The 2007 IGVC team proved to be a sucessful one. Their robot, AWESOM-O, took second place in the autonomous challenge and fourth place in the navigation challenge; both of which were the best finishes for the University of Minnesota at the IGVC. The team consisted of three members; Rich Hoglund, Seth Berrier, and Eddie Arpin. For more information on the team and their vehicle please review their design report.
The 2005 team consisted of four students (Shawn Brovold, Nathan Carlson, Greg Rupp, and Eric Li) from the Mechanical Engineering Department who worked on the robot as an extracurricular project, and the robot was constructed over two semesters (Fall 04/Spring 05). They officially dubbed their vehicle G2, because it was an adaptation of the 2001 Gopher vehicle. In that time, the previous frame was improved, new sensors were added, and new software and strategy were developed from scratch. As a result, the 2005 team had improved success at the competition. The team placed 8th overall in the autonomous challenge, and 10th overall in the navigation challenge (out of 37 entries). For information on G2 (how it was constructed and programming strategy) check out their design report. The team was advised by Max Donath and Don Krantz. Funding for the project came from the ITS institute, and the team received partial sponsorship from National Instruments.
In 2002 development continued on the 2001 vehicle. No changes were made to the vehicle structurally; improvements were made only to the software. Unfortunately, the work was never completed and the vehicle didn't make it to the competition.
The University of Minnesota last entered the IGVC competition in 2001. The team was organized as part of a mechanical engineering senior design class, and the robot was constructed over two semesters. Their vehicle was called the Autonomous Above Ground Gopher (AAGG). For more information on this vehicle, check out their design report.
The 1995 vehicle was the U of M's second time at the IGVC competition. This vehicle was a continuation of the 1994 design.
This was the U of M's first time to the IGVC competition, and it was only the 2nd year the competition was held. The vehicle was based on a golf cart frame, making it much larger than the 2001 vehicle.