|
|
|
The membership of the Society of Automotive Engineers numbers more than 84,000, comprised of engineers, entrepreneurs, executives, educators and students from nearly 100 countries. They represent a variety of disciplines but share a strong interest in the design and operation of self-propelled vehicles used on land, sea and in the air. The University of Michigan student chapter, MSAE, and its MRacing Formula SAE and Mini BajaŽ racing teams are no exception.
"The dedication our students have just blows you away," said Professor Volker Sick, who serves as faculty advisor for the chapter and the Formula SAE MRacing team. "We're not lenient here at U-M with students in terms of their workload, and they spend a lot of additional time on SAE activities. The amount of effort and talent is mind-boggling. From presentation skills to technical knowledge, they're unbelievable. They benefit, too, from very attractive internship and study- or work-abroad opportunities and good job offers when they graduate."
Winning Big at SAE World Congress
When several ME students from the SAE chapter returned to campus from the SAE World
Congress, held at Cobo Center in Detroit in spring 2005, they came home with more than sleep
deprivation and new professional contacts: the chapter won first prize in the annual Detroit Section
Student Exhibit Competition. The victory brought with it a financial award of $1,250.
All student chapters were eligible to compete, and participants "came from as close as five minutes away from Cobo Hall to halfway around the world. That was kind of cool," said Kelly Karakashian, the chapter's immediate past president.
|
|
|
In their allotted exhibit space in the Congress' exhibition hall, the U-M students displayed posters depicting MSAE events held over the past year and vehicle team accomplishments. The Formula SAE 2004 Wolverine was on display as well.
Exhibits were judged on technical content, teamwork, project management and overall quality. Each chapter also made a brief presentation to a panel of judges. That took place "bright and early," one morning of the Congress, said Karakashian, who spoke for the chapter. By mid-afternoon winners had been announced.
Karakashian was excited when she heard the news, but not terribly surprised. "Everyone did such a great job. Our events coordinator did tons of work--everyone did--and we were hoping this would be the year we'd take first," she said. "We took third last year, and we decided we were going for everything this year since the chapter really grew."
That growth is no accident, but rather part of the board's strategy to increase membership. The chapter organizes many activities with that objective in mind: a lecture series, a trip to the North American International Auto Show, tours of the U-M Transportation Research Institute and joint activities with other groups, including the University Minority Mechanical Engineers, the campus chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the SAE Detroit Section.
The $1,250 prize will be split with the Formula SAE team and put in the chapter's general fund to pay for such activities as an expanded lecture series and car show.
After earning her bachelor's degree in ME, Karakashian began working for DaimlerChrysler and will pursue a master's degree. In addition to making many professional contacts and increasing her technical knowledge, she said that participating in the campus chapter gave her the opportunity to learn how to be a leader. Winning the student competition wasn't any less rewarding. "It was a great way to end the year--it capped off all our efforts to make the chapter bigger and better."
A Drive to Lead
In January 2005, then ME senior Eric Rybczynski honed his leadership skills with SAE movers
and shakers in the organization's first SAE Leadership Development Program. He was
nominated by Professor Sick.
Rybczynski had been active in the student chapter, serving on the executive committee as treasurer and on the MRacing team. When Sick learned of the new leadership program, he thought this "engaged student, who's well-organized in his involvement" would be a great fit.
So did SAE. Rybczynski was one of just 25 students chosen for the two-day program, which took place in San Antonio, Texas. The event was designed to further develop leadership skills in younger members to foster to high-level participation in SAE as well as in the mobility industries. Training sessions covered presentation skills, career development and mentoring. The cost of the program and related travel expenses were paid for by SAE.
Rybczynski said the program was "a great experience. It was incredibly beneficial to interact with students who are excited and motivated to be a part of the automotive industry. The highlight of the program was just getting to interact on an informal basis with fellow students from around the country who have strong desires to improve the industry and who are as crazy about cars as I am."
Rybczynski has been involved with MSAE since freshman year, when he joined the MRacing team. In 2003-04, he served as engine group leader, responsible for overseeing the race car's design, purchasing, organization, manufacturing and testing of the engine and related components. In the 2004 Formula SAE Competition, the team placed fourth in design and improved 16 positions from the previous year's race.
|
|
|
Rybczynski earned his bachelor's degree and is now pursuing a master's in ME with a focus on fluid mechanics and thermodynamics. He spent a summer working for Volkswagen Research and Development in Wolfsburg, Germany as part of a team researching alternative modes of combustion for gasoline engines.
