A robotic racing revolution to come ? This year, Formula E fans will be treated to an entirely new spectator sport that promises all the high octane spills of motor racing but one that does away with gaz-guzzling engine and MORE IMPORTANT drivers !! Roborace will challenge teams of maths geniuses and engineering mega-brains to compute algorithms and tweak artificial intelligence software to ensure the DRIVERLESS vehicles tackle obstacles on urban racecourses. because there are no drivers, it will be about the greatest mathematical and engineering skills. It will be about who can make the most about sensors, cameras and computors on board.
Reminds me of the math competitions i briefly did in high school. Plenty of parents/supporters turned out to watch. Not
I guess the intent is noble, but turning that intent into a spectator sport is disastrously misdirected. Well, unless the cars can shoot rockets and plant traps like Mario Kart...
I guess I'll be howled at here, but I think the concept is awesome! We're starting to see driverless cars on the street, and the old adage that 'racing improves the breed' still applies. Rather than the 'ultra conservative' Google & now Uber cars the engineers have somewhere to *really* push the envelope. And hence learn lots. And hence translate that knowledge into the 'real world'. I reckon it could accelerate the learning curve substantially. I'd love to see it happen! Bas, the problem (to me anyway) with video games is the 'reset' button!.... You can **** up with impunity..... Bending real metal (carbon?) would concentrate the mind a lot more.... [Dons flamesuit ] Cheers, Ian
No, no, no! While that's fun stuff, & awesome technology, I don't think that's what they're talking about here - At least I hope not. My understanding at least (& I may be wrong as always) is the cars would be completely autonomous, not 'simply' driven remotely. Remote control cars have been around forever after all - I was once very serious about racing them. Cheers, Ian
True, but in an organized online race a shunt still means race over. This takes all the danger away from being in a bended metal car, so the only difference is that the car has to be rebuilded with real stuff instead of the reset button... I see your other point, it'll develop the anti crash sensors a hell of a lot better and quicker than whatever google is doing. I'll give this as much time as Formula E. None.
Whilst you're correct about the 'reset' button, as well as having the option to turn damage off in games, the major entertainment factor with video racing games is that it is still a human being controlling a machine to race, and that is the biggest entertainment factors about real life motorsport - The Human element. Computers racing computers via real cars on track is about the same as buying a racing video game and then just watching the demonstration race footage - What's the point in that? Yes there's a novelty element to this robo-racing idea, but proper motor racing is about the amazing ability of the drivers to push themselves and their machines to the limit and remain in control, it's about Human ability and endurance, it's about the risks the drivers are prepared to take in order to do well in a race, and ideally win, it's not about the Human ability to write a computer programme! You can enjoy the robo-racing if you want, I'd rather watch My DVD's of Moss, Fangio, Clark, Lauda, Villeneuve, Senna, Schumacher et al - Unbelievably talented and interesting drivers, not unbelievably uninteresting anonymous computer programmers!
+1 Oh, please don't get me wrong here - I get into "trouble" for defending it all the time after all! Couldn't agree more re "balls out laps" & overtakes that take your breath away.... Ayrton in the rain, or anywhere really, pretty much anything involving Gilles, Ronnie & Jackie going for pole, etc, are memories that will live with me forever. I'll always be an F1 fan.... Another +1 But, I think a "robo-race" as a support event to a GP around, say, Spa or Monza would be really interesting - It's one thing trundling around the streets of London or San Jose, but it'd be a whole other can o' worms racing around Silverstone! Cheers, Ian
Should also make it clear that I'm absolutely not talking about the kind of stuff Ney posted above with a kid wearing a VR headset controlling the thing, but a truly autonomous race car. Cheers, Ian
The technology would be fascinating but it would be like replacing the pitcher in a major league Baseball game with one of those automatic pitchers that you find in practice cages - It does the same job, but it kind of misses the point!
As noted, years back I raced RC cars - mine were gas based rather than electric, so it wasn't all about "who had the best cells", but it sure was fun on a *very* limited budget! Like pretty much all "sports", at it's highest level, it's hard to win..... "OK, OK, you got me!" I'll concede! It'll be interesting to hear what Florian has to say on the subject....... Cheers, Ian
Once you take human skill or ability out of it, it is merely a programming problem and holds little competitive interest.
OK, another very fair comment. I'll again concede I was wrong on this one. Cheers, Ian PS - With a few exceptions; chess being the most obvious of course.... But that's a *long* way from driving cars quickly!
Not wrong...it is just a different pursuit. I think completely autonomous vehicles would be a fascination engineering challenge. I just don't think that watching them would be much fun due to the lack of a human component. As a sport, you need human skill to make it compelling.
Would two chess computers playing each other give you the same sense of challenge as two Humans playing each other?, or a Human playing against a computer? From My own perspective, two computers playing each other leaves Me with a Feeling of total indifference. As I say, if the robo-races were genuine, proper races flat out, "take no prisoners" races then it would be fascinating to see the technology involved, but it would still be lacking a great deal of appeal due to the lack of the Human element. And if they were basically demonstration races whereby every overtake and move was preprogrammed to put a show on, then they would be little more that a modern day version of the "Whirly Wheelers": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2ji2IOKqWQ
The now (annual, I believe?) DARPA challenge is pretty much that. The first time none of them made it much beyond the first turn. Last time I was aware of it most made it many miles over Nevada desert and/or around an "urban" environment. Fascinating stuff indeed. +1 But, the "human skill" element remains - just that it's a bunch of geeks, which probably doesn't make for the most compelling viewing.... Great debate, Cheers, Ian
Guys, this is our future. Fast_Ian is right, this "racing" is required to make the technology work, but ... because we are all sitting back and allowing the development of AI and self driving cars WE are being replaced. The concept of human being achieving something is being eradicated as fast as possible as a solution to "not all people have equal abilities so some are dangerous or cannot do it" Personally it is simply sad. It is also sad when a Simpsons episode gets it so right when supposedly a computer AI program created by Lisa (named Conrad) said: “Humans need to learn among themselves to think before they post... You’re on the verge of becoming complete and utter wankers”* And yes the human race is on the verge of making themselves complete and utter wankers by taking away all achievements that other humans can do so there is no longer a point to living. Fncken utterly brilliant ... NOT. Pete * "The Girl Code" · The Simpsons · TV Review Homer goes Greek, but two great guests make for a solid Simpsons · TV Club · The A.V. Club
This is what happens when you focus on what big corporations for direction. This is the sort of crap that Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, Micorsoft, Uber, Lift and all those other tech giants are driving toward. This is not motorsport, it is mental masterbation for tech weenies to further their vision of how the masses should be transported. If this takes hold, I will be switching to Rollerball.
Hopefully some kindly bot, who is my keeper, will give me a cage with a nice view, a warm place to sleep and two glasses of bourbon a day.
. Suicide is looking like an attractive option once we reach this nullifying "state". One thing it may solve is over (human) population because many intelligent couples will, quite rightly, not want to bring children into this horrid world and breeding will cease. Pete
The human skill to write the computer programmes would be very much at the heart of this!! Instead of being a competition between drivers, it would be a competition between boffins. People who like intellectual might above everything else will love it!
