May Newsletter
2010-05-05 19:31:26
The end of the school year begins a new chapter in the hydrogen car team saga. Our newly elected leaders are already guiding the improvements for Tigergen II and brainstorming future design plans for Tigergen III. We did not rest long after our competition in March. This month we have demonstrated Tigergen II at two Meet Mizzou Days, the college of engineering’s High School Weekend, Jefferson Middle School, the semi-annual MAE Industrial Advisory Council meeting, and Columbia’s Earth Day Celebration. During the course of the year we have attended over 30 events promoting the team and the University of Missouri, 8 of which were held outside of Columbia. To add to the collection of newspaper articles written about the team this year, the Maneater published a story about Tigergen earlier this month. We have been extensively testing Tigergen II to improve the drive system for the next competition. The team has also been busy documenting the process of building Tigergen II in order to pass that information to future generations. Our team member’s unyielding enthusiasm for engineering has allowed us to overcome many challenges this year. Our determination has been rewarded with successes that continue to motivate us to pursue the art of discovery. We would like to thank our sponsors for their generous support of the Mizzou Hydrogen Car Team. If you are not a current sponsor and are interested in becoming part of the team through a sponsorship, please contact me at president@mizzouhydrogen.org. - Forrest Meyen, President
Two projects for mechanicals
2010-05-05 19:30:21
The mechanicals are starting to focus on two main projects. We are looking ahead to fixing Tigergen II to optimize its mile per gallon. We are focusing on wheels and breaks to max our miles through less friction. We are also doing tests on the car to fix any mechanical problems and to hopefully have it running perfectly by the beginning of next semester. Our other project we are undertaking is beginning design on Tigergen III, with new computer software, Autodesk. We have switchedsoftware to create better compatibility with our electricals on the team. So over the sum
mer we hope to learn the software and move along with new designs to help create Tigergen III. - Rob Margherio, Head Mechanical
mer we hope to learn the software and move along with new designs to help create Tigergen III. - Rob Margherio, Head Mechanical
Retaining TGII Knowledge
2010-05-05 19:29:30
This is the last semester for a few members of the chemical division of the hydrogen car, including myself. It has been a pleasure to be a part of a team with such dedication to each other and the common goal of constructing practical hydrogen vehicles. Although it is hard to move on from a team that has been a part of my everyday life for a few years, it is also very much an exciting time. I will go on to apply the practical experience I have gained with the team to many other engineering problems. For the knowledge and experience I have gained from the team, I will always be thankful.
It has been my last remaining goal as a retiring hydrogen car team member to ensure that the knowledge from Tigergen II is retained. We are in the process of refining a documentation database to store this data and make it easily available to future members. The newly elected team administrators are well-informed and highly equipped to carry out this endeavor and make the construction process easier for all future hydrogen cars. - Matthias Young, Head Chemical
It has been my last remaining goal as a retiring hydrogen car team member to ensure that the knowledge from Tigergen II is retained. We are in the process of refining a documentation database to store this data and make it easily available to future members. The newly elected team administrators are well-informed and highly equipped to carry out this endeavor and make the construction process easier for all future hydrogen cars. - Matthias Young, Head Chemical
Knowing How to Move Forward
2010-05-05 19:29:03
As we look back upon the race and finish testing and diagnosing the problems that hindered our performance, the electrical department has a grasp on what needs to be accomplished to be succesful in the next race. After some preliminary testing, we determined that there are several inherent parasitic losses in our system that have a major effect on our performance, nearly 1/5 of our power was wasted! Now that we know of these problems, we can take positive steps to improve the car that we all worked so hard on. One more lesson that we learned is the need for better communication between the departments on the team. I believe that the interdisciplinary make up of our team is the most important part of our success, and better communication and co-operation can only improve that. - Alex Hansen, Head Electrical
Shell Eco-Marathon Blog March 26- March 30th
2010-04-06 19:30:04
March 26, 2010
3:30 am
Marc and Jennifer placed the final touches on the decals for Tigergen II after many problems initially encountered when trying to place a flat decal on the curved upper body without creating severe creases. The electricals continued their hard work on the electrical system.
9:00 am
After team photos and the mayor of Houston officially proclaimed opening of the Shell Eco-marathon, the team returned to the car to continue needed work.
10:00 am
The beginning of nearly 50 people during the day came by to ask questions about Tigergen II. The team was interviewed multiple times throughout the day, as team members educated children, high school students, and adults about the mission of the team and the different design challenges and our solutions. We were more than happy to tell everyone about our car we have pulled so many all-nighters for.
1:30 pm
From the first runs of the prototype and urban concept cars, the event is finally underway. We learned a lot from watching the event, understanding the passing/stopping procedures and track layout.
5:00 pm
Tigergen II moves a few steps closer to being cleared for the race track. We passed all the inspections except for the hydrogen sensor and the kill switch.
