Formula SAE: MIT Motorsports

The concept behind Formula SAE is that a fictional manufacturing company has contracted a student design team to develop a small Formula-style race car. The prototype race car is to be evaluated for its potential as a production item. The target marketing group for the race car is the non-professional weekend autocross racer. Each student team designs, builds and tests a prototype based on a series of rules, whose purpose is both ensuring on-track safety (the cars are driven by the students themselves) and promoting clever problem solving.

MIT Motorsports

The mission of the MIT Motorsports team is to educate students as professional engineers and leaders through the development of a competitive prototype vehicle. Working with the team takes students out of the classroom and allows them to apply textbook theories to real work experience. The MIT Motorsports team designs and builds a small formula-style car from the ground up every year so that we can compete against other teams from around the world.

Joining the team in the fall of 2012, I entered in a time of transition.  The team had decided to join the newly established Formula Electric competition.  Similar to the existing competition, this one required that cars be purely electric.  With this massive undertaking came many design reviews and redesigns.  The chassis design required thoughtful design to accommodate the different drive train packaging.  Batteries, motor controllers, and electronics replaced the tried and true internal combustion engine, gas tanks, and transmission.  With my fabrication experience I was able to help construct the tubular space frame chassis.  I also used my CAD and CAM knowledge to design and machine many custom parts and components for our race car.

Since then I have continued to help with fabrication as well as designing the suspensions system, chassis, and overall packaging.  I use a combination of computer programs, books, and design principles in order to create each frame.