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AUV Competition Challenges Next Generation of Engineers

For Immediate Release: Aug 01, 2005

Arlington, Va.-- From August 4 through August 7, teams of international students from 21 high schools, colleges and universities will pit their unmanned underwater vehicles against each other for $20,000 in scholarship money.

The 8th International AUVSI/ONR Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition, to be held at the U.S. Navy´s Space and Naval Warfare (SPAWAR) Systems Center´s Transducer Evaluation Center pool located at Point Loma in San Diego, will consist of three "missions."

  • Mission #1 – Rendezvous with a "docking station."
  • Mission #2 – Find and mark a break in an underwater pipeline.
  • Mission #3 – Home in on an acoustic beacon and breech within a marked surface zone.

All events are open to the media and general public:

  • Thursday, August 4: 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. (practice runs)
  • Friday, August 5: 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. (practice runs)
  • Saturday, August 6: 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. (practice runs a.m.; qualifying runs p.m.)
  • Sunday, August 7: 7:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (qualifying runs a.m.; finals p.m.)
  • Sunday, August 7: 7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. Awards Ceremony (ticket required)

The international AUV competition is an annual event sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). An additional sponsor of the 2005 challenge is iXSea, a manufacturer of high performance underwater navigation and positioning system.

If you are a member of the media and plan on attending the event in San Diego, please contact Gretchen Wherry (AUVSI) at 703-845-9671 x203 or wherry@auvsi.org. For all other inquiries regarding the Office of Naval Research’s participation in the event, please contact Kate Shirley at (703) 696-0738.

About the Office of Naval Research

The Department of the Navy’s Office of Naval Research provides the science and technology necessary to maintain the Navy and Marine Corps’ technological advantage. Through its affiliates, ONR is a leader in science and technology with engagement in 50 states, 55 countries, 634 institutions of higher learning and nonprofit institutions, and more than 960 industry partners. ONR, through its commands, including headquarters, ONR Global and the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C., employs more than 3,800 people, comprising uniformed, civilian and contract personnel.