5:20pm
Jennifer, Tori, and Rob are interviewed on KMOX 1120 for thousands of listeners, in Greg Damon’s Auto Show – which can be listened to on http://www.kmox.com/pages/5146850.php in 03/27/10 - Auto Show Hour 2.
6:00 pm
With Tigergen II pushed to compete Sunday, the team took some time to watch the rest of the urban concept vehicles, laugh and enjoy the sun.
8:00 pm
With a delicious dinner, some tightrope walking in Discovery Green Park, the team spent some time relaxing and enjoying their time in downtown Houston.
March 27, 2010
12:30 am
The past champions of the Shell Eco-marathon event, Mater Dei High School, come by and talk with us about our car and their cars. We learned a lot about their philosophies on efficiently moving around the track and building their cars, and they were very impressed by our hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.
1:40 am
Facebook now holds many of our pictures and videos over the last few days, with great candid shots of the team. The electricals are continuing their seemingly never yielding work on their systems but won’t rest until the car is ready to pass inspection tomorrow in time to race in the 9:15 urban concept event.
8:30 am
With the car up and running and the culmination of three sleep-less work-filled nights, the car finally passed the entirety of the technical inspection.
9:15 am
The team spread out on the track as Jennifer and Tigergen II pulled up to the start line. The first few laps revealed the ominous fortunes of the day as the fuel cell had many troubles starting and staying on. The electricals and chemicals literally ran around the race track trying to help Jennifer restart the fuel cell, but with no luck. So we pulled the car back into the pits and began work to make sure the car would complete the next run.
12:45 pm
Finally having a race to work from, mechanicals, chemicals, and electrical all refined their systems. Once more, Tigergen II and Jennifer, pulled up to the start line and waited for the green flag. During the first two laps, the fuel cell shut down twice and required some towing from the officials. However, the next 5 laps proved we could compete as all times were under the maximum lap time and Tigergen II was able to stop and start without problems. Even though we were forced to end the trial without finishing we were sure we could put together a complete competitive trial.
1:30 pm
Even with very little time due to scheduling inconsistencies, the electricals and chemicals were able to get the car working again. This was the final run, the last chance to get a mpg equivalent that would be posted in the standings; two years of work had come down to one final race. After the first lap which had some troubles but still kept us on time, everyone was cheering and one could hear the M-I-Z Z-O-U chant all around the track. The next three laps were perfect, the car started and stopped without any semblance of problems. Everyone was super excited as everything was working exactly as it should have. On the fifth lap, Tigergen II went around the far side of the track, out of view of everyone at the homestretch and the convention center, but did not come back around as quickly as the previous laps. Slowly depressing the elated spirits of the team, the few minutes turned into twelve minutes without the car passing the homestretch. Then we saw black and gold car with the long tiger tail pull into the pits; our race and our competition were over.
5:00 pm
As we were talking about all that we had actually accomplished and how far we’d come, the news came: Tigergen II would have posted a 480 mpg if she had completed the race! Meaning we would have won the Urban Concept Division in only our first year ever competing in the Shell Eco-Marathon! So there’s plenty to build upon in the coming years.
7:00 pm
At the dinner and awards ceremony, we received an award for Perseverance in the Face of Adversity because “despite operating without sleep, [we] showed a can-do attitude and kept smiling each day at the Shell Eco-marathon Americas.” This got the team $500 to pass on for next year.
March 29, 2010
7:30 am
Missing Tori, Jennifer, and Nathan (since all three of them stayed in Texas for Spring Break) the team took their final looks back at the convention and began the trip home.
9:30 am
Just southeast of Huntsville, Texas the chase van noticed rubber flying up from the side of the trailer, so the trailer and the van pulled over on the side of the highway. As our luck would have it, there was not just one but two flat tires on the trailer’s left side. After changing both tires on the shoulder of I-45 with semi trucks passing at 80 mph, everyone met up at Huntsville State Park. There the team readjusted the weight in the trailer, sent a group to go pick up two new trailer tires in hopes that we’d never use them, and hit the road again.
March 30, 2010
2:00 am
With over 18 and one half hours on the road, Tigergen II finally found her way back into the parking lot of EBW. Our first steps into the lab revealed some nice little welcome back gifts from the SAE Formula Car Team trying to show off their many classes in interior design and decorating (yeah, we’re really proud of them too): Jon Tylka’s bike was very tastefully suspended upside-down from the ceiling, and the lab was reorganized with the bright orange mold in the meeting room and the table in the build room. With one last look at the lab, the lights went out, and the pursuit of next year’s Shell Eco-Marathon Championship began…
MEDIA
Many news outlets have publications including Tigergen II and the Mizzou Hydrogen Car team:
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/video?id=7356417 - - Though we aren’t shown in the actual video, the picture just before playing the video is the bold black and gold Tigergen II.
