Regulations have been tightened up for the World Solar Challenge 2007, requiring far-reaching design changes to bring the cars closer to real-world driving. The changes are a reminder that this is a challenge, not a race. The challenge is to create and refine super-efficient energy technologies that will become tomorrow’s practical transportation.
The cars compete on public roads and race officials have imposed speed limits and large time penalties for going over the limit. Safety has become a major point. For the first time in the history of the event, a roll cage must be fitted and the cars must be equipped with lights.
The drivers are now obliged to enter and exit the solar car independently, whereas in the past the driver was assisted by team members.
With a view to commercialising this type of vehicle, ergonomics are also gaining in importance. For instance, the driver now has to sit upright, adding a lot of drag.
So the previous flat design had to be modified to create a solar-powered car that looks more like a ‘real’ car. Computer generated 3D drawings for the bodies of the Nuna 4 and Umicar Infinity revealed at the design stage how the driver, car and sections would relate to one another.
The HP Workstations handled the compute-intensive calculations for achieving ideal aerodynamic designs.
The solar panels also had to be reduced in size in order for the cars to take on the shape of a more conventional vehicle. Whereas 9m2 had been the standard, this has now been reduced to 6m2. In addition, the dimensions and shape of the steering wheel were set in advance by the race organisers.
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