As in all vehicles of this type, low weight and aerodynamic drag must be achieved without compromising safety, and in an extremely rugged structure. This has been done by using a chrome-molybdenum steel space-frame, surrounded by a Kevlar/foam sandwich body shell. The solar panel wing, which uses a laminar flow section to obtain low drag, does not tilt except when the vehicle is stationary. A high degree of redundancy is built into the vehicle; for example there are two motors and transmissions, the solar array is divided into seven parallel sub-arrays, and the power electronics is multiply redundant. Built entirely in the garage of a suburban house, the Australian Geographic Team Marsupial car cost less than US$50,000 to construct.
The Australian Geographic Team Marsupial Solar-Powered Car
Sae Technical Papers
SAE International Congress and Exposition ; 1988
1988-02-01
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Englisch
Solar energy , Durability , Power electronics , Transmissions , Drag , Sun and solar , Steel , Fabrication , Foams , Wings
The Australian Geographic Team marsupial solar-powered car
Kraftfahrwesen | 1988
|SIGNALS - Australian team to tackle amphibious crisis
Online Contents | 2011
SIGNALS - Australian team to tackle amphibious crisis
Online Contents | 2011