Baja SAE
Team Lead: Glenn CarrosTeam Manager: Matt Bezkrovny
Staff Advisor: John Fabijanic x______
Department Head: Andrew Davol x______
SAE Baja, a part of the Cal Poly Racing group, is requesting monetary aid to be able to participate in competition this year—and to perform at our very best. Our team has already registered to participate in the SAE Baja event in Portland, Oregon from May 16th to May 19th. Although we have many interesting and worthwhile projects designed and ready to be put into fabrication, we are at a serious financial disadvantage. As such, we would like to ask you to help send us to competition. We are not just looking to participate; we are striving to win. Not only will we benefit, but our beloved school will benefit as well. After the cost of transportation has been factored into our budget, we are left with a meager amount to spend on projects; projects that carry our team members towards the classic “learn-by-doing” motto. Put into perspective, the total cost to transport our race car, team members, and faculty advisor, as well as purchasing rooms in a hotel, adds up to $4,977.30. As stated before, we don’t just want to get to competition; we want to arrive with a winning machine. We have an amazing team this year that displays a mix of skill, dedication, and comradery. It is said that a mechanic is only as good as his tools; likewise, our wonderful team can only go so far without the proper support.
The Cal Poly SAE Baja team has consistently competed since the 1980’s; it is one of the few organizations on campus that has a tradition of making it to competition and delivering quality results. Furthermore, it has been a place where students can come together outside of class to truly get a taste of real-world engineering. Our yearly goal is to design, present, fabricate, assemble, test, and compete with a single-seat off-road racing buggy. Baja is 100% student-managed, and the entire process, from initial design to the final product, is carried out solely by students and done entirely in-house. Our team is dedicated to providing students with a safe, exciting venue to become involved in organized, off-road racing and facilitates Cal Poly’s classic learn-by-doing experience.
Our team begins every year by recruiting new members and creating an initial design plan. Once the team is formed, consisting of previous and incoming members, various groups are created to develop the vehicles various sub-systems. Design of these subsystems begins through rigorous research; research that gives students an understanding beyond the traditional classroom. Students work with experienced seniors and alumni to develop CAD models of their parts, all which are backed by calculations and testing data.
Throughout this design process, two professional presentations are given to faculty, alumni, and anyone else interested. The first, known as the Preliminary Design Review, covers the specific design goals relating to every aspect of the vehicle, researched ways of achieving these goals, and the preferred method to complete the goals. The second presentation, referred to as the Critical Design Review, expands in detail upon the final design of the vehicle and its subsystems—including budgets, calculations, data, CAD simulations, and schedules. These two events expose students to presentations that they will perform in the workforce. They provide immense real-world experience and are a definite resume-builder.
Once the designs are improved upon through the help of faculty and alumni, and finally approved, fabrication begins. All work is performed by students inside either of the two machine shops on campus—the Hangar (building 04) and the Bondersen Projects Center (Mustang ’60). Students are taught to use a multitude of machines, from lathes to welding equipment; employers seek these types of skills, skills which can only be obtained from clubs such as Baja.
Fabrication of the various subsystems eventually turns into assembly. Students learn to coordinate with other sub-system teams to create a final product that works. They gain the knowledge to properly put together and race-prep a vehicle; skills which go beyond mere ‘wrench-turning.’
When assembly has been completed, extensive testing is done on the car; data is collected regarding various characteristics of the vehicle to properly understand it, and consequently tune it for optimal performance. Testing is also performed to ensure durability of the new, unproven components. Parts which fail will be improved upon or redesigned, and be reevaluated until they are deemed ready for competition. Another critical purpose of this testing phase is to expose drivers, new and old, to the vehicle under various conditions. We create mock courses and obstacles so that drivers can learn the behavior of the race car, and thus are ready for almost anything during competition. Our senior members guide new drivers through multiple skill-building exercises.
