Project Profile


Goals of the project

The primary goal of this project is to design, fabricate, assemble, and test a race car that complies with the Formula SAE competition rules. The competition is sponsored by Society of Automotive Engineers, International (SAE) and takes places every year during June.

Nature of the Collaboration

There are at least 5 teams involved with the design of the race car; the teams are: chassis and structure, controls, engine, suspension, and drivetrain. During the manufacturing stage, new teams are formed from the same group of students for different tasks associated with the fabrication and assembly of the various parts for the vehicle.

Skills

Solid modeling/CAD; Finite Element Analysis; programming; Computer-Aided Manufacturing

Tools

CNC and manual machines; 3D printers; welders; tools for composite materials processing

Process

Students design all the various components of the race car, and present their initial designs and trade studies at a Preliminary Design Review (PDR). Subsequently, the design is finalized in the Critical Design Review (CDR). Once the manufacturing steps are planned, there is a review of manufacturing processes is held. Then, the various components are manufactured and the race car is assembled. Finally, the car is tested at local facilities before being shipped to the competition.

Milestones

Preliminary Design Review (PDR)

Critical Design Review (CDR)

Final assembly

Competition in June

Challenges encountered

The integration of knowledge from various sources and courses into a large-scale design and build project. The process of mimicking industry practices in a university setting is very helpful with the motivation of students.

Major outcomes

The outcome of the project was a light (140 Kg) race car with a turbocharged Honda CRF450X engine. The vehicle was among the lowest weight ones at the competition.

Innovations, impact and successes

The major innovation was the integration of a turbocharger onto a liquid-cooled single-cylinder four-stroke engine with minimal weight penalty. 

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