Local Autonomous Cars and Espionage

There were a couple technology stories related to the University of Illinois and some local and international ramifications. The University of Illinois is collaborating with Rantoul and others for an automated car test track on the old Chanute Air Base. From WCCU (including a video segment) earlier this month:

Rantoul may be the new face for autonomous driving with a new test track...

Say hello to the Illinois Automated and Connected Track (I-ACT) - a research facility in Rantoul that would conduct testing on self-driving vehicles.

"They would be able to bring these vehicles up to a speed of 75 mph and then test braking, distance, right lane activity and left lane activity," said Rantoul Mayor Charles Smith.

The Smart Transportation Infrastructure Initiative has been working on this project for about a year. The project is a result of a partnership with several Illinois universities, including Northwestern University, the University of Illinois- Chicago and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

"Also, the Village of Rantoul will be donating that land to the university," Smith said.

More at the full article here. More information on the test track plans are available from Illinois Center on Transportation here. More information on the Smart Transportation Infrastructure Initiative (STII) here.

In more concerns about foreign intelligence threats (following up on a previous concern about Huawei at the Research Park), the University is ending its partnership with Huawei. From the Daily Illini Monday:

The University has decided to cancel further partnership with Huawei, one of the largest Chinese high-tech telecommunications equipment companies, which granted fundings and research awards for University faculties.

The decision was not publicly posted on University websites but only announced in an email sent to the College of Engineering faculty and staff...

Bill Bell, executive director of marketing and communications of Engineering, said the U.S. government has filed a criminal charge against Huawei and its leadership, so the University thinks it is time to reconsider the relationship with Huawei.

Bell said he is not sure if this is the first time the University canceled partnerships with a company because of criminal charge issues. He said long before the recent news of Huawei, the University had been careful when negotiating with companies and corporate partners to protect the institution, regardless of their headquarters location.

Huawei has been involved in lawsuits and disputes against the U.S. government for years. The U.S. government believes Huawei is a threat to national security.

More at the full article here. March Cheat Sheet post on the Huawei concerns at the U of I Research Park here: U of I Research Park and Spygames.