At the end of every school year, the SAE Baja team travels to a sanctioned, collegiate-level competition to put our car to the test and hopefully propel our school to the top. The competitions consist of over 100 serious teams, all competing for gold. The event tests not only the car’s design, durability, and performance, but also the team’s cohesiveness, leadership abilities, and communications skills. These other aspects are evaluated through an overall design presentation, followed by judging of the car; a sales presentation where judges factor in the vehicles total cost, marketability, and user-friendliness; and a full technical inspection of the car to ensure adherence to strict safety regulations. Testing of the car’s abilities includes a timed hill climb challenge, timed 0-100ft. acceleration sprint, four-wheel brake test, timed maneuverability evaluation, rock crawl distance challenge, and 4 hour head-to-head endurance race—the most demanding segment of all. Throughout all of these events, our students are exposed to the functions of a true racing team. They learn to troubleshoot problems when they occur, to develop a personal and beneficial relationship with their team, and a well-rounded skill set that makes them some of the best engineers Cal Poly has to offer.
We have great confidence that this year our team will be even more competitive and successful than the last. One of our main developments is a new transmission gearbox—one of our member’s senior projects—which has been designed, fabricated, and assembled almost entirely in-house. Previously, we had to resort to a transmission with only one forward gear; this hampered us during competition by limiting our top speed, and by not allowing us to reverse the car in-case of an obstacle or collision. This new unit allows us to have two forward speeds, a neutral position, and a reverse gear—all together tremendously improving the capabilities of our machine. The new gearbox is assembled and constructed in a more robust, professional, and well-thought-out fashion. It is sure to win us major points not only in the races, but throughout the design judging as well.
Some other improvements this season include incorporating a custom (student-made) data acquisition system which will provide us with on-demand technical data for various vehicle systems including engine rpm, vehicle speed, dynamic acceleration, gearbox temperature, gear position, etc. These will be available instantaneously to the driver on an in-cockpit LCD screen, and will also be logged onto a storage card for later analysis. Never before has our team pursued this vigorous of a testing regiment; we are sure that it will help fine tune the vehicle and achieve major points during judging. This system is made possible because of one of our new members, a computer engineer. He is heading up the project of designing and programming the system, teaching us along the way some of the skills he’s applying. We he needs guidance, he seeks it from Cal Poly’s electrical engineering, computer science, or computer engineering departments, depending on the problem.
We are also redesigning our student-made 5-link independent rear suspension to improve upon reliability, adjustability, cost, weight, strength, manufacturability, and consumer friendliness. Instead of resorting to steel, we will be using aircraft-grade 7075-T651 heat-treated structural aluminum links. Working with the IME department we have already been able to conduct extensive testing has to ensure that they will be satisfactory in terms of strength and fatigue requirements. Furthermore, our suspension will incorporate multiple pickup point locations, which will provide on-the-fly tuning of suspension behavior—beyond adjusting simple alignment settings. This technique is employed in top-tier professional race cars to achieve a competitive edge. Our brakes lead has been working closely with the materials engineering department to determine the best material for making our new brake rotors. A number of other performance improvements are the continuously variable transmission, removable gas tank cell, driver restraints, chassis, constant velocity joints, and driver ergonomics. These projects will teach our students welding, sheet metal forming, precision machining (lathe, mill), CNC (computer numerical control machining), and composite material fabrication, as well as practical fabrication techniques and assembly skills. Our team also works closely the business and sales departments in order to help get our clubs name out there, and learn important skills on networking with businesses and design and budget presentations.
