London, England - A car driven by a high-tech ghost of laser sensors and computers is on show at the Kensington Science Museum before being shipped to the US to compete against other robot cars in November 2007.
The VW Passat 2.0 TDI uses two eye-like laser sensors in front and one at the rear to scan road conditions, buildings, other vehicles and pedestrians over a range of up to 200m.
A computer interprets the information using software developed by the Ibeo sensor company in Hamburg, Germany.
The car will compete against other driverless vehicles in the third annual US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) Urban Challenge over a 96km course.
Ibeo chief executive Ulrich Lages said: "We are competing against the world's best in terms of automobile technology.
"We are a small team but believe we have a great chance at Darpa 2007. Our laser technology gives us a lead of several years in object and environmental detection."
The modified Passat is due to go into small-scale production in 2008 and the firm hopes that its technology can eventually be used in production cars.
- Scientists at a February 2007, San Francisco conference predicted robot-driven cars could be shuttling humans by 2030. - AFP