Article 14 04/25/2010

Engineering Efficiency

Right now, there are innovators around the world working to build an amazing machine to compete with to possibly win the Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize. There are a number of X Prizes that are up for grabs, but this competition in particular is geared toward reengineered automobiles that can change the face of the planet. The winner of the competition will have produced a machine that will revolutionize the way we view automobiles. The winner will receive ten million dollars and an incredible amount of publicity for the creators and their products.

This week Popular Science featured a three wheeled monster named E. Rex; a battery powered electric, three wheeled, two passenger vehicle designed for efficiency and pollution free transportation. Currently the racecar appearing E Rex is utilizing 96 cells of lithium ion battery which is claimed to range up to 100 miles. The batter pack is supposed to able to recharge in two and a half hours when using a 220 volt outlet.

Although this car looks sporty, fast, and cool, just how practical is it? My first issue with this car is what happens when it rains? I have not found information on a canopy that can be applied to the E Rex to protect the driver. And while on the topic of protection, where in the windshield? I took a road trip this past week and I had five large sized stones hit my trucks windshield, which is higher off the ground than E Rex, and if the passenger is not wearing a helmet, there is a serious risk. Electric cars are out there in our country, no they’re not being mass produced my any of the large auto manufactures, and most of the reasons are practicality. The E Rex is advertised for sale at a dollar shy of $52,000. In my opinion that is not practical. I do understand the man/men involved in making the car need to make a profit, but it’s too much.

In conclusion, I am thrilled about the new ideas being brought to the table, and their ideas possibly being rewarded with ten million dollars, but I am just looking for more. I am looking for someone to reengineer the wheel. Since this is all about revolutionary, I would have liked to see them use the new tweel from Michelin, an airless tire. I wish all competing teams the best, but I hope the winner isn’t chosen through a publicity stunt, I want a fresh start on our auto industry.

Original Article;
http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2010-04/three-wheeled-e-rex-roars-progressive-automotive-x-prize

Supporting Articles;

http://www.xprize.org/

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2010/04/optamotive-e-rex/

http://www.popsci.com/bown/2009/product/2010-toyota-prius

http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2008-03/tesla-roadster-electric-supercar-begins-production

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/finlands-all-electric-sports-car-charges-just-10-minutes

Article 13 04/18/2010

Blog 13

Future Roadster

Popular Science Magazine often releases articles that have to do with the ever changing market of future cars. Within the original article, there author has picked out key points to highlight in his article and has briefly stated a few comments. The author’s comments are correct, but I believe them to be a bit shallow, so I would like to bring forth some otherwise unnoted information.

The first topic has to do with the “Head’s-Up Display.” These displays project images, onto the inside of the windshield. This type of display has many advantages. They are lighter than mechanical clusters, usually the layout limits unnecessary gauges that most drivers don’t pay attention to, and usually because they have no idea what they mean, But there are also some downfalls to them, and for me, the biggest is with driving during a bright sunny day the projected display on the windshield never seems bright enough. Sure I can still read what it’s trying to say, but it could be better, much better.

The next topic of discussion was of ceramic windows. The authors claim the windows to be strong enough to withstand impacts from bullets, but this seems to be a little over kill. This is a great concept to protect the driver from debris breaking the window and injuring the driver. But, this is a bad idea if per say the driver got into a wreck, but couldn’t get any doors open because the car has twisted and buckled, usually you would just break a window and crawl out… not any more.

Wheel motors were next on their list. This can be a big positive. Wheel motors do contain a rather surprisingly high amount of weight for their size, but far less weight than a conventional combustion engine. Motors also would completely eliminate gasoline and oil, except where needed for lubrication on moving parts.

Energy storage is the last topic of discussion on the authors list of importance. Currently, lithium-ion is the best of the readily available battery sources. Yes, there are brand new chemical combinations out there, but they are not ready for mass production, yet. So now we have the best batteries we can get, but what a lot of people don’t think of is how we charge the batteries. Electric cars loose the gasoline and oil, but if your charging your car from electricity produced by coal, your not helping the pollution topic at all. If you really want to be green, charge your batteries by means of solar power.