http://www.shell.com/home/content/ecomarathon/americas/media/2010_sema_houston_ladies.html - - Jennifer was quoted in this Shell article about being a female driver: “A lot of it has to do with the fact that we’re smaller and lighter than the men, but I’ve been on the team for three years so I know as much as anyone about how the car was made and how it handles.”
http://www.shell.com/home/content/ecomarathon/americas/media/2010_sema_houston_sunday.html - - In the Shell Sunday morning update, we were noted for our constant and persistent late night work: “The Mizzou Hydrogen Car Team from the University of Missouri spent most of Saturday tweaking their urban concept car, which has shock absorbers, an upright seat, and a generally creature-comfortable feel compared to the strictly functional vehicles of the competition. The goal: to capture as much experience as possible in preparation for the next year’s Eco-marathon. ‘We were up until 3 a.m. last night … or this morning,’ said Alex Hansen. ‘Everybody on the team has pulled at least one all-nighter.’ ”
http://www.shell.com/home/content/ecomarathon/media_centre/image_library/ - - In this image library, selecting the “Americas” race on the right hand side, then selecting “2010” and “March 28th”, image #13 is a picture of Jennifer in Tigergen II.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6933200.html - - The Houston Chronicle wrote an article about the Shell Eco-marathon and has a piece about our team:
“But though the cars appear sleek, the process of building them has been anything but simple.
A team from the University of Missouri, for instance, has had all kinds of troubles recently with its Tigergen II, a car powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.
Among other problems, parts of the vehicle somehow got sheared off while it was being transported to Houston. Over the last few days the team has been working desperately to get the car in racing condition, sleeping in shifts to ensure that someone is working on the car around the clock.
On Saturday morning a few teammates were inside the convention center, putting the finishing touches on the vehicle they've had in development for about two years.
‘It's really exciting,’ said senior Matthias Young, who is studying chemical engineering. ‘We've really pushed the limits.’ ”
3:30 am
Marc and Jennifer placed the final touches on the decals for Tigergen II after many problems initially encountered when trying to place a flat decal on the curved upper body without creating severe creases. The electricals continued their hard work on the electrical system.
9:00 am
After team photos and the mayor of Houston officially proclaimed opening of the Shell Eco-marathon, the team returned to the car to continue needed work.
10:00 am
The beginning of nearly 50 people during the day came by to ask questions about Tigergen II. The team was interviewed multiple times throughout the day, as team members educated children, high school students, and adults about the mission of the team and the different design challenges and our solutions. We were more than happy to tell everyone about our car we have pulled so many all-nighters for.
1:30 pm
From the first runs of the prototype and urban concept cars, the event is finally underway. We learned a lot from watching the event, understanding the passing/stopping procedures and track layout.
5:00 pm
Tigergen II moves a few steps closer to being cleared for the race track. We passed all the inspections except for the hydrogen sensor and the kill switch.
5:20pm
Jennifer, Tori, and Rob are interviewed on KMOX 1120 for thousands of listeners, in Greg Damon’s Auto Show – which can be listened to on http://www.kmox.com/pages/5146850.php in 03/27/10 - Auto Show Hour 2.
6:00 pm
With Tigergen II pushed to compete Sunday, the team took some time to watch the rest of the urban concept vehicles, laugh and enjoy the sun.
8:00 pm
With a delicious dinner, some tightrope walking in Discovery Green Park, the team spent some time relaxing and enjoying their time in downtown Houston.
March 27, 2010
12:30 am
The past champions of the Shell Eco-marathon event, Mater Dei High School, come by and talk with us about our car and their cars. We learned a lot about their philosophies on efficiently moving around the track and building their cars, and they were very impressed by our hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.
1:40 am
Facebook now holds many of our pictures and videos over the last few days, with great candid shots of the team. The electricals are continuing their seemingly never yielding work on their systems but won’t rest until the car is ready to pass inspection tomorrow in time to race in the 9:15 urban concept event.
8:30 am
With the car up and running and the culmination of three sleep-less work-filled nights, the car finally passed the entirety of the technical inspection.
9:15 am
The team spread out on the track as Jennifer and Tigergen II pulled up to the start line. The first few laps revealed the ominous fortunes of the day as the fuel cell had many troubles starting and staying on. The electricals and chemicals literally ran around the race track trying to help Jennifer restart the fuel cell, but with no luck. So we pulled the car back into the pits and began work to make sure the car would complete the next run.
12:45 pm
Finally having a race to work from, mechanicals, chemicals, and electrical all refined their systems. Once more, Tigergen II and Jennifer, pulled up to the start line and waited for the green flag. During the first two laps, the fuel cell shut down twice and required some towing from the officials. However, the next 5 laps proved we could compete as all times were under the maximum lap time and Tigergen II was able to stop and start without problems. Even though we were forced to end the trial without finishing we were sure we could put together a complete competitive trial.
