Check out Bay Area Circuits at bayareacircuits.com! Circuit boards are an essential part of our solar car, handing all of the controls and communication between the various systems of the car. On CalSol, the electrical team is responsible for designing and programming the printed circuit boards (PCBs) required to operate the solar car. From a complex …
Bigger Car, Thicker Boards: Thank you Bay Area Circuits! Read More »
Part 2 in a series of posts on our mold-making process. Check out Part 1 here! Whooo! It’s been a while since our last post. We’ve been hard at work fabricating our molds and laying up Tachyon’s shell and monocoque. Now for making our molds. As we learned in our design process, “negative” molds …
Tennis Rackets. Airplanes. Supercars. What do all of these have in common? One answer is: they can all be made from carbon fiber. Carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites are strong, stiff, and lightweight, making them ideal for aerospace and other high-performance applications. In addition to these properties, carbon fiber composites can also be molded into …
Throughout the history of engineering, people have always been testing things out; whether they’re a caveman clubbing a stick against a wall to see how stiff it is, or an automotive engineer testing the aerodynamics of a sports car in a wind tunnel. However, testing can be cost-prohibitive; industrial-sized wind tunnels cost hundreds of thousands …
CalSol uses carbon fiber composites for many components on our solar vehicles, but we work primarily with rolls of woven carbon fiber or carbon fiber prepregnated with epoxy. Last Thursday, we finally got a chance to see how raw strands of carbon fiber are woven into the fabrics we use for our vehicle. We started …
On Saturday, CalSol had the opportunity to bring Zephyr to Cal’s homecoming game vs Arizona. We had a lovely spot in the Blue and Gold zone where Cal fans of all ages got to learn about the car and the benefits of renewable energy. A huge thanks to Cal Athletics for inviting us! On Sunday, …
Although the school year has just begun, CalSol has already dived headlong into what promises to be an exciting build cycle. We began this past weekend by hosting a joint kickoff and showcase event with Berkeley’s Formula SAE competition team on Friday night. Prospective members for both teams were treated to a BBQ at our …
An Exciting Weekend: BBQ, Sponsors, and a Fond Farewell Read More »
And we won! After 3 days, 228 laps and 775 miles driven, CalSol has emerged First in the Formula Sun Grand Prix 2017! This is the best result that Zephyr has achieved during her 4 years of racing (2014 – 2017). Aside from winning FSGP, Zephyr has also broken several COTA track records, including most number …
Another day on COTA. CalSol started Day 2 from the pits after diagnosing some electrical problems during the morning solar charge. After a quick fix, we were back on track! Making up lost time, the team balanced a strategy of conserving charge and maintaining a fast pace. To burn off excess charge and push the …
Rayce Day. Day 4 of FSGP is the first day of circuit racing at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA). The race format is as follows: over the span of 3 days, the team with the most number of laps completed is deemed to be the winner of the race. Teams are given a full …
