EcoCAR Team Revs Toward Finish Line

Katherine Bovee (left), BS/MS mechanical engineering major and team co-leader, received the Women in the Winner’s Circle Foundation Outstanding Women in Engineering Award from Lyn St. James, former IndyCar race driver and Indy 500 Rookie of the Year. (Photo courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy) The Ohio State EcoCAR team is anxiously awaiting tomorrow night’s overall final judgment in Washington, D.C., more than three years after taking on the epic task of converting a Chevy crossover vehicle into a lean, green machine.

The team’s hopes should be high if prior scores throughout the competition are an indication of who will be named champion of EcoCAR: The NeXt Challenge. Ohio State and teams from 16 other North American universities in the U.S. Department of Energy competition are wrapping up testing on vehicles they’ve painstakingly modified to minimize fuel consumption and reduce emissions while retaining performance, safety, and consumer appeal.

This final leg of the three-year competition began June 6 at the General Motors Milford Proving Ground in Michigan, where the Ohio State team started on a high note by winning the Best Technical Paper award for a 20-page report covering all technical aspects of the vehicle. Ohio State also was the first team to successfully complete the 100-mile, on-road portion of the Emissions and Energy Event.

After more tests and task events in Michigan, on Monday the teams made their way to the nation’s capital for the final days of the contest. Giorgio Rizzoni, director of the Center for Automotive Research, reports that on Tuesday night the team received trophies and $5,250 total for the following awards:

Bosch Diversity Award, for the team’s leadership in creating a diverse environment that includes international students and scholars, and interns from high schools and other universities.

Best Collaboration with Clean Cities Award, in recognition of the team’s collaboration with Clean Fuels Ohio.

Freescale Innovation Award, presented to the team that exhibits the best use of innovation in the conception, design, and implementation of embedded electronics and controls.

Best Social Media Outreach Award, for the team’s success in using a variety of social media in promoting the EcoCAR competition and clean vehicles.

Second place overall in Outreach, for the variety of tactics and media the team has used to promote the message of environmentally friendly vehicles.

And finally, Katherine Bovee, BS/MS mechanical engineering major and team co-leader, received the Women in the Winner’s Circle Foundation Outstanding Women in Engineering Award, delivered by Lyn St. James, former IndyCar race driver and Indy 500 Rookie of the Year.

“What can I say – our students are simply world class,” said Rizzoni.

In the first year of the competition, teams used math-based design tools to create an advanced powertrain that is fully compatible with the body, electrical, and mechanical systems of the car. Teams presented their designs, controls development, and trade show displays in June 2009. Ohio State took first place overall for their impressive use of Hardware-in-the-Loop techniques for control software development, innovative Extended-Range Electric Vehicle vehicle design, and competitive outreach program.

At the beginning of year two, teams received their GM-donated cars, removed the existing powertrains, and integrated their specially designed components into the vehicles. Ohio State’s aggressive design proved too much to integrate during the allotted time, and the car’s functionality suffered during competition. Still, the team placed fifth overall and achieved full functionality the following summer.

This third and final year has been all about optimizing for efficiency, refining controls and fine-tuning the “showroom” aesthetics. In addition, teams focused on public outreach.

Inside the Green Garage is a blog from EcoCAR: The NeXt Challenge and will post the results as soon as they come in tomorrow night.

Learn more about the Ohio State team at its website or on Twitter.

News media contact: Holly Henley, Ohio State Center for Automotive Research, henley.53@osu.edu or 614-292-4217