Beijing , China ( CNN ) -- A driverless van has completed the longest-ever trip by an unmanned vehicle , beginning in Italy and arriving in China , covering 13,000 kilometers ( 8,077 miles ) , researchers said . The van arrived at the Shanghai World Expo on Thursday , after leaving Italy on July 20 . The three-month trip took the van through Eastern Europe , Russia and Kazakhstan ; across China through the Gobi Desert ; and finally along the Great Wall , before arriving for a celebration at the expo . The driverless van relied solely on electricity . See more of CNN 's tech coverage . The vehicle weathered three months of rain , blizzards and sun , and arrived in Shanghai with no major problems , according to researchers tracking its progress . The van even stopped to pick up hitchhikers outside of Moscow . `` We are really happy . It 's a real milestone in our field of vehicular robotics , '' said lead researcher Alberto Broggi . The van , designed by Italian tech company Vislab , featured 12 refined sensors , including cameras , a carbon dioxide sensor , a GPS device and an off-road laser scanner . `` This driverless trip to China shows how science can capture people 's imagination through achievements that would recently have been unthinkable ... [ and ] provide major environmental and economic benefits , '' said Maire Geoghegan-Quinn , head of research , innovation and science for the European Commission . See more of CNN 's special coverage of China . The record-setting journey comes in amid of major developments in driverless vehicle technology . Earlier this month , Google announced that its self-driving vehicle had successfully traveled about 350 miles [ 563 kilometers ] from its headquarters in Mountain View , California , to Santa Monica , California . Google , which engages in energy-related businesses along with its core Internet search-engine service , says its self-driving cars have logged more than 140,000 miles . General Motors , Volkswagen and Stanford University are also developing driverless vehicles . No maps were used as Vislab 's van traveled from Italy , then off-road through much of Siberia and China . The van topped out at 37 miles per hour and traveled about four hours a day to allow for adequate battery recharging . As for human intervention during the van 's three-month journey , `` We had to intervene manually only on limited occasions , such as in the Moscow traffic jams and when passing toll stations , '' said lead researcher Broggi , who also is a professor at Italy 's University of Parma . Two engineers rode in the van to prevent dangerous situations . The vehicle was part of a four-vehicle caravan , which included a leading van that was occasionally driven by two engineers , but mostly operated without human guidance . From Italy to Russia to China , the driverless van baffled onlookers . During a special demonstration on the outskirts of Moscow on September 10 , a police officer approached the vehicle as it maneuvered in a pedestrian zone , only to find a driver missing . `` He realized there was no driver ! '' engineers wrote on the van 's official trip blog . `` He then looked around and tried to find a clue of what was happening . He really seemed puzzled ! '' `` We talked to him ... explained this is a big test , '' Broggi said . `` It was extremely difficult , but in the end we avoided getting the first ticket to an autonomous vehicle . '' Other challenges along the way included replacing a 430-kilogram battery in Moscow , lengthy and complicated border crossings due to customs clearances , and several frigid nights camping along the van 's route in Siberia . `` We were n't worried about not making it , '' though , Broggi said . `` This big trip was an intermediary step in a longer process . We have something new planned for 2012 . '' The European Research Council primarily funded the expedition , to develop technology to increase road safety and fuel efficiency by supplementing driver decisions at the wheel . The project used low-cost technologies that could be integrated in most current vehicles ' chassis , researchers said . More than 1.2 million people die annually in auto crashes , according to the World Health Organization .
Van arrives at the Shanghai World Expo on Thursday . The Chinese government has been trying to boost its image as a global economic power by promoting itself as an innovator, but it is also struggling with how to handle the fallout from China's slowing economy. It traveled through Eastern Europe , Russia and Kazakhstan . The van then went through the Gobi Desert and along the Great Wall .