CAuDri-Challenge 2024

Building on the success of last year’s inaugural event, we relaxed the schedule over two days and provided more opportunities for the teams to test their vehicles.

The Tracks

The main competition track was constructed on site from new material and moved to the front of the venue, where better lighting made for brighter pictures but also caused infamous challenges for the cars perception. The problem of direct sunlight is well known within the community. Where there is light, there be shadows. And more importantly here, reflections which can throw off the cars lane marking detection, possibly leading to derailment, which the teams had to overcome.

The vehicles

The stars of the show.

Schedule

The competition was extended to two days this year, allowing the teams to test their vehicles more thoroughly before the competition and adjust to the track and environmental conditions. Friday served as a setup and practice day, while the official competition took place on Saturday. Each team had time slots for test runs and competition attempts assigned to them, ensuring fair and organized proceedings.

Friday, June 21

• 10:00 : Arrival and setup
• 11:00 : Welcome and organizational briefing
• 11:30 : Free test drives
• 15:00 : Practice competition
  • Freedrive Course
  • Obstacle Evasion Course
• 17:30 : Score evaluation and feedback

Saturday, June 22

• 10:30 : Official opening
• 11:00 : Team presentations and test drives
• 12:30 : Lunch break
• 13:30 : Final test sessions
• 15:00 : Competition
  • Freedrive Course
  • Obstacle Evasion Course
• 17:30 : Award ceremony

Results

Team KITcar remains firmly at the top of the leader board, for the second time in a row, they demonstrated their superior drive performance and showed how to master difficult road incidents with confidence. Relying on their teams legacy and man power, they show what it takes to be the best. While the champion’s runs are certainly a joy to look at (see links below), we must also admire the underdogs brave commitment to face off against the colossus even with the odds stacked against them. Congratulations to this year’s winners:

• 🥇 First Place: Team KITcar (KIT Karlsruhe)

  • Experience their winning runs: Free Drive Run

    Obstacle Course

• 🥈 Second Place: Team Spatzenhirn (University of Ulm)

  • Watch their performance: Free Drive Run

    Obstacle Course

• 🥉 Third Place: Team Smart Rollerz (DHBW Stuttgart)

Looking Forward

The success of the second CAuDri-Challenge has further established this competition in the autonomous driving education landscape. At the Faculty of Technology at DHBW Stuttgart, a venue was found that offers plenty of space for multiple tracks, tinkering and spectators, we hope to continue to host the CAuDri-Challenge there. We’re already looking forward to next year’s event and welcome interested teams to join us for the 2025 competition.

Teams interested in participating next year can join our Discord server or contact us at kontakt@caudri-challenge.de for more information.

Acknowledgments

This event wouldn’t have been possible without the dedication of many individuals and organizations:

• DHBW Stuttgart for hosting us in their Faculty of Technology
• The participating teams and their supporting institutions
• Micha and his team from “Coffee on Tour” for providing tasty engineering fuel
• Everyone who contributed to the refreshments and catering
• All referees who volunteered to ensure a fair competition
• All spectators who came to support the teams

The success of the first CAuDri-Challenge has set a strong foundation for future competitions. We look forward to seeing everyone again at the next event, where we’ll continue pushing the boundaries of autonomous driving technology together!