A fierce race of futuristic cars built directly by Freescale in the MCU

- The '2011 Intelligent Model Car Competition' was held on the 14th at Hanyang University Olympic Gymnasium
- Approximately 350 participants from over 50 universities nationwide, comprising 100 teams
- The outstanding Inha University 'Inha Dream Car' team wins the honor of victory

Thursday, July 14, 2011, Seoul – A special competition was held where key talents in the development of future automobiles gathered in one place to engage in a fierce race.
The 9th '2011 Intelligent Model Car Competition,' officially sponsored by Freescale Semiconductor (NYSE: FSL, www.freescale.co.kr ), was held on the 14th at Hanyang University Olympic Gymnasium.

For this competition, 100 teams of university students from 50 universities across the country, who dream of becoming the leaders of the 21st-century automotive industry, used Freescale’s 16-bit S12X microcontroller to design and build model cars over several months. Using sensors installed in these cars, they detected the surrounding environment and analyzed the collected information to drive themselves along a given track.

The prestigious Freescale Grand Prize was awarded to Inha University’s ‘Inha Dream Car’ (Team Leader Jeong Jin-yong, 4th year Electrical Engineering student) for their outstanding skills and stable racing performance. The Gold Prizes were given to the University of Seoul’s ‘ZETIN’ (Team Leader Kwon Ki-rim, 3rd year Electronic, Electrical and Computer Engineering student) and Kyung Hee University’s ‘Jjeol’ (Team Leader Kim Hyung-jin, 4th year Electronic Engineering student). The awards included a total prize money of 10 million won, including 6 million won for the Freescale Grand Prize winner, as well as certificates and prizes.

In addition, Freescale grants the three teams that won the Freescale Special Award the opportunity to participate in the Freescale Technology Forum to be held in China this coming August.

The '2011 Intelligent Model Car Competition,' held in two stages—preliminary and final—conducts as follows: 100 participating teams are divided into two groups of 50 to complete a track, from which the top 20 teams are selected to advance to the finals. Based on an understanding of embedded control systems, a core technology of intelligent vehicles, participating students design model cars by integrating technologies related to sensors, control algorithms, and motor control. They then build the cars to drive autonomously and compete in the race. These model cars detect surrounding conditions using sensors, and the embedded computer analyzes the collected information to drive themselves without veering off the course.

Rankings are determined by the driving records of participating vehicles that avoid collisions with the preceding vehicle and safely and quickly follow the preceding vehicle on the given track.

The 'Intelligent Model Car Design Competition,' which has been held annually since 2003 and is now in its ninth year, is significant in that it lays the foundation for fostering domestic talent in the field of Embedded Control System design, a core technology of the next-generation automotive industry, as part of the Freescale Semiconductor Korea University Supporting Program.

Intelligent vehicles, considered the vehicles of the future, are human-friendly smart cars whose key element is an Embedded Control System that utilizes computers to provide more intelligent control functions to various industries, including automobiles, home appliances, robots, and aircraft.

In particular, 'Smart Cruise Control' technology, one of the core technologies for future autonomous vehicles, has been applied. Smart Cruise Control is a technology that prevents collisions with the vehicle ahead by automatically controlling the appropriate distance between vehicles based on radar sensors at the front of the vehicle that measure the distance and relative speed. Minimizing the distance to the vehicle ahead—as determined by the organizers—and driving safely and quickly has a significant impact on the rankings.

Freescale’s S12X microprocessor family used in this competition is a leading 16-bit solution in the automotive industry, with over 100 million units used annually in various fields such as body, chassis, and safety by leading automotive and parts companies worldwide.

* Official Race Website: http://race.acelab.org
- You can view photos, videos, and more of past tournaments.