Overview

Major Components of Event
 * Scrutineering

media type="youtube" key="QZu5IWnR3jk" height="315" width="560" align="center"

media type="youtube" key="xP1g4cqdGEI" height="315" width="560" align="center"

3.3 Preliminary Vehicle Design Report (PVDR)- Due June 15, 2013
3.3.A A preliminary vehicle design report must be submitted to ASC Headquarters by the date indicated in Reg. 3.2.A.1. The report shall include a preliminary design review of your vehicle’s mechanical, electrical systems and proposed battery, instructions are provided in Appendix D. The report shall include the preliminary design information on the structural chassis and roll cage providing protection to the driver, an overview of the electrical approach to the solar car and proposed battery system. Particular attention will be given to:

3.3.A.1 Mechanical Team leader contact information (phone & email)

3.3.A.2 Roll over and impact protection for the driver

3.3.A.3 An overview of the electrical approach to the solar vehicle

3.3.A.4 Electrical Team leader contact information (phone & email)

3.3.A.5 A preliminary electrical diagram showing greater than 24 volt service plans.

3.3.A.6 Preliminary battery approval document including the battery team leader contact information (phone & email)

3.3.A.7 Battery types and suppliers/manufacturers’ being considered if one is not already chosen

3.3.A.8 Battery testing plans with critical dates.

3.4 Vehicle Design Report- Due October 15, 2013
A vehicle design report including technical documents describing the solar car’s mechanical systems, electrical systems, batteries, and solar cells must be submitted to ASC Headquarters for approval by the date indicated in Reg. 3.2.A.2. Early submissions will receive prompt review and feedback by ASC Headquarters. Early submissions may be sent as individual technical documents for review without the complete vehicle design report. The technical information provided in these documents will not be made public prior to the end of the Event. The information contained in each team’s final submission must match the solar car presented at Scrutineering. Safety should be the primary concern with regard to the structural development and fabrication of the solar cars.

3.4.A Document Format: Vehicle design reports shall be formatted as a PDF Package with each technical document appearing as a single PDF within the vehicle design report PDF Package. PDF Package file names shall contain sponsoring organizations name_ASC 2014VDR. Example: a report from the University of ACME may appear as “UnivOfACME_ASC2014VDR.pdf” with the first letter of each new word capitalized and common abbreviations accepted.

3.4.B Mechanical Technical Report: A detailed mechanical technical report must be submitted to ASC Headquarters as part of the Vehicle Design Report by the date indicated in Reg. 3.2.A.2. The mechanical tech report must present the as-built design; addressing:

3.4.B.1 design issues involved in impact, roll over and suspension scenarios.

3.4.B.2 address vehicle stability, including center of gravity and relative weights on each wheel.

Documentation with calculations and/or testing should be provided. Photos, drawings and anecdotal references are acceptable. The entire technical document including appendices shall not exceed fifty (50) pages (not sheets) in length. Detailed instructions are provided in Appendix E.

===3.4.C Electrical Systems Technical Report: An electrical systems technical report must be submitted to ASC Headquarters as part of the Vehicle Design Report by the date indicated in Reg. 3.2.A.2. The tech report must document the electrical design approach. The tech report must include:===

3.4.C.1 a functional system diagram; and, rough schematic; showing all essential power circuits and electrical equipment of the solar car in schematic form. The drawing should include power generation devices (array, regen, etc.), power storage (batteries, etc.), switching and isolation mechanisms, battery protection systems, motor, motor controller, and any auxiliary circuits

3.4.C.2 Battery Approval Forms for each battery type

Detailed instructions are provided in Appendix F.

===3.4.D Battery Tech Report: All storage batteries used in the solar car must be approved by ASC Headquarters. Battery tech report must be submitted to ASC Headquarters as part of the Vehicle Design Report by the date indicated in Reg. 3.2.A.2. Mass and cost will be based on manufacturer’s data. If an intermediate supplier is used, submit only the cell manufacturer’s data as required on the Battery Approval Form. Battery Approval Forms shall be provided on the Event website, and in Appendix G. Please note the definitions included in Reg. 5.4.A. Each team must provide a copy of the manufacturer’s battery specification sheet, the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) obtained from the battery manufacturer, and a battery approval form with the following battery information in the tech report:===

3.4.D.1 Manufacturer’s name, and contact information

3.4.D.2 Stock number, type, or description

3.4.D.3 Cell & Module voltage (e.g., 1.2, 4, 6, 12, or 24 V)

3.4.D.4 Bus voltage

3.4.D.5 Number of modules to be used in the solar car

3.4.D.6 Manufacturer’s specifications, including capacity (kWh), weight (kg), and cost (US$)

3.4.D.7 Spill/damage protocols and procedures (if these are not provided in the MSDS then the team must obtain this information from the manufacturer and submit it to Headquarters with the MSDS)

3.4.D.8 A description of the battery box(es) and their mounting. Include the chemical compatibility of the box material and the electrolyte in case of leakage

3.4.D.9 Description of battery protection system per Reg. 5.4.

