Johnson-Brock High School

Monthly Reports

August
We test-drove the cars from last year to get a feel for them. This was also an opportunity to see what features we would like to incorporate into our car. We also researched batteries and aerodynamics. To see how important aerodynamics were at lower speeds.

September
We went through the drafting process and tested Aerodynamics of different models. We did this my having each teammate make a Styrofoam model to be tested in the wind tunnel. Then after taking careful consideration of our cars size due to the drastic difference in size among team members, we ordered our steel. After receiving our steel we started work on the frame of our vehicle. Through out the month the team continued to research batteries to find the most effective for our purpose.

October
Some of our less experienced learned to use an arch welder. Once we became fairly decent at this job we started discussing caster, kingpin, camber, toe-in, toe-out, and Ackerman angles; to learn their importance in our cars structure. After this lesson we started construction on the front and end pieces of our car.  We also started to assemble the rear wheel. This imposed some problems for the team. We needed to figure out a way to get the wheel on and off easily. We also had issues with the wheels positioning, it was slightly angled and caused friction and resistance in the wheels movement.

November
We finally fixed all rear wheel problems by using a bicycle method of sliding the wheel assembly in and out easily. We placed brackets on the ends to ensure that the wheel wasn’t going anywhere. The team also started work on mounting the motor. We took a hinge to the motor mount and welded it to the frame of the car. This is supposed to help keep the chain tight on the sprockets.

December
This month we finished the back end of the vehicle. We also constructed and assembled the front axle. However, in order to assemble the front axle we had to figure out our Camber and toe-in or toe-out angles. We also constructed the steering assembly.

January
In January we figured out more of the steering by constructing a wheel. We also figured out a breaking system. This took us a few trials to accommodate for everyone’s height. We also measured and cut our break cables.

February
February was a month of trial and error we had to repeatedly fix our break pedals to fit everyone. We also elevated our steering wheel so the short people could still see and reach while the tall people could slide down more. The control box was attached as well.

March
Our batteries arrived, and we wasted no time to make cables to get them up and running. However this was an on going process because they were made, then we found a different route to take them so they had to be reconstructed. The rear sprocket controlling the speed was tweaked. The out side of the car was measured, cut, and constructed out of plexy glass. We attached the plexy glass with pop rivets. We are now getting down to minor details such as the body, mirrors, and the taillight.