Torc Robotics

Torc Robotics (Torc)[1], is an autonomous vehicle company[2] headquartered in Blacksburg, Va. Torc produces unmanned and autonomous technology that retrofits to existing machinery and vehicles. Its custom products , software and automation kits have been used on vehicles in several industries[3], including military, mining agriculture, and automotive over the last decade.

Through 2014, 50 percent[4] of Torc’s revenue came from defense work and the rest from commercial customers. Some of its end users include the Department of Defense[5], the U.S. Marines[6], Air Force Research Labs (AFRL)[7], Caterpillar[8], and DCD Protected Mobility[9].


Early History

In 2005, the company was founded by a group of Virginia Tech graduate students including Michael Fleming[10], the current CEO.


DARPA Urban Challenge

Torc partnered with Virginia Tech to compete[4] in the 2007 Urban Challenge, hosted by the Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Teams were challenged to build a fully autonomous vehicle that could travel 60 miles of urban and off-road environments in less than six hours.

Torc’s Ford Escape vehicle, named Odin, placed third[11] out of 35 competing teams, winning the $500,000 prize. The other top-2 finishers included Tartan Racing, of Carnegie Mellon University and General Motors Corp., and the Stanford Racing Team.

Blind Driver Challenge

In 2010, Torc partnered with a robotics team at Virginia Tech to develop a vehicle for the National Federation of the Blind’s (NFB) Blind Driver Challenge[12]. The team received the National Instruments’ 2010 Application of the Year[13] for the project.

Using a Ford Escape, Torc implemented[14] its ByWire drive-by-wire conversion modules, Safestop wireless emergency stop system, and PowerHub distribution modules on the vehicle.

On January 29, 2011, a blind driver independently drove[15] Torc’s vehicle down the main straightaway, onto the road course at the Daytona Speedway.

DARPA Robotics Challenge

In 2012, Torc researchers participated[16] in the DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC) with Team ViGIR (Virginia-Germany Interdisciplinary Robotics Team). The program challenged teams to develop robotic software and hardware capabilities to support first responders. The team made it to the finale[17].

Military

Torc’s technology is currently being used in military applications in various parts of the world. One such vehicle is GUSS (Ground Unmanned Support Surrogate)[18] an autonomous vehicle used to carry equipment for the Marines. Torc has also developed an advanced sensor fusion system[5] for the Department of Defense that is used to increase high-speed obstacle detection, classification and prediction

In 2012, Torc’s autonomous vehicle for Air Force Research Labs (AFRL)[7] demonstrated its ability to perform expedient runway surveys, collect soil hardness measurements, provide terrain date and report hazards to flight.

Mining

Torc developed a remote control solution[19] for hazardous mining areas. The team replicated the cab of a 240-ton haul truck and developed a teleoperated control system to allow operators to teleoperate the haul truck from a safe distance away.

Multivehicle platooning

Torc participated in a successful five-vehicle platoon test[20] in 2015 with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)’s Saxton Transportation Operations Laboratory. The test was conducted on an inactive naval air base in Willow Grove, PA.

References

  1. ↑ TORC Robotics
  2. ↑ TORC Robotics to expand in Blacksburg with room for 20 more employees, The Roanoke Times, Dec 19, 2016
  3. ↑ Blacksburg company involved in self-driving vehicles cruises into new home, The Roanoke Times, July 25, 2015
  4. 1 2 TORC Robotics in Blacksburg was a pioneer in the technology behind driverless cars, Virginia Business, October 30, 2014
  5. 1 2 TORC Robotics to develop long-range obstacle detection for autonomous vehicle navigation, Telematics Wire, January 18, 2012
  6. ↑ Marine Corps futurists prototyping modular ground robot, Inside Defense, April 18, 2017
  7. 1 2 Autonomous Vehicle Developed for Surveying Assault-Zone Runways, Mars Daily, May 11, 2012
  8. ↑ Remote control system for compact equipment, Pro Contractor Rentals
  9. ↑ DCD Protected Mobility showcasing unmanned Husky route clearance vehicle, defenceWeb, Sep 15, 2016
  10. ↑ Automatic, Virginia Tech Magazine, Spring 2012
  11. ↑ Autonomous Vehicles Complete DARPA Urban Challenge, IEEE Spectrum, Nov 1, 2007
  12. ↑ About the Blind Driver Challenge, National Federation of the Blind
  13. ↑ Blind Driver Challenge project wins top awards at National Instruments' NI Week, Virginia Tech College of Engineering
  14. ↑ Eyes on the Road: TORC Robotics Helps Blind Driver See, Allied Vision, May 18, 2015
  15. ↑ Blind Man Drives High-Tech Car at Daytona Speedway, Fox News Auto, Jan 31, 2011
  16. ↑ DARPA Selects Team ViGIR Led by TORC for Robotics Challenge, Unmanned Systems Technology, Oct 22, 2012
  17. ↑ 2 College of Engineering robotics teams prep for DARPA Robotics Challenge finale, Virginia Tech, June 4, 2015
  18. ↑ Intelligent Robots Set to Change Combat Landscape, Military.com, Aug 10, 2012
  19. ↑ TORC delivers remote control solutions for hazardous mining areas, mining-technology.com, Apr 2, 2014
  20. ↑ Saxton lab Demonstrates Multivehicle Platooning with CAAC, U.S. Department of Transportation, Fall 2015
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