Co-sponsored by Freescale and dSPACE, Inc. and hosted at Freescale’s Oak Hill campus, EcoCAR 2 teams are participating in detailed sessions from competition organizers from General Motors, the U.S. Department of Energy and Argonne National Laboratory. Teams are also taking part in detailed training of sponsor-donated components and software tools from dSPACE, A123 Systems, Freescale, AVL Powertrain Engineering, CD-adapco, Siemens, and Vector.

Over the next few days, EcoCAR 2 teams will be put to the test as they prepare for their first in-person scored presentations, including Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL), Outreach, and Business.

Teams had the opportunity to set up their HILs on Wednesday afternoon.

“It was nice to see all of the different HIL set-ups for the teams,” said Whitney Belt, Mechanical Team Member for Purdue University. “We all have the same objective with HIL but each team took it their own unique way.

After a long day of travel, registration, and workshop set-up, teams and sponsors enjoyed a southern feast at Thurman Mansion catered by Salt Lick! As if devouring brisket, BBQ ribs, and southern side dishes weren’t enough, EcoCAR 2 teams heard remarks from co-hosts Freescale and dSPACE, Inc., as well as General Motors and the U.S. Department of Energy.

EcoCAR 2 organizers hope teams and sponsors enjoyed the Welcome Dinner and are excited for the rest of the Winter Workshop in Austin, Texas!

As the chief mechanical engineer for the team, Matt was responsible for the development and testing of the team’s Auxiliary Power Unit (APU). It was his work with Advanced Vehicle Technology Competitions (AVTCs) that led Matt to intern in the Test Engineering Department at Ford’s Scientific Research Laboratory. It was here that he discovered the wonderful world of automotive Research and Development (R&D)

“Because of my involvement with AVTCs,” Matt said, “I already had some idea about automotive R&D, as well as experience with many of the software tools and concepts used in the automotive industry.” In 2000, Matt graduated from Michigan Tech and accepted a job with General Motors as a Fuel Cell Engineer in Honeoye Falls, New York.

“One of my first assignments was to automate some testing activities and this was very much in line with work I had done for APU development in the FutureCar program,” he said. “Even though I’m a mechanical engineer, I’ve spent most of my career working on control algorithm development for fuel cell and hybrid systems.”

After spending a few years traveling the world with his wife and daughter, including working on an international assignment for Opel in Germany, Matt is currently working for Volkswagen as a hybrid powertrain technical specialist in the main research and development center in Wolfsburg, Germany.

“My work over the past 12 years has been in research and development and in many ways continues to be an extension of my work in FutureCar,” Matt said.

Looking back on his time with the Michigan Tech FutureCar team, Matt can still remember his favorite and least favorite moments as if they were yesterday, including a small run-in with a police officer who didn’t know much about hybrids and a teammate’s high-voltage safety scare.

Matt says he likes the current format of AVTCs that follow General Motors’ vehicle development process.

“The format we used in FutureCar was so time-compressed that our designs were always a tradeoff between what we wanted to do and what we could actually accomplish in nine months,” he said. “When I look back at results, I am really amazed at what we did accomplish while taking college classes full-time.”

As for the future, Matt says he hopes to stay updated on EcoCAR 2 from the other side of the world.

“I still deeply enjoy my work and most days even look forward to getting up in the morning.  I love being in the lab, I love working with my hands and I’m eager to learn something new.  These are all passions that I attribute to my involvement with AVTCs.”

“We got to completely disassemble and reassemble a car the way we wanted to,” said Arnett, a recently hired engineer at Gamma Technologies.

He always loved cars, but Georgio Rizzoni, his eventual Challenge X advisor at The Ohio State University, encouraged Arnett to participate in the competition. He joined the Challenge X team in Year One as an undergraduate student and finished Years Two and Three during graduate school.

He believes his competition involvement was essential to deciding his career path, and it solidified his position with General Motors after graduation. Throughout his time at GM, Arnett kept in touch with past Challenge X competitors and eventually volunteered his time with EcoCAR: The NeXt Challenge. Arnett was one of the key support members for EcoCAR 2-Mode teams, helping troubleshoot issues and lend a hand throughout Years Two and Three of the competition.

At his new job, Arnett will be working with GP power, Gamma Technologies’ most well-known technology. As EcoCAR 2 ramps up, he encourages students to participate as much as they can, making the most of their experience.

GM will donate a Chevy Malibu to each of the fifteen colleges and universities competing in EcoCAR 2. Team members will spend the next three years redesigning the vehicle to reduce its environmental impact and fuel consumption.

Sales of the new Malibu, which is Chevy’s first global midsize sedan, will begin next month in Korea, and the vehicle will eventually become the brand’s top-of -the-range offering across the world. To learn more about the first all-new Malibu, check out GM’s announcement.

EcoCAR 2's Chevrolet Malibu outside the GM Powertrain facilities

Over the five day workshop, teams attended sessions from General Motors, Natural Resources Canada, Argonne National Laboratory, MathWorks, dSPACE, A123 Systems, Freescale, AVL, ETAS, Snap-On, Magna Powertrain, Siemens, CD-adapco, Vector CANtech, and Woodward.

These sessions covered an array of topics, which included electrical, mechanical, controls, outreach, and business deliverables. Students, advisors, and sponsors were pleased with the training sessions and enjoyed learning about EcoCAR 2.

