Putting the Pieces Together

The groups have now begun the construction of their prototypes. The groups are making the prototypes from electrical conduit. They have been at it for the whole week and day by day are getting closer to finishing. New measurements and shapes are being designed as they go to improve each group models. The groups weld the pieces together using the GMAW (Gas Metal Arc Welding) process. This process is easier because it has a continuous wire feed that is adjustable to specific rate. This can contribute to a good weld and also go much faster.

Ready for Prototypes

This week in Power Drive is about the same as the last. The groups are continuing to work on their full sized drawings of their cars. Both groups are working on a top view and also a side few of their models. Along with making measurements for the cars the groups also have to calculate the weight of the chassis and the weight of the materials that go on the car. The chassis is the foundation of the car. It takes a well built chassis to have a fast car. The chassis will most likely be made out of 4130 chrome molly alloy because it is strong and durable. The groups should have their full sized drawings done by next week.

Week #5 in Power Drive

This week in Power Drive is about the same as the last. The groups are continuing to work on their full sized drawings of their cars. Both groups are working on a top view and also a side few of their models. Along with making measurements for the cars the groups also have to calculate the weight of the chassis and the weight of the materials that go on the car. The chassis is the foundation of the car. It takes a well built chassis to have a fast car. The chassis will most likely be made out of 4130 chrome molly alloy because it is strong and durable. The groups should have their full sized drawings done by next week.

Week 4

This week in power drive the team has started outlining their full scale prototypes. They are making their cars to full scale on paper first. From there they will adjust the measurements to make sure that the drivers and parts will fit in the car. Two teams are working on two different cars. The reason they do this is so that they can make adjustments to the car before they actually start building the actual prototype. This saves time and money. The designers of the two cars are M. Wellman and J. Hennig. The cars that were chosen had the less drag and force put on them in the wind tunnel. Both teams are taking a different approach at designing the car. The group using J. Hennig’s model is creating the car from a side view. The group using M. Wellman’s design is creating the model from the bottom view. To see how they are the team is doing check out the blog next week!

Testing

The team is finally done with their wooden models and has been testing them in the wind tunnel. They have been testing last week. There have been some inconsistent results with the wind tunnel and they are working on making them better. The wind tunnel is a devise that the team uses to test the drag and aerodynamics on the models. The wind tunnel has a small grain bin fan that draws air through the tunnel. The fan was donated by one of our great sponsors Stanek Brothers Farms. We give a special thanks to them. It roughly runs at a speed of 85mph. The tunnel is made out of Lexan glass. It is also sealed tight to insure that they are able to get a quality reading from the force sensor. The force sensor is the devise that measures the force on the model. It is attached to a scientific calculator which shows the results. As the fan draws air through the tunnel it pulls on the model and the more the model is aerodynamically the less drag which in turn puts less force on the gage. This is important in making the car. The less force on the car allows the batteries to use less power. In the coming weeks the team will be working on making prototypes of the cars. Check out the blog next week to check out what’s happening with The B-R Power Drive Team.