Vehicle Design

 

During the initial stages of the 4 gateway process, several broad design ideas were considered by the LUV teams before narrowing to specific component designs. These potential ideas were inspired by benchmarking and vehicle design research (assisted with the Quality Function Deployment) as well as determining layout and vehicle preferences of the public through market research. The initial options considered are listed below:

Frame / Body Design Considerations

 

•         Ladder Frame
•         Space Frame
•         Backbone Frame
•         Fiberglass Body
•         Sheetmetal Body
•         Monocoque / Unibody
•         Steel Construction
•         Aluminum Construction
•         Composite / Carbon-Fiber Construction

Suspension Design Considerations

 

•         Front
•    Solid Axle
•    MacPherson Strut
•    Double A-Arm
•    Trailing Arm
•    Leaf Springs
•    Coilovers


•         Rear
•    Swing-Arm

Steering Design Considerations

•         Rack and Pinion
•         Go Kart System

Propulsion Design Considerations

•         AC Electric Motors (brushed and brushless)
•         DC Electric Motors (brushed and brushless)
•         Small Gasoline Internal Combustion Engine

Vechicle Drive Design Considerations

•         Direct Belt Drive
•         Gear Reduction System
•         Contuously Variable Transmission

After strong consultation of the QFD, the client and client liaison, the results of the customer survey, and initial design calculations, the final vehicle design was chosen, analyzed, constructed, and validated. Among the notable options chosen include an aluminum space-frame to save weight, as well as an AC brushless electric motor running through a delrin geartrain to improve overall efficiency and reduce noise while driving, all first-time features for the LUV project in its 4th year. The electric motor and controller system operate with a regeneration function that allows the vehicle to regain kinetic energy that would normall be disipated during braking, and resuse that energy to accelerate again. A double wishbone front suspension was coupled with a swingarm rear suspension and rack & pinion steering system to improve ride quality and make maneuvering the vehicle easy in an urban setting.