Optimizing Formula Student Car Performance with IoT

The Durham University Electric Motorsport (DUEM) team, a group of undergraduate and postgraduate students, were faced with the challenge of reducing the weight and improving the performance of their Formula Student vehicle. The team participates in the highly competitive Formula Student competition, hosted annually by the Institute of Mechanical Engineering (IMechE) at the Silverstone Formula 1 track in the UK. The competition requires teams to demonstrate their technical, engineering, design, and manufacturing skills, reflecting the changes and demands of the industry while considering new developments in commercial car racing. The DUEM team aimed to apply the latest weight-saving technology to achieve a faster, more efficient car by optimizing an upright design for multiple load cases. The optimization of the upright design was a complex challenge, requiring design for multiple load cases including bump, cornering, braking, and acceleration loads. The conventional means of design iteration for many load cases by removing areas of low stress at each iteration was time-consuming and the final solution was not necessarily the most structurally efficient.

The Durham University Electric Motorsport (DUEM) team is a UK-based team of students who design, build, and race electric vehicles. The team consists of more than 30 undergraduate and postgraduate students with specialties in Vehicle Dynamics, Electronics, and Aerodynamics. The team members volunteer to work outside of university hours to participate in motorsport competitions. The team has a track record of participating in international competitions, including the North American Solar Challenge and the World Solar Challenge in Australia. They are known for their innovative approach, being the first Formula Student team in Class 2 to design a Regenerative Magneto Rheological (MR) suspension system.