Final Post

6/8/12

As the title suggests this is the final post on our blog. The solar sprint car was a pleasure to work on and a puzzle to figure out but in the end it turned out good (just not for the track we were going to race on). The project, presentation, and the report are done; we worked on them as hard as possible. Thank you for reading.

-JDN

Week 9 Post 1

6/3/12
This week was mostly centered around modifying and testing the car because the main body was done last week. The wheels were put on but they ended up being the stock wheels instead of the wheels that we printed out because the printed wheels won't be done for another couple of days. Other then this our overall design stayed the same as we originally planned and we spent most of our time testing different gear ratios and fixing the car when it broke. In hindsight we should have made the car sturdier so that it could withstand the strain of so much testing. We also were entered in the solar sprint car competition. This did not go as planned at all as after 3 hours and 45 minutes of waiting for the race a strong breeze lifted our car up and smashed it to pieces on the ground. Our car was finished and we had the foresight to take pictures of it before this happened.

 This is a side view of our finished car

Front view of the finished product

Broken car
-JDN

Week 8 post 1

5/28/12- This week was a very productive week. To start off we soldered the leads of the wires to the alligator clips and tested them to make sure that they worked. Next we created the compartment that will house the empty soda can and tested it to make sure that it would be able to keep the can contained in case of a roll-over accident. This back extension worked well and added very little weight to the car so we think that the design is will work well.

 Jeremiah diligently soldering the wires from the solar panel to the clips

Finished solar car body with soda can

Next class we plan on reattaching our motor and gears, putting on the wheels, and doing extensive testing in preparation for the race at the Franklin institute.

-JDN

Week 7 Post 1

5/21/2012- This week we've began constructing the car from the plans. So far, we have the motor/rear-axle assembly and the base support and solar panel fixed to the chassis.

Here we have the motor and gear assembly. This is attached to the underside of the chassis.

 This is the preparation of the base plate support for the solar panel. We had to sand the wood down at an angle.

The solar panel is attached to the chassis. It is anchored at the bottom with a nail and at the top supports by tape.

This week, we plan to accomplish:

1. Attach  wheels to the axles
2. Design and construct a container for the can.

-JDN

Week 6 Post 2

5/10/12- We have just registered for the race. It's on.

-JDN

Week 6 Post 1

5/10/12- This is going to be a busy week. We have begun construction of our car. So far, our base has been cut out and the front of the car meant for mounting the solar panel has also been cut out. Furthermore, our axle mounts have been constructed and will be mounted to the base when construction continues later this week.  Below are pictures of the base of the car of the team working on the car.

Every big project has to start somewhere, and this is the base of our project

Jeremiah and Derek are drilling a hole in the axle mounts for the axles

-JDN

Week 5 Post 1

We have come to two conclusions of the problems presented in the last post. By analyzing the equation for speed of the car, it is determined that the gear ratio of the car is inversely proportional to the speed of the car. As the gear ratio decreases, the speed increases. The smallest possible gear ratio will be achieved by attaching the largest possible gear to the motor and the smallest possible gear to the axel. Tests will be run with other gear ratios once the car is built, but that is our idea. Also, the mass of the wheels decrease speed. So, there will be two wheels in the back and one wheel in the front. Now that the chassis has been designed, the gear ratio has been determined, the electrical component have been modeled, and the materials have been gathered, there is only one step left to do now: to build.

Week 4 Post 1

4/30/12- We are nearing the final designs for our car. There are three components we have yet to consider. It has been determined that our car will have rear wheel drive, but the gear ratios are still yet to be determined. To find the best gear ratios, we are analyzing the formulas shown below. Also, we are still deciding if the front of the car will have one wheel or two. Finally, we are planning tests to try our final design with and without mirrors on the top of the car. We plan to test if the added solar power compensates for the increase in mass.

Gear ratio:

Angular velocity:

Torque out:

Speed of car:

Power out:

https://learning.dcollege.net/webct/urw/tp2604862946111.lc2491898185011//RelativeResourceManager?contentID=2636949721081

-JDN

Week 3 Post 1

4/23/12- We have decided on our final design. We will absolutely minimize mass by creating a skeleton of our former design, using just enough balsa wood to support the solar panel on top, the electrical components in the middle, and the can in the back. We have drawn an orthographic sketch in autoCAD of our design.

-JDN

Week 2 Post 3

4/15/12- Today is an exciting day! Our kit came, complete with a solar panel, motors, wheels, axels, and balsa wood.  Another two posts will be put up later today for the budget and Project Overview.

This is our proposed design for the body of our solar sprint car with the solar panel attached done in Pro ENGINEER. This design was done with dimension done in a 1 to 1 ratio.

-JDN

Week 2 Post 2

4/12/12- In this post, we will describe our proposed solutions for the problems suggested in post "Week 2 Post 1." The following list will be filled with numbered solutions corresponding with the goals presented in last week's post:

1. In order to do this, we will increase gear ratio.
2. Minimizing the mass of the car will involved using the least dense materials and making the inside of the car hollow.
3. To minimize the coefficient of rolling resistance, we will use the most efficient material as a wheel, not necessarily what comes in the kit.
4. In order to minimize wheel mass, we will use rings as wheels, not disks.
5 and 6. To minimize drag, we will employ a flattened football shaped design with a low cross sectional surface area being presented in the forward direction. This will increase aerodynamics and increase speed.

These will be the guiding principals for our design, and once our kit arrives in the coming days we will begin experimentation and research as to which materials are optimal.

-JDN

Week 2 Post 1

4/10/12- Today in lab we ordered our solar car kit. We also came to a decision on the shape of our design. We have chosen to employ an aerodynamic torpedo-like shape with an indent in it to house the solar panel. This decision was made from an analysis of the "work required" formula provided by Dr. Scoles in lab. The formula is as follows:

This formula is the inspiration for a set of goals for the design of the car. There are two main goals. The first is to decrease the amount of work needed so that the car can maximize all of the power it produces. The second goal is to maximize velocity in order to win the race. Based on the formula, a low amount of work can produce a large velocity if certain variables are minimized. The above formula was analyzed and the set of goals designed to achieve the main goal is as follows:

1. Maximize mechanical efficiency

2. Minimize the mass of the car

3. Minimize the coefficient of rolling resistance

4. Minimize the mass of the wheels

5. Minimize drag

6. Minimize frontal area

A post will follow this one later in the week describing the proposed means of accomplishing each of these six mini-goals in order to accomplish our two main goals. 

-JDN

Week 1 Post 1

4/3/12- Today we experienced a huge success when we welcomed our elusive group mate Derek into the family! Group 03 is ecstatic to add such a valuable team member. Also, we made our blog. Obviously. We decided to choose the solar sprint car design as our project for the term. Today's class was spent researching optimal aerodynamic designs and potential chassis ideas. Possible wheel ideas were also discussed. The goal for next time is to start drawing up plans for potential cars and to decide on the best material(s) to construct the car with. We are excited to proceed with the next 10 weeks of the term and develop the single greatest solar car ever to grace the earth with its existence.

(from left to right) Derek, Nate, Jeremiah

-JDN