His experience on the Formula SAE team and with the U-M SAE student chapter has been "by far the most rewarding here at the university." It takes a lot of time, he added, "but in the end I wouldn't have had it any other way."
MRacing Car Shows What It's Made Of
In May 2005, MRacing Formula SAE car number 129 had the chance to strut its stuff, and it did.
The car, fully designed, built and tested by members of the MRacing team, placed so well it will
be featured in the November issue of Road & Track magazine.
The four-day competition held at the Pontiac Silverdome is one of seven international competitions, but the Detroit-area event is the most popular, according to Dan Campbell, team captain and project manager. Approximately 140 teams from all over the world compete. " Australia, South Korea, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Sweden...it's unbelievable to see what college students are capable of building on their own," said Campbell, who has participated in three competitions.
Unbelievable especially since restrictions on the car frame and engine challenge students' knowledge, creativity, and imagination, he added. Work on each year's formula-style car begins over the summer with design and simulation work that includes research on an engine dynamometer and running data acquisition on the previous year's vehicle. The remaining months are spent manufacturing on campus and outsourcing some parts to professional machine shops. Throughout the year, the team "pays close attention to time- and money-management and turning out a professional product," said Campbell.
In 2004-05, under the direction of chief engineer Jason Moscetti, project manager Jeff Lovell and faculty advisor Professor Volker Sick, the team of almost three dozen students designed a car with a dry sump oil lubrication system, custom six-piston brake calipers, a carbon fiber steering wheel and launch and traction control, noted Campbell.
|
|
|
At the competition, the car placed fifth in the category of acceleration, skid pad and autocross. It also took third place for best suspension system design and development, including outstanding performance, manufacturing and aesthetics. Overall it placed 40th among 139 participating teams.
To place high in the competition, teams need experience and motivation, Campbell said. "A unique design may score points in the static judging events, but a fast and reliable car is needed in the dynamic events," he said. "MRacing has always done well in both types, and it's proven itself one of the top five dynamic Formula SAE teams in the world."
Sick is currently developing a course to coincide with the design and development of the Formula SAE car. "Students spend a lot of time building a new car each year. Why not make their work part of the curriculum and give them credit for their extraordinarily high level of engagement?"
Mini Baja: Best in Ten
The U-M Mini Baja Team had their best finish in ten years at the 2005 Mini Baja East
competition, held in May at the Rochester Institute of Technology. The off-road vehicle,
designed and built by the team, placed first in acceleration, top speed, hill climb and cost
events; second place in land maneuverability; and third place in design. It placed third overall
among 73 participating teams.
|
|
|
Of the three SAE Mini Baja competitions held each year, the East competition is perhaps the most challenging. "We had to design a car that's capable of floating/propelling/steering across a deep body of water," explained Michael Michaud, team project manager. "Essentially we were required to drive through about 100 yards of deep water in every lap of the four-hour endurance race."
The team's strong finish is even more impressive considering this was only the second time it participated in the East event in recent history. "We consider our performance particularly exceptional because we were armed only with the knowledge gained from one year of experience," he said.
Michaud attributes the results to the time spent on the car's flotation system and the continuously variable transmission that was customized to power train requirements, something few other teams do, he said. A custom spur gear reduction final drive also helped. But the real challenge was time. "Getting the car designed, built and tested between September and May requires a lot of planning, hard work and compromise in order to get projects finished."
Numerous sponsors supported the team, including GM, DaimlerChrysler, Denso Corporation, Polaris Industries, The Timken Company, NSK Ltd., Exhaust Gas Technologies and others. Faculty advisor Assistant Professor Brent Gillespie also contributed to the team's success, as did ME Lecturer Donald Geister, who directs the Wilson Student Team Project Center.
The team placed fifth overall in the Mini Baja 100, hosted by Caterpillar Inc. in Green Valley, Arizona, and third overall in the Mini Baja Midwest competition, hosted by the SAE Dayton, Ohio, Section.
"Baja has been my life for the past four years," said Michaud, who was offered a job by one of the team's sponsors at a Mini Baja competition. "I've learned more about dealing with real-world engineering challenges from being on this team than I ever could learn in a classroom."