Hosted by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle
Systems International and the Office of Naval Research

Arlington, VA - June 29, 2006 - From August 2nd through the 6th, student teams from high schools and universities around the world will gather in San Diego, CA at SPAWAR Systems Center San Diego's TRANSDEC Facility to compete using cutting-edge technology for money and bragging rights in AUVSI and ONR's 9th International Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition. The goals of the competition are to challenge a new generation of engineers to design and build Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) capable of performing realistic missions in the underwater environment. These missions include:

- 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.

This competition showcases the best and brightest minds for the future of unmanned underwater vehicles. Join us in San Diego during to meet tomorrow's industry leaders. Admission is free to the public.

2005 Competition Standings:
1st Place: University of Florida
2nd Place: Ecole de Technologie Superieure (Montreal)
3rd Place: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4th Place: Duke University

In addition to AUVSI and ONR, the competition is supported by Applied Research Associates (ARA), The Boeing Company, DeepSea Power & Light, IXSEA, Inc., the Lindbergh Chapter of AUVSI, Lockheed Martin MS2 Undersea Systems, Naval Undersea Warfare Division - Newport, Northrop Grumman, SPAWAR Systems Center San Diego, Tachyon Networks, Inc. and Teledyne RD Instruments.

The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) is the world's largest non-profit organization devoted exclusively to advancing the unmanned systems community. AUVSI, with members from government organizations, industry and academia, is committed to fostering, developing, and promoting unmanned systems and related technologies.

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) manages science and technology research for the Navy and Marine Corps. ONR sponsors basic and applied research in oceanography, advanced materials, sensors, robotics, biomedical science and technology, electronics, surveillance, mathematics, manufacturing technology, information science, advanced combat systems, and technologies for ships, submarines, aircraft, and ground vehicles - and more. For information about ONR's programs, go to http://www.onr.navy.mil.

###

For all inquiries:
Gretchen Wherry
AUVSI
2700 S. Quincy Street, Suite 400
Arlington, VA 22206, USA
Phone: +1 703 845 9671
Fax: +1 703 845 9679
wherry@auvsi.org