, leaving us much time to test, debug and fine tune our software.

The IGVC consists of three main ‘challenges’. The Navigation Challenge tests robots’ ability to reach GPS waypoints while avoiding obstacles such as trash cans, traffic barriers and fences. The Autonomous Challenge tests robots’ ability to detect and follow lane markings painted in the grass, also while avoiding a variety of obstacles. Finally, the Design Challenge consists of a technical paper and an oral presentation. Our tech paper was submitted a few weeks ago, and our presentation is at 3pm on Saturday.