You might have heard the terms "spherical cow" or "spherical horse" as a way to simplify a complex concept to illustrate some physical phenomena without unnecessary details.
As car racing is one of my passions, I figured why don't we try racing spherical cars, and learn something along the way?
You should have solid beginner-level understanding of Python to be able to program your "driver". You can try one of the free Python courses, such as one of these.
Basic understanding of school level physics is recommended.
Very basic understanding of Git commands such as
git clone
and
git pull
is required to get the source code and keep it up to date.
It's recommended to install the Pillow library so that you can get nice graphs to simplify debugging your racers.
Before participating in any race, please make sure you have the latest version
of this repository by running git pull. The race setups and descriptions might
get improved/clarified over time, as well as updated in case new records are set.
Some races may also be removed in case they are proved to be incorrect / too ambiguous.
Race 01 is a simple 1-mile start-and-stop race. This is a very simple race, the main purpose here is to let people learn how to race a spherical car by writing code in Python :)
Open race_01.py and read the comment at the start of the file
for rules and tips on how to proceed.
Race 02 is a simple 100-meter straight line course where the only limiting factor is that your car has to drive slower than 30 m/s at the finish line. In this race you might learn something interesting and counter-intuitive.
Open race_02.py and read the comment at the start of the file
for rules and tips on how to proceed.
Race 03 is our first 2D race, and it looks like a small autox course:
Open race_03.py and read the comment at the start of the file
for rules and tips on how to proceed.
The provided naive solution uses a "karting" line, but the fastest line will be much more interesting. Once you find the optimal solution, compare the speed-vs-distance graph of the naive solution with the same graph for the optimal solution. You will notice that even such a simple 2D spherical car model requires some "driving techniques" that are typically believed to be needed only for much more complex 3D effects...
This takes the idea of Race 03 and takes a few more cones to make it look like an autox slalom. The optimal solution for this race is a bit tedious, so feel free to skip to Race 05 if you prefer.
Open race_04.py and read the comment at the start of the file
for rules and tips on how to proceed.
We're getting back to the basics, and racing a simple "straight, 90º corner, straight" course:
Sounds simple? But the optimal solution will likely be pretty complicated! Or interesting, rather?
Open race_05.py and read the comment at the
start of the file for rules and tips on how to proceed.
We take the course design from Race 05 and take it one step further, adding 300 meters to the length of the straight between the corner and the finish. Will that affect the optimal line through the corner?
Open race_06.py and read the comment at the start of the file
for rules and tips on how to proceed.
Have fun!