Event: MECH 223 Design Competition
Date/ Time: Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Open house with designs on display: 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Five rounds of head-to-head competition: 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Location: Riley Park Ice Rink, 50 E. 30th Ave., Vancouver. For a map and closest parking, visit http://tinyurl.com/3cyadfs
The fastest land crossing of Antarctica was achieved in late 2010 by an expedition team using a biofuel-powered and propeller-driven vehicle. Inspired by the success of this expedition, UBC Mechanical Engineering students have designed and built their own propeller-driven vehicles for a head-to-head design competition.
The event is open to the public. Following an open-house-style showcase of the different designs, teams will compete in five rounds of competition testing speed, efficiency, and manoeuvrability.
The competition will see 125 second-year students in 20 teams showcase vehicles they have spent the past three weeks designing, building and testing. The remote control vehicles – each about the size of a toaster – are designed to be fast and nimble, and feature propellers also designed and manufactured by the students.
“This project challenges students to apply engineering insight and tools to develop innovative solutions to real-world problems,” says course coordinator, Peter Ostafichuk.
Media, please contact Wendy McHardy: cell 604.353.7575, wendy.mchardy@ubc.ca