Original Article:
http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2010-04/future-drive-electric-luxury-racer

Supporting Articles:

http://www.popsci.com/announcements/article/2010-04/may-2010-futue-car

http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2009-09/frankfurt-motor-show-audi-e-tron-electric-concept

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exoskeleton

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/magnesium.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_battery

Article 12 04/11/2010

Racing All Electric

Finland has re-engineered the race car. They have gone away from gas and oil guzzling engines, gone away with thick and nasty gear and transmission fluids; all of which are terrible for the environment. Another problem is that the cost of crude oil has been on the rise of the years. So if there are other viable solutions, why not give them a chance? The all electric race car is the chance we have all been waiting for. Fully electric vehicles are not a new concept to the world; in fact GM produced an electric car that was extremely popular back I the 80’s, but the car was so popular, and the demand was so large that it scared the oil industry so much, that they demanded GM recall all of the electric cars and crushed them.

What are some positives to an all electric car? The first and probably the most obvious is the no emissions or harmful fuels and oils will be used. This produces a car that can still go fast on the race track, but is safer for the world around us. Electric motors are relatively heavy, but o where near the weight of a race car fuel and oil type engine. This allows for race teams to build a lighter car, which could be safer; when a race car flips upside down, now there is less mass surrounding the driver.

What are some negatives to a fully electric racecar? The original article talks about recharging the car’s battery in just a few seconds. Well, this concept can be deceiving. Sure, it is possible to charge the battery in a short period of time, but it will take a device that can flow a highly concentrated charge to the battery. It would be like the difference between filling a pool with a garden hose and filling the pool from a fire hydrant with the massive hose firefighters use. Delivering that much power can definitely by a safety hazard, especially if it were to rain.
Finland is moving in the right direction, developing new technology that can in the long run, help save our planet. Race engineers will continue working on this concept. It has a long way to go to come to a race track near you, but the future is racing its way across the seas, hopefully sooner than later!

Original Site:
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/finlands-all-electric-sports-car-charges-just-10-minutes

Supporting Sites:
http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2009-07/electric-gullwing-mercedes-previews-all-electric-version-new-sports-car

http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2009-11/slightly-poorer-mans-tesla-ecos-harbinger

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_electric_vehicle

http://www.whokilledtheelectriccar.com/

Article 11 04/03/2010

New Technology in Medical Field

Over the past few years, I have heard a lot about stem cell research. It seemed to me that everywhere I drove I saw a road sign, every radio station I listened to, every charity I heard about had something to do with stem cell research. Now, please don’t get me wrong, its great to support organizations that are geared towards improving the lives of struggling and sick patients, but I never heard about many leaps and gains from the generous donations. Again, not saying gains were not made from the money provided, but I haven’t heard of anything revolutionary, but maybe that’s about to change.

Engineers from Stanford University have been working on creating better ways to attach nerves and cells to artificial limbs to allow for more lifelike movements. The new technology consists of 600-nanometer-long silicon probes which have three layers of metal, a gold layer pressed between two layers of chromium. This layer of three different materials is supposed to mimic the layers within a cell. This design will ultimately help to better connect the nerves and cells involved with attaching a prosthetic to create the best remedy to the less fortunate, and hopefully change the lives of suffering or sick people around the world.

Now, this revolutionary idea and product is not yet available, there are still a long line of testing that officials would like to put this new idea through, obviously. But I would expect great results; it seems that the engineers involved from beginning to end truly have put in the time and effort needed to positively change the lives of others. This is not an error proof procedure, there are still risks involved. To bring this full circle though, like I was talking about how I was looking for a viable product that really assists the researching involved in stem cell research, this may possibly be the tool that has been needed to advance to the next step. This may help researchers cut smoother to better understand the human cell, of which could assist to many medical advances!

Original Article:
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/stealthy-nanoprobe-slips-seamlessly-cell-walls

Supporting Sites:

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-03/darpa-orders-prosthetics-controlled-directly-through-brain-implants

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2009-11/neuron-computer-chips-could-overcome-power-limitations-digital

http://stemcells.nih.gov/

http://www.isscr.org/