SIUC Auto Tech Blog

grads of 2011

jeepster — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 04:16:09 +0000

grads 2011

EUV Update

Omar — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:43:53 +0000

The EUV project is still alive and is closer to the projected May 2012 completion date. We decided to utilize a heavy duty pulley and belt system to transfer power to the transmission. Fortunately, we were able to move the EUV to a new location that will allow us to proceed with the project. The EUV team is working hard to meet the deadline and we hope to get the engine mount fabricated soon.

As soon as the mount is finished, we should be able to put everything back together and start testing on the Dyno. Thank you for your patience and please stay tune for more updates.

Fall 2011 Graduation

Omar — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 23:13:26 +0000

Congratulations to all of our Fall 2011 graduates. It is always rewarding to see all of our students that make it to the end. Graduation day always brings images of how you felt when you first walked into your first class. Fortunately, our graduates usually have multiple companies to choose from. Graduates, lease keep us updated on your career path. Go Salukis!!!

LS Fest

Omar — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:59:20 +0000

This weekend was filled with several events including the famous LS fest. Several SIUC automotive students were in attendance. The fest is specifically focused on vehicles with LSx motors. There were vehicles with LSx motors from miatas to Bel airs.

The event was not only a car show. It also had autox, drifting, and drag racing activities. Admission was free for automotive technology students.

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SIUC Auto Tech Car Meet 2011

Omar — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 21:11:20 +0000

With over 80 cars and 80 people in attendance, the first SIUC Auto Tech Car Meet was very successful. Thank you for all of the Students, Staff, Photographer, and Faculty members that came out for the event. The hope is that we will be able to make this an annual event. We look forward to next year’s SIUC Auto Tech Car Meet. Let’s make it happen.

Here is a little teaser from the event. More pictures to come from James Durbin (event photographer).

Teachers Teaching Teachers

Omar — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 03:47:56 +0000

Twice a year, instructors from around the Illinois State area come together for the Illinois College Automotive Instructors Association conference. It is a great way for instructors to share ideas and discuss new technologies.

This event also provides an avenue for our faulty members to share their research findings. This semester, Eugene Talley, David Gilbert, and Omar Trinidad presented their research. ICAIA members also try to give back to the students by providing scholarships. The new Transportation Education Center will be a great venue for this event.

EUV: Day 3

Omar — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 22:13:15 +0000

The third day started of with a surprise from the Grounds department. They dropped of a second utility vehicle for parts. The newer UTV has some usable parts such as the hood, transmission, doors, and wind shield. The body is a little bit more rusty than the previous vehicle, but I think we can salvage some parts out of it.

After quickly removing the power and drivetrain out of the vehicle, we were able to open up the transaxle. This time we had the shift fork. The only problem is the bearings for the input shaft were in pieces.

Next steps are:
1. Fix the Transaxle
2. Mount the electric motor
3. Purchase sprockets and a belt to drive the transaxle
4. Install all of the electronics
5. Misc: such as cleaning and testing various systems

I hope that we can get more students involved in this project. Please email me at omar@siu.edu, if you are interested in working on the EUV.

EUV: Day 2

Omar — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 23:03:55 +0000

The Utility vehicle was in an immobile condition when we first received it. Things were very apparent when we noticed that the engine did not have a drive belt connecting it to the transmission. In addition, the transmission seemed to make a strange noise.

The first thing we needed to do was to clean up our work area. After clearing out our work area, we started to dismantle the transaxle. We found that someone had already gone in before us and took out the shift fork.

While part of the team was working on the transaxle, the other half started to work on the electronics of the EUV. We started to take unnecessary circuits out of the vehicle for weight reduction.

The motor will be in soon. Next items on the list is fabricating a way to drive the axles using the electric motor. The question is, will we have a differential or a solid locked axle?

More picture and posting will be up as the project progresses.

Electric Utility Vehicle (EUV)

Omar — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 21:55:16 +0000

The School of Information Systems and Applied Technologies has graciously invited our program to work with them in building an Electric Vehicle. The goal is to build an electric utility vehicle that will be used by the worm farm program on campus. I hope that this venture will be the first of many.

First Work Day

The students started to take out the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), Fuel tank, Drivetrain and other components. The students that are working on the project are: Eric Anderson, Jin Woo, Nagib Karim, Dang Nguyen, Jains Ruff, Piotr Debowski, and Alex Richards. We have also started to remove some body panels to see where we can install the EV components.

Project
The Electric Utility Vehicle will use one 3 phase AC motor and 16 Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFeYPo4) 3.2v 100AH batteries. In addition, the EUV will be designed with regenerative braking capabilities to increase efficiency.

Pictures of the first work day.

SIUC Auto Tech Blog

jeepster — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 17:35:54 +0000

The SIUC Auto Tech blog is a place where SIUC Automotive Technology instructors can share with the rest of the world some of their experiences, observations, and projects. This Blog might show you a snippet of life on the SIUC Auto campus.