Sunday, January 18, 2009

Let the sun shine in


This 600 lb. vehicle was constructed by the students and faculty of the Salisbury School in Salisbury, CT to compete in the Tour de Sol, a race for solar powered cars. The car is powered by an electric motor with a battery pack. the solar panels maintain the battery charge. If the motor were connected directly to the solar panels and the sun was shining bright, the car would run at 10 mph forever.
The car was constructed in 1993 by 10 teams who each specialized in an area of construction. The areas of construction included areas such as suspension, body, powerpack, and solar panels. The solar panels produce 70 volts DC which runs to a transformer and is converted to 100 volts DC.
This solar powered car won the Tour De Sol in 1994 and 1995. the Tour De Sol ran from a route of approximately 320 miles from Philadelphia to NYC in 1994, and a 500 mile route from Waterbury, CT to Portland, ME in 1995.

No comments: