The Final 10%

Computer Systems, Electrical System, General, uncategorized

There is a long lasting proverb that says, “you’re only halfway done when you think you’re 90% finished.” So, with the PCB done and the mechanics of the car all together, the car appears to be all together. But as the proverb goes, that last 10 percent will take tremendous work from our electrical, software […]

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Re-visioning the Electrical Board

Electrical System, General, uncategorized

As we wait for a sunny weekend to test SOCKEYE, we are simultaneously implementing a new printed circuit board to replace the interconnecting board shown below. Our interconnecting board houses microcontrollers, current sensors, and power distribution modules for all low-voltage components of the car. 

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A Glimpse Into the Design of SOCKEYE

Featured, General, Structures, uncategorized

In the coming weekends, we are hoping to start testing SOCKEYE in preparation for the race. Of course, this will rely on many extraneous factors such as weather, so it may take a few weeks. In the meantime, we are making some not-so-interesting final preparations. Instead of talking about that, let’s take a trip to the past and revisit just a few parts of SOCKEYE’s design that were overshadowed in last year’s blog posts.

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From Theft to Victory Lane: The Rebirth of our Racing Trailer

General, Structures, uncategorized

As the team continues to progress toward Texas, it is important to revisit old projects to see how they can be improved. One of these projects is the open-top trailer that was built for the 2022 race. With SOCKEYE’s new wheel profile, we needed to modify the trailer to fit. Unfortunately, as the new design […]

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January Progress Update

General, Outreach, uncategorized

Kicking off the new year, we’ve been working around the clock to perfect SOCKEYE for the 2024 National Solar Car Challenge. Throughout January, our members have participated in ongoing projects as we continue to prepare for testing the car, with many members stepping up to lead their own projects.

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Happy New Years! New PC Board and Brake Discs

uncategorized

As 2023 comes to a close, we are well on our way to having an improved solar car. We are hard at work, carrying out projects that we were not able to implement last year due to time constraints, and finding new ways to improve Sockeye’s performance. In this busy season, many of our new […]

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Taking Inspiration from the 2023 World Solar Challenge’s Winning Car “Infinite”

uncategorized

The Belgium-based “Innoptus Solar Car Team” is composed of talented engineering students who have made a significant mark in the world of solar car racing. Their latest Solar Car, the “Infinite”, has shown the team’s engineering and design innovations in the solar car world. This contributed to their victory in the 2023 Bridgestone World Solar […]

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The Last Stretch: Strategy


Featured, General, Solar

Energy management for solar car racing is critical. For our upcoming endurance test at PACCAR Technical Center, we want to travel as far as possible in roughly 7 and a half hours. To travel as efficiently as possible, we must make precise decisions on how fast to drive the car. The power needed to overcome […]

July 21, 2023

The Maiden Voyage – PACCAR Testing 07/18/2023


Featured, General

After learning the unfortunate news that we would not participate in the Solar Car Challenge, Larsen Matthew Mendoza summed up our emotions: “It’s upsetting, it’s really upsetting, but it’s not about the destination but the journey.” So we persisted. Our focus shifted from the cross-country open-road challenge from Texas to California to an endurance challenge […]

July 21, 2023

July Update: A New Challenge


Featured, General, Outreach, Texas

Just before the end of the school year, we received some unfortunate news.  During the review of the insurance arranged by Solar Car Challenge (SCC) organizers, Highline Public Schools’ risk managers noticed a crucial exception: moving vehicles were not covered outside the Texas Motor Speedway, i.e., in our 1,200-mile cross country trip, student drivers would […]

July 13, 2023

Layup Process


Aerodynamics, Featured, General, Structures

During the last few months, the team has been working hard on preparing for our carbon fiber layup to construct the car’s aerodynamic shell. With the mold in its final state, we began the layup process. In doing so, we will have a one-piece shell which will allow for better aerodynamics and a smoother surface. […]

May 23, 2023

Designing the Battery Holders


Electrical System, Featured, General

Over the past few weeks, the electrical team has been working towards completing the solar car’s battery cell array. With the lithium-ion batteries arriving, it has been time to design the battery holders. As opposed to last year, this year’s battery holders have been integrated with polycarbonate in one unit. Due to extensive iterations and […]

April 24, 2023

The Oven


Featured, General, Structures

Ninth grade RAHS students were challenged to write about an aviation community that they often interact with. For freshman Luca Umbelino, it’s the RAHS Green Energy Team! Read about his carbon fiber oven project below. The RAHS Green Energy Team is a student-led club that annually builds a solar powered car and races it across […]

April 3, 2023

Mold Making


Aerodynamics, Featured, General, Structures

The structural team has been working relentlessly to try and to meet the February “Go/No-Go ” deadline. With confidence, the team has decided to “GO” and continue our efforts with the 2023 design. This past month, parts were being ordered, and designs have been finalized. Janicki has donated their time and materials to help us […]

March 20, 2023

Hazel Valley Outreach Plan


Featured, General, Outreach, Solar

Students test their solar cars on the final day of testing/racing. Over the past month and a half, our outreach sub-team conducted a series of after-school educational activities with the 5th-grade students of Hazel Valley Elementary School. Through these presentations and hands-on activities, RAHS Green Energy Team (GET) members introduced students to the importance of […]

March 6, 2023

Solar Panel Update


Featured, General, Solar

With the Solar Car Challenge approaching rapidly, different subteams have been hard at work on separate projects that will eventually come together on our final car.  The solar sub-team in particular has been preparing to manufacture our solar array for the new car. We are still waiting on materials before we commence the soldering process, […]

February 20, 2023

Electrical Update


Electrical System, Featured, General

While the mechanical team has been hard at work getting components and designing the structure of the car, our electrical team has been working just as hard by designing the individual components of our electrical system and planning how they will all come together.  E-ink display OLED Display In working on our steering wheel, we […]

February 6, 2023