1:30 pm
Even with very little time due to scheduling inconsistencies, the electricals and chemicals were able to get the car working again. This was the final run, the last chance to get a mpg equivalent that would be posted in the standings; two years of work had come down to one final race. After the first lap which had some troubles but still kept us on time, everyone was cheering and one could hear the M-I-Z Z-O-U chant all around the track. The next three laps were perfect, the car started and stopped without any semblance of problems. Everyone was super excited as everything was working exactly as it should have. On the fifth lap, Tigergen II went around the far side of the track, out of view of everyone at the homestretch and the convention center, but did not come back around as quickly as the previous laps. Slowly depressing the elated spirits of the team, the few minutes turned into twelve minutes without the car passing the homestretch. Then we saw black and gold car with the long tiger tail pull into the pits; our race and our competition were over.
5:00 pm
As we were talking about all that we had actually accomplished and how far we’d come, the news came: Tigergen II would have posted a 480 mpg if she had completed the race! Meaning we would have won the Urban Concept Division in only our first year ever competing in the Shell Eco-Marathon! So there’s plenty to build upon in the coming years.
7:00 pm
At the dinner and awards ceremony, we received an award for Perseverance in the Face of Adversity because “despite operating without sleep, [we] showed a can-do attitude and kept smiling each day at the Shell Eco-marathon Americas.” This got the team $500 to pass on for next year.
March 29, 2010
7:30 am
Missing Tori, Jennifer, and Nathan (since all three of them stayed in Texas for Spring Break) the team took their final looks back at the convention and began the trip home.
9:30 am
Just southeast of Huntsville, Texas the chase van noticed rubber flying up from the side of the trailer, so the trailer and the van pulled over on the side of the highway. As our luck would have it, there was not just one but two flat tires on the trailer’s left side. After changing both tires on the shoulder of I-45 with semi trucks passing at 80 mph, everyone met up at Huntsville State Park. There the team readjusted the weight in the trailer, sent a group to go pick up two new trailer tires in hopes that we’d never use them, and hit the road again.
March 30, 2010
2:00 am
With over 18 and one half hours on the road, Tigergen II finally found her way back into the parking lot of EBW. Our first steps into the lab revealed some nice little welcome back gifts from the SAE Formula Car Team trying to show off their many classes in interior design and decorating (yeah, we’re really proud of them too): Jon Tylka’s bike was very tastefully suspended upside-down from the ceiling, and the lab was reorganized with the bright orange mold in the meeting room and the table in the build room. With one last look at the lab, the lights went out, and the pursuit of next year’s Shell Eco-Marathon Championship began…
MEDIA
Many news outlets have publications including Tigergen II and the Mizzou Hydrogen Car team:
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/video?id=7356417 - - Though we aren’t shown in the actual video, the picture just before playing the video is the bold black and gold Tigergen II.
http://www.shell.com/home/content/ecomarathon/americas/media/2010_sema_houston_ladies.html - - Jennifer was quoted in this Shell article about being a female driver: “A lot of it has to do with the fact that we’re smaller and lighter than the men, but I’ve been on the team for three years so I know as much as anyone about how the car was made and how it handles.”
http://www.shell.com/home/content/ecomarathon/americas/media/2010_sema_houston_sunday.html - - In the Shell Sunday morning update, we were noted for our constant and persistent late night work: “The Mizzou Hydrogen Car Team from the University of Missouri spent most of Saturday tweaking their urban concept car, which has shock absorbers, an upright seat, and a generally creature-comfortable feel compared to the strictly functional vehicles of the competition. The goal: to capture as much experience as possible in preparation for the next year’s Eco-marathon. ‘We were up until 3 a.m. last night … or this morning,’ said Alex Hansen. ‘Everybody on the team has pulled at least one all-nighter.’ ”
http://www.shell.com/home/content/ecomarathon/media_centre/image_library/ - - In this image library, selecting the “Americas” race on the right hand side, then selecting “2010” and “March 28th”, image #13 is a picture of Jennifer in Tigergen II.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6933200.html - - The Houston Chronicle wrote an article about the Shell Eco-marathon and has a piece about our team:
“But though the cars appear sleek, the process of building them has been anything but simple.
A team from the University of Missouri, for instance, has had all kinds of troubles recently with its Tigergen II, a car powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.
Among other problems, parts of the vehicle somehow got sheared off while it was being transported to Houston. Over the last few days the team has been working desperately to get the car in racing condition, sleeping in shifts to ensure that someone is working on the car around the clock.
On Saturday morning a few teammates were inside the convention center, putting the finishing touches on the vehicle they've had in development for about two years.
‘It's really exciting,’ said senior Matthias Young, who is studying chemical engineering. ‘We've really pushed the limits.’ ”
