Solar Powered Car Attempts to Break Record 126
Snowdon writes "Jaycar Sunswift III today started on its 4000km journey across the Australian outback, in an attempt to beat the 8.5 day record from Perth to Sydney. The team expects to complete the journey in 6 days, depending on the weather. It is a seriously innovative machine, with the aerodynamic design iteratively optimised on 80 CS lab computers over three months, custom-built carbon-fibre wheels, chassis, suspension and steering components, and custom-built power electronics and telemetry/control systems (components of which presently use Linux, but will soon run Iguana/Wombat). It is the result of several years' work by both undergraduate and postgraduate students at UNSW. Keep track of the team's progress by visiting www.sunswift.com."
No Roo bars? (Score:3, Interesting)
The course is not symetrical (Score:5, Interesting)
good luck! (Score:3, Interesting)
Let me take this opportunity to plug the premire solar car race, coming up this October, for its 20th anniversary, the World Solar Challenge. I hope to be there, and I'm sure UNSW will join the rest of the field. Everyone come watch if you can, or at least follow along online.
http://www.wsc.org.au/2007/ [wsc.org.au]
What about the solar cells? (Score:5, Interesting)
A common reference that my team gives the public is that our car runs on the power of a hair dryer. Does this car attain more or less power.
I'd guess this project doesn't have any restrictions. I just wonder, that's all.
Are there Open projects for adapting a street car? (Score:3, Interesting)
induction charging, or plug in at the garage at home, a small solar panel to top off at work before the schlep home...
Not from scratch like these guys...
http://www.theoscarproject.org/ [theoscarproject.org]
yeah, I know I could google it...
Re:good luck! (Score:5, Interesting)
In 2003, Aurora and MIT Tesseract were less than a minute apart for much of the race, until Tesseract hit an amber traffic light in Port Augusta, slammed on the brakes, and popped two tyres. (Aurora had studied rolling resistance versus tyre pressure, and discovered that the last bit of extra inflation caused almost no change in rolling resistance, and thus ran their tyres at a saner pressure.) Blown tyres are quite common, which considering that these are mostly three wheeled vehicles, and that the top cars often go in excess of 100km/h, is terrifying.