Creating a Vehicle Using Green Technology
Solar Vehicle
EGR 100
12/3/2013
Introduction
Living on Michigan State's campus, one is constantly reminded to “Be Spartan Green”, whether it is turning off the lights or taking a shorter shower, Spartans are always striving to be the most ecofriendly students that any university could have. The problem at hand is to create a vehicle using only green technology, such as solar panels, and have this car race up a ramp as fast as possible, with a shorter time being ideal.
There are many requirements for this project, first of them being that the team itself needs to be qualified to tackle such a task. With two members majoring in mechanical engineering, two members majoring in computer science, and one in biosystems engineering, the team has a wide range of engineers that all pose a special skill that will aid in the creation of this solar car. Another requirement for this project is materials. Some needed are solar panels, which are provided, wheels, gears, axles and some form of a structure. Each week the group needs to collaborate on new ideas and be willing to share their opinions. A major constraint for this project would be time management. With so many different schedules it can be difficult to find the time to meet with the entire group at once.
Each week group members would meet up to accomplish their goal. From starting out with prototypes and ending with a finished project. The desired end result will be a solar car that is light, efficient, and able to use it’s energy source in a way that will help it go as fast as possible up the ramp.
Methods
There are many different possible designs that would have fit within the constraints of this project. The designs that were created initially were later discarded after realizing that transporting a load was no longer a requirement. This meant that the solar car would only need to go as fast as possible. This could be accomplished by either reducing weight or increasing power.
EGR 100
12/3/2013
Introduction
Living on Michigan State's campus, one is constantly reminded to “Be Spartan Green”, whether it is turning off the lights or taking a shorter shower, Spartans are always striving to be the most ecofriendly students that any university could have. The problem at hand is to create a vehicle using only green technology, such as solar panels, and have this car race up a ramp as fast as possible, with a shorter time being ideal.
There are many requirements for this project, first of them being that the team itself needs to be qualified to tackle such a task. With two members majoring in mechanical engineering, two members majoring in computer science, and one in biosystems engineering, the team has a wide range of engineers that all pose a special skill that will aid in the creation of this solar car. Another requirement for this project is materials. Some needed are solar panels, which are provided, wheels, gears, axles and some form of a structure. Each week the group needs to collaborate on new ideas and be willing to share their opinions. A major constraint for this project would be time management. With so many different schedules it can be difficult to find the time to meet with the entire group at once.
Each week group members would meet up to accomplish their goal. From starting out with prototypes and ending with a finished project. The desired end result will be a solar car that is light, efficient, and able to use it’s energy source in a way that will help it go as fast as possible up the ramp.
Methods
There are many different possible designs that would have fit within the constraints of this project. The designs that were created initially were later discarded after realizing that transporting a load was no longer a requirement. This meant that the solar car would only need to go as fast as possible. This could be accomplished by either reducing weight or increasing power.