“These bright students are the future of the automotive industry,” said Kent Helfrich, Executive Director, Electronic Controls & Software at General Motors. “Over the past several days, they attended vigorous training sessions that will help them throughout the three-year competition. I hope they enjoyed their time at the GM Powertrain facilities and wish every team good luck during Year One.”

Members of Ohio State take part in dSPACE training at the Fall Workshop

When not in training sessions, teams enjoyed two evening events hosted by General Motors, including go-kart racing at Kart 2 Kart and a tour of the Wixom Performance Build Center. Students and advisors also enjoyed a Sponsor Social Networking and Recruiting event that kicked things off on Wednesday of the workshop.

Thank you to General Motors for hosting the Year One Fall Workshop at their GM Powertrain Headquarters in Pontiac, Michigan. Stay updated on all things EcoCAR 2 here at the Green Garage Blog and on Facebook, and Twitter!

NCSU Faculty Advisor, Dr. Eric Klang, checks out an engine build

The EcoCAR 2 Fall Workshop isn’t just about training sessions – participating teams also had the opportunity to go behind the scenes at one of GM’s most unique facilities, the Powertrain Performance Build Center (PBC).   Located in Wixom, Michigan, the PBC produces specialized, high-image powertrains for General Motors’ premier vehicles.

EcoCAR 2 students got to spend time with highly skilled builders while they assembled sections of a complete engine – the Corvette engine to be precise!  The employees at the PBC hand-build each ZR1 Corvette LS9, Z06 Corvette LS7, and Grand Sport Manual Coupe Corvette LS3-Dry Sump engine.  This low-volume facility is capable of assembling 15,000 engines per year.

University of Washington team members on tour at the PBC

The builders are trained to accomplish every task involved in building the engine, including engine component and process inspection.  As part of the tour students were able to observe the post-assembly process of each engine being cold tested and balanced to assure that the engine meets all the standards and quality requirements demanded from such high performance cars.

Tyler Rose, Outreach Coordinator for University of Washington said, “The ‘backstage’ access granted to us at the GM Performance Build Center was the highlight of my experience at the Fall Workshop.  I’m a car guy, I love engine technology, and this was heaven.”

Cal State team members run tests during the build process

More than 150 students, advisors, sponsors, organizers, and GM mentors competed in heats of 12 on Kart 2 Kart’s 1/5 mile indoor race track. After zipping through the competition, the top 36 were chosen based on the fastest racing times. After being divided into three qualifying groups, it was off to the races to see who would take first place in each heat.

1st Place winner Tasher Willet (middle) smokes the competition, including Patrick Walsh, ANL organizer (left) and Hung Nguyen (right) from General Motors

In the end, Travis Trippel from Ohio State, Vivek Gowri from the University of Washington, and Tasher Willet from Cal State LA took top honors in each of the three heats. Other notable winners included Brian Benoy and Patrick Walsh from Argonne National Laboratory, who placed 2^nd in their heats, and Hung Nguyen from General Motors, who placed 3^rd in his respected heat.

“It was fun racing against other teams, including my own,” said Cal State LA team leader and first place winner Tasher Willet. “Winning first place in my heat really got my team fired up for the rest of the Fall Workshop and Year One of the competition. It helped us set the tone for the rest of the year.”

TSC member and GM organizer Steve Gurski dressed up for his race!

Teams enjoyed the friendly competition and a night off from technical and outreach training sessions. Thank you again to General Motors for generously hosting this event and to Kart 2 Kart for the exciting four hours of racing!

The four days are packed full of knowledge building for the students. The sessions provide students valuable experience with professional engineering practices and project management.  Teams are learning to use math-based design tools to help them compare and select an advanced vehicle powertrain that meets the team and competition goals.

Team Outreach Coordinators were also welcomed to the EcoCAR 2 program in a dedicated track where they learned about the outreach and business deliverables for the first year.  In addition, OCs are participating in media relations and video production training to assist them in executing their deliverables.

On opening night of the workshop, students gathered for a Sponsor Social Networking and Recruiting reception and dinner where they had the opportunity to introduce themselves to sponsors.  For students, the opportunity to spend time with competition organizers and sponsor representatives is very valuable because in recent years sponsors have hired many competition graduates.

There are still a few days of the workshop left, be sure to check back and see what else the teams have been doing.

“The EV world needs a Steve Jobs, who won’t rest until he’s created a vehicle that can jump-start a mass movement,” Motavalli wrote. “We need a game changer.”

Though the article stresses how far the American electric vehicle industry has to travel before equaling the impact Steve Jobs made with personal computers, Motavalli is hopeful – in part, because of EcoCAR. He applauds the competition and its sponsors, mentioning that General Motors hired 39 students out of EcoCAR: The NeXt Challenge.

“Is one of those kids the next Steve Jobs?” Motavalli asks. We certainly hope so! Be sure to check out Jim’s article and stay tuned for more news from EcoCAR 2: Plugging in to the Future.

Teams will have the chance to race each other on a 1/5 mile track that includes a 200-foot straightaway! Each go-kart is equipped with a 5.5 HP engine and can reach speeds up to 35 mph, so grab your racing jacket and get ready for a fun-filled night of racing! Please remember, no sandals or other open toe shoes are allowed.

Registration for the Fall Workshop ends on Friday, September 30, so make sure to ask your advisor or team leader where to sign up!