Top speed record with autonomous driving: almost 320 km/h with no driver

Autonomous driving is seen as a way to relax at the wheel, but we also feel that the time when we will fully hand over control of the vehicle is still far off. Furthermore, we know it is usually used in low-speed driving conditions.

But autonomous driving is already technically ready to control a car even at high speed. A Maserati MC20 has just proved it, tested at the Kennedy Space Center, where an autonomous driving system was tested that launched the car to a speed of 318 km/h. A test carried out with no driver that set a record.

The project was backed by the Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy’s most advanced university in science and technology, and the Indy Autonomous Challenge. The test was carried out on the Launch and Landing Runway of the space center. This is where NASA’s space shuttles took off and landed. It is just over 4.5 kilometres long, so it can be used for high-speed testing without problems.

To achieve this milestone, the MC20 was equipped with the software from the PoliMOVE-MSU team, which is part of the performance division of IDA (Artificial Intelligence Driving Autonomous of the Polytechnic University of Milan). The car performed the test in a straight line and accelerated until it reached the record speed.

With a measured but continuous acceleration, the car reached 318 km/h, a figure that exceeds the 310 km/h recorded by the previous record. The intentions of the institutions involved in this event are not only to show the capabilities of current technology, but also to let the software learn. With the data collected, it will be possible to improve the autonomous driving system and apply all of this to conventional cars.

https://youtu.be/M3kWsId6Tq4