The ION Autonomous Snowplow Competition is an annual event hosted by the Institute of Navigation. The competition was previously held at the St. Paul Winter Carnival, though last year it was held in Toronto, Ontario. The competition invites teams of graduate and undergraduate students from across the country to compete in building a robot, presenting on its capability and viability, and showcasing its ability in autonomously clearing snowfields. These fields simulate sidewalks and driveways, and are created with both static and dynamic obstacles to simulate the challenges of completely autonomous vehicles operating in the real world.
Major agenda items for the Fall 2023/Spring 2024 year include:
Mechanical
- Design a new robot in CAD
- Improve existing robot drivetrain and plow
Software
- Implement 3D Localization using our new 3D SICK MRS1000 LiDAR
- Use new Intel Realsense in our SLAM algorithm
- Add second, rear 2D LiDAR
- Significantly improve our Android App that controls the current robot
Electrical
- Design custom winch controls to allow for multi-axis plow movement
- Develop convient onboard charging solution
See the Team Calendar page for meeting dates and times (all meetings are located in Mechanical Engineering L134), or email us any questions at [email protected].