Ohio State Places 2nd in Year 4 of the EcoCAR Mobility Challenge Competition
Congratulations to the Ohio State University EcoCAR team on placing second overall in the four-year EcoCAR Mobility Challenge competition and earning several awards for exceptional technical work and presentations.
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, General Motors, and MathWorks, the EcoCAR Mobility Challenge is a four-year collegiate automotive engineering competition. It tasks 11 universities across North America to redesign the 2019 Chevrolet Blazer into an energy-efficient hybrid with semi-autonomous capabilities.
The competition held May 9 – 20 in Yuma and Phoenix, Arizona included a thorough evaluation of the vehicle, including testing to measure the fuel economy in manual driving, the fuel economy in automated driving, the drive quality in automated driving and a host of other things. The team also competed in design presentations in multiple areas as well as one for both project management as well as communications and outreach. The goal of the Year 4 vehicle is to have a highly refined vehicle, so significant attention is given to the fit and finish of the vehicle and the customer driving experience.
“The team originally hoped to get through our testing early in the competition, but some issues we ran into leading up to testing severely limited our time to complete the tests,” said Team Lead, Ron Smith. “In fact, we managed to complete all of the dynamic vehicle testing for competition on the final day for testing. This was unique for we were the only team able to accomplish this. It is just emblematic of the grit, determination, and perseverance held by all members of the team.”
The team was also recognized for its outstanding performance across all events of the competition, taking home an impressive nine awards overall, seven being first place.
- Outstanding Team & Sponsor Collaboration
- 3rd Place: Communications Presentation
- 1st Place: Mid-Year Project Status Presentation
- 1st Place: Final Technical Report
- 1st Place: Propulsion Systems Integration Presentation
- 1st Place: Human-Machine Interface and User Experience Presentation
- 1st Place: Consumer Appeal Event
- 1st Place: AAM Workmanship Award
- 1st Place: dSPACE Leadership in Validation Award
Next year Ohio State will partner with Wilberforce University in the EcoCAR EV Challenge where they will be one of 15 teams challenged to design, build, refine and demonstrate the potential of the advanced propulsion systems and CAV technologies in a 2023 Cadillac LYRIQ.
“I am thrilled to be a part in the newest evolution of the AVTC series,” said Midlam-Mohler. “The focus on vehicle electrification, autonomy and diversity together in a single project is exactly the kind of experience we want to give our students.”
