7.15 Friday Scrutineering

After working late into the evening, the electric solar car team met in the lobby before 7:00 AM so we could be at the Texas Motor Speedway when the gates opened. We were anxious to go through the eight scrutineering stations:
1. Meeting General Requirements- length, width, amount of space between roll cage and driver, number of welding points used in fastening roll bar to frame, etc.
2. Electrical and Battery Requirements- accuracy of electrical schematics, supplemental battery isolated from propulsion batteries, internal and external motor disconnect marked and easily accessible to driver, etc.
3. Tilt and Turning Radius Check- vehicle can be lifted  20 degrees along a line perpendicular with the drive axle, The track (distance between front wheels) is no less than half the wheel base (distance between front and rear wheels), a driver will demonstrate a 180° turn within a diameter of 15 meters.
4. Vehicle Handling Slalom- require the team to drive the course at a speed simulating road conditions [approximately 20 mph]. Each driver on a team must demonstrate their ability to successfully drive the course.
5. Braking- a driver will demonstrate the vehicle driving at 15mph will brake in two seconds OR 20mph/2.5 seconds, 25mph/3 seconds, 30mph/3.5 seconds
6. Endurance- This is a drive around the race track with the electric solar car, its two support vehicles, and its trailer. All drivers will demonstrate correct procedures in driving and emergency stops.
7. Road Test- Position the solar car and test truck on opposite sides of the test area facing each other. Accelerate the solar car to road speeds and pass the test truck on the right side.
8. Electric Solar Powered Vehicle Station- Demonstrate the battery box has a maximum of 2 Kw/hr, Demonstrate that the team has a system for measuring driver/passenger weight and preparing accurate ballast, Demonstrate that the Power Station array can be safely rotated, if the team is tracking the movement of the sun, etc.

Cameron was on time for our early morning rendezvous, but slept a bit more while waiting for teammates.

Mr. Harris arriving at the Texas Motor Speedway

Team members putting the car in the pit

Before scruteneering began, I took a walk around to see what some of the other cars looked like.  Cars powered directly by solar power have their panels cleverly arrayed in interesting configurations. Our car is electric solar powered and our solar panels are mounted on the roof of the trailer. The panels then charge batteries housed in the trailer which, when charged, are put in the car.

Shown above are the solar panels mounted on our trailer.

Mr. Lucks, Mr. Smith, and Cameron explained to me how the solar panels on our trailer roof create electricity. As I understood it, the panels are wired to take their energy to the back up batteries. There are four batteries and each will hold 13 volts, so the ideal is 52 volts (13 x 4).  In the displays, the first number represents the voltage of the panels and the second number is the voltage of the batteries. There are two charges—one for each solar panel.  

During the morning, we had a dramatic front of thunderstorms. Very refreshing! The temperature dropped to 73° before the sun came out and by the afternoon it was in the 90°'s and very humid. 

Below is a photo of Jackie loosening a nut so that the camber angle of the front wheels can be adjusted. 

Team members were busy working on the car before their first scruteneering test. 

The first scruteneering station was #3- Titlt and Turning. The judges jacked the car on its side until it was at a 20° angle. The judge had a reader which he put on the top frame of the car; it did not seem to be reading correctly so Steve and Nick assisted while seated in the car with a phone app. 

Alex speaking with the judges about the tilting test

The judges measured the width of the front wheel base to see how it met the required ratio of wheel width to car length. 

Here is a video of Nick talking about the tilting scruteneering test:

Mr. Lucks and Alex discuss the electrical schematics which is part of Scruteneering Test #2:


The most exciting test today was the slalom. Each driver had to drive the car through a slalom course and evacuate the car within a set number of seconds. The harness that the driver and passenger wear has five clasps, so it is not an easy task. Here is a video of the first to drive, Cameron and Elijah, and a few photos of the other drivers.

Elijah 

Alex driving with Elijah

Chris 

Marisa driving with Jackie

Nick driving with Chris

Steve driving with Marisa

Jackie and Marisa evacuating car

The next scurteneering station was test #1- Meeting General Requirements. The judges determined that some of the welding would have to be done over and some additions to the body frame to protect passengers in the event of a crash. Students worked the remainder of the day on making adjustments.

A judge showing Chris where adjustments need to be made. 

Judge

Lunch!

Elijah is preparing the car for additional support

Elijah is putting in place and electrical cover while Marisa works on chain tension

Steve welding (with Mr. Harris) reinforcement as instructed by the judge

In preparation for more scruteneering tests, Alex worked diligently on creating the electrical schematics for the secondary battery (brakes, signals, horn, fan, etc) while Jackie wrote down the procedure for replacing the batteries from the car with the back up batteries on the trailer. 

The second part of test 3, Tilting and Turning, was demonstrated by Steve:

Upon returning to the hotel the team met to plan tomorrow's tasks.