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Intelligent, Unmanned Boat to Attempt Trans-Atlantic Journey

by Peter Mychalcewycz on May 28, 2009 at 09:14 AM


Once again, a team of well-meaning scientists is giving an intelligent, autonomous robotic vessel everything it needs to take over the world. Sigh...

According to CNN, eight third-year engineering students from the university ETH Zurich in Switzerland have created a four-meter-long, carbon-fiber yacht potentially capable of piloting itself across the Atlantic Ocean. Avalon, as its creators like to call it, will use a complex array of sensors and power sources to complete its journey. If successful, the Avalon will not only be one step closer to rendering humans inconsequential, it will also set a new world record for a vessel of its type.


The premise behind the boat's onboard technology is basic. The Avalon is designed to reach a designated destination (a point in the Caribbean), and is equipped with the technology to do so. Sensors aboard the boat will be able to judge wind speed and direction, allowing changes in course to maximize efficiency. Along with said sensors, the boat will have the ability to download weather information in order to choose the safest route (if there is such a thing). Of course solar cells on the back of the boat will provide power throughout the journey, though there is extra power on board just in case.

The Swiss would-be engineers are still testing their robo-dingy. We will, though, know just how close to the Apocalypse we truly are as a species when they enter it into the Microtansat Transatlantic challenge in September. Good luck to us all! [From: CNN]

Tags: ai, boat, gps, nautical, robot, top

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