3.4.D.10 Battery Approval Form for each battery type

===3.4.E Battery Protection Tech Report: All batteries must be protected with technology appropriate to the chemistry used. Battery protection test report must be submitted to ASC Headquarters as part of the Vehicle Design Report by the date indicated in Reg. 3.2.A.2. The tech report must document the design approach used with respect to Reg. 5.4 including the following information:===

3.4.E.1 Battery Approval Forms for each battery type

3.4.E.2 Over temperature set points (charge and discharge if different) for each battery type

3.4.E.3 Under voltage set point for each battery type

3.4.E.4 Over voltage set point for each battery type

3.4.E.5 Over current set point for each battery type

3.4.E.6 Block diagram for BPS for each battery type

3.4.E.7 Description of how the BPS will operate for each battery type.

3.4.E.8 How firmware or settings will be rendered static and un-modifiable after inspection (i.e. sealed in battery enclosure)

===3.4.F Solar Cell Tech Report: All solar cells must be approved by ASC Headquarters. Solar cell tech reports must be submitted to ASC Headquarters by as part of the Vehicle Design Report by Reg. 3.2.A.2. Solar Cell Approval Forms shall be provided on the Event website and in Appendix H and should be submitted as early as possible for approval. Each team must provide a copy of the manufacturer’s solar cell specification sheet, copy of invoice for all solar cells included, and a solar cell approval form with the following solar cell information in the tech report:===

3.4.F.1 Manufacturer’s name and contact information

3.4.F.2 Stock number, type, or description

3.4.F.3 Manufacturer’s quote for cell area (cm2)

3.4.F.4 Manufacturer’s quote for performance

3.4.F.5 Cost (US$) per cell

3.4.F.6 Cell area (cm2)

3.4.F.7 A detailed layout map of the vehicle, showing all cell types/sizes and locations, as well as calculations of total area

Road registration & fee is due: March 15, 2014.
**__Major components of the drive system__**: Solar array, Power Trackers, Batteries, motor controller, motor, wheels/tires. __Solar Array__: Moncrystalline silicon (there are terestrial grade and space grade) Suppliers Siemens and ASE Americas. each cell = .5 volts @ 3amps

__Power Trackers__: "maximum peak power tracker" (MPPT) adjust power to match system voltage. Supplier AERL

__Batteries__: Probably Lithium Ion or Nickle Cadmium.....Gel Sealed and lighter but expensive. lead.....heavy but better for overcharging issues, cheap, readily available. Number of batteries determined by system voltage and rules of contest

__Motor:__ Decide between brush or brushless. If we want regenerative braking= D and D sepex motor. Drive train= hub style motor, chain drive, belt drive, direct drive? Supplier: Solectria Should produce up to 5 hp continuous power

__State-of-charge-meter__: "E Meter" by Cruising Equipment. This guage indicates system voltage, amp draw, battery energy remaining.

__Voltmeter__ for each battery

__Steering__: Do not want the added weight of power steering. Simple rack and pinion. Do's and don'ts of wheel shape is in regs.

__Suspension__: 3 or 4 wheel? 3 wheel = less drag. If this is the route then single wheel in rear = more stability 4 wheel = better suspension = less broken parts (PVC's are delicate) and you can straddle road debris Double Wishbone seems to be most common type

__Tires__: Believe it or not Bridgestone makes tires specifically for solar race cars: Ecopia Tires (ep80). 100psi rating, rewuire specialty wheels and custom hubs

__Braking__: Hydraulic disc brakes. To reduce drag Go karts have special spring loaded calipers so pads are not against disc when no brakes are applied

__Magnetic Contact speedometer__ - no drag. Can find in Sports equipment stores.

__Frame and roll cage:__ Tubular aluminum? Cheaper, easier to do, heavier. Composite? Lighter, expensive more difficult to work with.

Been giving this some thought..... Keep It Simple Stupid

First: Build a rolling chasis = car (within footprint of regs of competition). Suspension, steering, braking, frame, roll cage, safety measures Second: make that car a battery operated car.(motors, controllers, meters, wiring). Last: Make it a solar powered battery operated car (PV array, shape of body...these things could be influenced by race course selection for next year's competion)

[]