Team Momentum starts 'rayce' at Auto Show

By Laura Bailey
News Service

The University's Team Momentum showed off its solar car—complete with space-age improvements in the body design and mechanical equipment—last week at Detroit's North American International Auto Show (NAIAS).

Engineering students Peter Balogh (mechanical engineering), left, and Mirai Aki (electrical engineering) peel off the cover to unveil Team Momentum’s new solar car Jan. 11 at the North American International Auto Show in downtown Detroit. (Photo by Martin Vloet, U-M Photo Services)

Team members hope the most recent improvements will help them win the North American Solar Challenge "rayce" (combination of 'race' and sun 'rays'), which begins in Austin, Texas, in July and ends in Calgary, Alberta, 10 days later. A good showing will qualify the team for the World Solar Challenge, a race across Australia in September.

That's a tall order for the former championship team that, during a heartbreaking equipment failure in 2003, didn't qualify to race. But team director Michael Brackney is confident that vigorous team development, combined with design improvements in this year's car, will give the team the winning edge.

It's important to note that in every race cycle the Michigan team builds an entirely new car; it does not use the previous year's vehicle, team members say.

"If everything lines up over the next year as we're wanting it to, we have a very good chance of being competitive in the World Solar Challenge and possibly winning," Brackney says.

Following are a few of the new car's design elements that the team hopes will propel the car across the finish line before its competitors:

• Real-time operating system (RTOS): The RTOS is the same architecture used in defense department helicopters and, indeed, a defense contractor donated it to the team. It combines functions from cruise control to brake light activation in one system. The last U-M solar car had a more distributed network.

• LCD: The idea isn't new, but the way it's being used, in tandem with the RTOS, is a fresh concept. In the previous car, the driver had two separate displays—one strictly for the rearview camera system and another for vehicle information (speed, battery voltage, etc). This year's car features a combined display in a color LCD that gives the video feed and, in the lower corner, provides the speed—saving driver effort and vehicle power.

• Aerodynamics: Design choices will give the car an aerodynamic advantage. Ferrings are covers that protect the wheels. The team designed thin, windowed ferrings that open at the point at which the wheel turns in to allow for a wider turning radius. The ferrings also open during braking to cool the brakes.

The car also has gone from four to three wheels because studies show that energy lost due to aerodynamic drag at highway speeds is about 70 percent of total energy loss.

With a core group of about 40 students, and a supporting group of another 100 members, the team works year round to develop a new vehicle on a two-year project cycle.

With over a decade of tradition, U-M has the winningest college team in history. But members have experienced heartbreaks, as well. In 2001, U-M became the only college team to win the Solar Car Challenge three times, but steering problems led to disqualification in 2003.

The NAIAS is open to the public Jan. 15-23.