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Fans of the
National Football League's
Indianapolis Colts learned
about hybrid vehicles,
crossover technology, and
vehicle design and subsystem
controls at a public
education display by
Rose-Hulman Institute of
Technology's Challenge X
team members before the
Colts' first-round playoff
game on Saturday, Jan. 6.
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Educating Public:
Members of
Rose-Hulman
Institute of
Technology's
Challenge X team
were featured in a
public display in
the Indianapolis
Colts' 12th Man
Alley for the Jan. 6
playoff game against
the Kansas City
Chiefs.
Participating in the
event were (from
left) faculty
adviser Zac
Chambers, Caleb
Harper, faculty
adviser Marc
Herniter, Trevor
Akers and Clint
Hammes. Not in the
photo were Kris
Lawyer and Corena
Herniter. |
The
Challenge X team's GM
Equinox sport utility
vehicle and several
technological components
were featured in the 12th
Man Alley fan area near the
RCA Dome in downtown
Indianapolis. The display
was arranged through the
Colts' Office of Community
Relations.
Rose-Hulman
students participating in
the display were Clint
Hammes, Trevor Akers, Kris
Lawyer and Caleb Harper.
Also on hand were team
faculty advisers Marc
Herniter and Zac Chambers,
along with outreach team
member Corena Herniter and
Rose-Hulman alumnus Art
McGrew, the team's General
Motors mentor and a design
engineer with GM's Allison
Transmission.
Several
Colts fans and Rose-Hulman
alumni visited the
Rose-Hulman/Challenge
display area during pre-game
festivities.
"We were
appreciative of the
opportunity to showcase the
Challenge X competition and
the outstanding efforts that
Rose-Hulman students have
made in developing this
cutting-edge technology in
automotive vehicle
development," said Herniter,
associate professor of
electrical and computer
engineering. "Our students
have spent countless hours
during the past 2 1/2 years
working in a vehicle
development laboratory on
campus, out of the public
eye. It was nice to finally
let a large audience look at
what we have been doing and
get feedback from the
public."
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A Look Inside: An
enthusiastic fan of
the Indianapolis
Colts takes a look
inside the 2005
Chevrolet Equinox
crossover sports
utility vehicle that
has been
re-engineered during
the past 2 1/2 years
by Rose-Hulman
Institute of
Technology students
in the Challenge X
competition. |
Rose-Hulman
is among 17 top North
American universities that
are exploring clean,
efficient automotive
technologies by
re-engineering a 2005
Chevrolet Equinox, a
crossover sport-utility
vehicle, in the Challenge X:
Crossover to Sustainable
Mobility program. Sponsored
by General Motors and the
U.S. Department of Energy,
the competition seeks to
have teams to design
vehicles that minimize
energy consumption,
emissions and greenhouse
gases while maintaining or
exceeding the vehicle's
utility and performance.
Challenge X
started in 2004 and will end
in May when Rose-Hulman's
completed vehicle is tested,
alongside other teams, at
GM's Proving Grounds near
Detroit. Events will measure
all aspects of the vehicle,
including acceleration,
trailer towing and fuel
economy. A total vehicle
developmental review
evaluates how closely teams
followed GM's three-year
vehicle development process.
"We were
pleased with our 10th place
finish in (last year's) Year
II competition (Phoenix,
Ariz.). We have acquired
some prototype technology
and modified our control
strategy to take advantage
of it. Once we finish
integrating the new
components into the vehicle
and get some road testing
under our belts, we should
finish near the top this
year," said Chambers,
associate professor of
mechanical engineering.
"While a top-5 finish is a
team priority, the
educational impact on our
students is an institutional
priority. Our students are
obtaining a wealth of
experience in modern
industrial design practices
and are in high demand from
the automotive, heavy truck,
and supplier sectors for
full-time hires, internships
and co-ops."
Rose-Hulman's Challenge X
team has received honors for
its design -- using state of
the art vehicle development
modeling computer software
-- and hopes to gain a big
technological edge in the
competition by implementing
a powersplit architecture.
Rose-Hulman is unique in
attempting this type of
vehicle innovation,
according to Chambers.
Computer
modeling projections reveal
that Rose-Hulman’s hybrid
Equinox should improve gas
mileage (from 23 mpg on gas
to 35 mpg on biodiesel). The
vehicle also improves the
time in which it takes to
get from 50 to 70 mph to 6.0
seconds (from the previous
6.4 seconds) and meets
federal emissions control
standards.
Rose-Hulman’s Challenge X
team is sponsored by Bosch
International, Caterpillar,
Cavallini Engineering,
Cummins, Daimler-Chrysler,
Darrin Davidson Family,
Detroit Diesel, Illiana
Truck Parts, Heritage Group,
Honda USA, Indiana
Department of Commerce’s
Energy and Defense
Development Office, Jasper
Engines & Transmissions,
MathWorks, Naval Surface
Warfare Center-Crane, Penske
Automotive, Pickett’s Place,
Remy International,
Rolls-Royce, Rose-Hulman
Ventures, Texas Instruments,
Toyota and VM Motori.
Rose-Hulman
is the lone Indiana college
or university selected by GM
and the U.S. Department of
Energy for this unique
three-year vehicle
development competition.
Other colleges on the list
are Michigan Technological
University, Mississippi
State University, Ohio State
University, Pennsylvania
State University, San Diego
State University, Texas Tech
University, University of
Akron, University of
California-Davis, University
of Michigan, University of
Tennessee, University of
Texas-Austin, University of
Tulsa, University of
Waterloo, University of
Wisconsin-Madison, Virginia
Tech, and West Virginia
University.
More
information about
Rose-Hulman's Challenge X
team is available at
www.rose-hulman.edu/challengex. |
