Between January 2020 to October 2020, there was a major change in vehicle design that involved removing the structural bottom panel from the design. A major premise of MS14 was that we would be able to manufacture a structural bottom panel which would provide us significant weight reduction and maximize occupant space. Major factors that prevented us from having a structural bottom panel included the absence of a sponsor for an autoclave, the aggressive bend angles of the bottom panel that were difficult for honeycomb nomex core to conform to and the general difficulties of performing prepreg carbon fiber manufacturing. Below is an image

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Figure 1: Image of the Bottom Panel CAD.

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What needs to be now completed is a vehicle re-design that does not consist of a structural bottom panel while satisfying all American Solar Challenge Regulations (ASC Regs).

Below are images from ASC 2021 Regs Release A that relate to the structural design of the vehicle. There are possibly even more regulations that can be relevant factors for vehicle design. It is strongly recommended to fully review the latest release of the ASC Regs before beginning any design project. Feel free to add screenshots of additional regulations that may apply.

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•  Vehicle weight that we use to design is 720 kg.
•  Would want to get a more updated quantity of how much the current assembly weighs.
  Would need to include at least: Chassis tubes, Dynamics assembly, Battery Box, Seats, and more.
•  Can work from a baseline how much the Chassis weighs and then see how any further modification creates how much percentage weight change
•  Should do onsite measurements and inspection of any implementation method before finalization. This is because there are inaccuracies with the welded Chassis assembly.

Please document your work in a confluence page for any work completed for Midnight Sun.
For this specific project, it would be highly advised your documentation includes the following information:

•  Directly Responsible Individual (DRI)
•  Advisor or Reviewer
•  Dependencies
•  Location of work files, e.g. simulation files.
  Include file name and folder path.
•  Date
•  Child pages to separate and document sections of your work

Last updated: May 3, 2021 (7:00 PM EST)