This year, our team will be working extremely hard to meet these build deadlines:
Milestone / DateNew Final Drive Gearbox Complete / Dec 1, 2011
CDR / Dec 3, 2011
Finish gearbox test car/begin testing of gearbox / Dec 14, 2011
Finalize major component designs/begin building / Jan 67 2012
Data acquisition system complete / Jan 14, 2012
Finish current frame / Jan 21, 2012
Finalize fabrication of all components / Feb 18, 2012
Begin assembly of car / Feb 25, 2012
Running Car / Feb 29, 2012
Begin testing of current car / Mar 3, 2012
Finalize all major adjustments for competition / Apr 15, 2012
Strip car for painting / Apr 21, 2012
Finish painting / Apr 28, 2012
Final assembly for competition / May 5, 2012
Leave for competition / May 15, 2012
Compete / May 16-19, 2012
As you can imagine, many resources, parts, and tools are required to complete a project of this magnitude. Many of the tools required for the fabrication of our parts are not commonly available in our shops; some are either worn, damaged, or have to be custom-ordered. These tools are not expensive, but are a must to ensure that parts are built to the utmost quality. Furthermore, we require raw materials such as metal, fiberglass, etc, and hardware. We also must replace commonly worn items such as bearings, wheels, tires, brake pads and rotors, brake lines, bushings, fluids, gasoline, paint, grease, etc. These are a must to have an operational vehicle that will survive the grueling harshness of competition. After these come the various projects that are so beneficial to our team, our school’s image/reputation, and most importantly our students.
Name / Position / MajorGlenn Carros / Team Lead / Mechanical Engineering
Ryan Flatland / Brakes Lead / Mechanical Engineering
Ryan Slein / Steering Lead / Civil Engineering
Matt Bezkrovny / Drivetrain Lead / Mechanical Engineering
JJ Seifert / Final Drive Lead / Mechanical Engineering
Ian Millikan / Suspension Lead / Mechanical Engineering
Scott Frey / Master Welder / Mechanical Engineering
Andrew Benjamin / Shock Lead / Mechanical Engineering
Graham Garvin / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Jess McCafferty / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Logan Pace / Team Member / General Engineering
Matt Theiss / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Jeryn Sampson / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Dylan de Caussin / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Thomas Willson / Electronics Lead / Computer Engineering
John Herron / Team Member / Aerospace Engineering
Michael Mooney / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Robert Macias / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Kyle VanAllen / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Michael Berry / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
Pat Haley / Team Member / Civil Engineering
Marty Affringer / Team Member / Mechanical Engineering
That being said, we have a large team of dedicated members who work passionately day and night throughout the year, often skipping on sleep out of pure dedication to the race car they love so much. We are so lucky to have such dedicated students from a variety of majors, including mechanical, computer, aerospace, civil, and general engineers. They are listed below:
Year after year, Cal Poly’s SAE Baja team provides students with a venue to truly experience real-world engineering. It is a chance to take an idea and turn it into a truly impressive, inspiring machine. The skills required to do this are crucial to forming a great engineer. It’s what separates our school, and the learn-by-doing process, from the rest, and goes beyond what can be learned in the classroom. Our members learn to interact as part of a team, to depend on one another, to work with outside suppliers and professional companies, to network with sponsors, to design a practical machine that performs as well on the track as it does on paper, to develop new, worthwhile friendships, and to learn essentially any and every aspect of the engineering process. If not for clubs like Baja, where else would our brilliant and enthusiastic students be able to participate in such a constructive and valuable experience?
It is imperative that we continue allowing students to participate in such a beneficial experience. A brief overview of what the $4,977.30 applies to is shown below, with a more detailed version attached.
Students / $2,972 / Faculty Advisor / $950 / Transportation of Car / $1,055.30Van / $752 / Flight / $400 / Truck + Trailer / $735.30
Personal Car / $940 / Hotel / $320 / Hotel for Drivers / $320
Hotel / $1280 / Rental Car / $230
Total / $4,977.30
Our budget for our projects this year and for travel is $15,453. To this date, Cal Poly SAE’s IRA fund has provided us with $8,667, leaving us with a budget deficit of $6,786. As stated earlier, we are working with the business and sales departments in order to put our name out there and network with businesses in hopes of obtaining some sponsors for the remaining funds. We are also in contact with family, friends, and alumni, trying to get them to support our project. Any amount of support that we are provided with will help our team obtain its goal of making it to competition, and be one of the leading teams there. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and we hope you chose to help our dedicated team of young engineers so we can continue learning from such a great experience.
Sincerely,
Glenn Carros – Team Captain
Matthew Bezkrovny – Manager