Team Phoenix has been chosen to compete as a finalist in Microsoft’s Imagine Cup Competition with their new form of transport called taxibuses
IRVINE, CA July 3, 2008 – A group of four students from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, calling themselves Team Phoenix, have been selected as finalists to compete in the Imagine Cup 2008 worldwide finals to take place in Paris July 3–8, 2008. This year the Microsoft competition is challenging young programmers around the world to “Imagine a world where technology enables a sustainable environment.”
At the core of Team Phoenix’s Taxibus solution is GeoBase mapping software by Telogis. The software solution uses GeoBase to determine optimum routes for taxibuses and to give a powerful visualization of the simulation.
“We were looking for some mapping software that could meet the needs of our taxibus simulation,” stated Louis Sayers, a recent graduate at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, and member of Team Phoenix. “GeoBase was the only product we found that allowed us to do it in a straightforward manner."
The new form of transport called taxibuses are dynamically routed vehicles that pick passengers up from their current location and drop them exactly where they want to go, picking up other passengers along the way. They provide a form of transport that is as cheap and environmentally friendly as a bus but as convenient as a car.
“The Imagine Cup is all about bringing tomorrow’s top visionaries together and harnessing the power of technology to build a better world,” explains Telogis CEO David Cozzens. “The GeoBase platform has provided the routing and mapping software necessary for the [University of] Canterbury students to compete with a solution that addresses our global transportation problem.”
The team members of Team Phoenix are Stephen Fitchett, Louis Sayers, Janina Voigt, and Yugan Yugaraja. Their academic mentor is Warwick Irwin and their industry mentor is Mike Darton.
10 July 2008
