Some days ago, we gave you word that a PS3 was aiding in attempts to drive a car up Colorado's Pike Peak. We've got more information on that project by Axion Racing, as well as some video of the autonomous vehicle in action.

LinuxDevices is reporting that Axion Racing is using a PS3 running Linux to help the company with their unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV) project, known as "Spirit". The Spirit UAV project outfits a 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee with state-of-the-art cameras and sensor equipment in an attempt to make the Jeep drive itself.

Axion's recent addition to the project was a PlayStation 3 unit housing Yellow Dog Linux. The said PS3 unit, along with the Linux system and additional software, would be used to "quickly examine information from a RGB road finding camera," albeit to help with navigation on roads.

Axion is preparing Spirit to run in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge, which has UAVs conducting "simulated military supply missions in a mock urban area."

In the meantime, if you want to know more about Spirit, we've got a video that explains the different components that are used to drive the Grand Cherokee. This is from 2005 though, so it won't actually showcase the PS3, but it does give you an idea of the kind of processing power they were looking for, something that the PS3 managed to give them in a sleek, black package.

Just how powerful is the Sony PlayStation 3 game console? We know for a fact that it can produce cutting-edge sound and graphics at a whim. We already know that it can help doctors fight tumors. Now we're about to find out that it's good enough to drive a car atop Colorado's Pike Peak.

Yep, and we're not talking about doing it in a racing game. We're dead serious when we say that you can take the back seat and the console will guide a car effortlessly when partnered with GPS, infrared cameras, stereo cameras and Yellow Dog Linux.

At the center of it all, of course, is the Cell processor which we've heard all too well about. Based on the same technology that fires up IBM's Power PCs, the Cell uses its mathematical muscle to do all the complex calculations at lightning-fast speeds to effectively pull off the automotive feat.

Racing's renowned team Axion will showcase this incredible development in the upcoming DARPA Challenge sponsored by the US Government. At stake is US$ 2 million to be won.

Axion has come close to winning the contest twice before as they ranked sixth a few years back and finished in at third in their last outing. Autonomous driving has always been their cup of tea but this time they want to add a little sugar to their spice by throwing in the high-end game console to the repertoire.

"We felt having cars drive themselves was getting a little too easy, so we threw the Sony PlayStation into our bag of tricks," says Axion team leader Bill Kehaly as he jokes around with the idea. The DARPA Challenge takes place on the 3rd of November in a venue yet to be announced.