June 9, 2010

Competition 2010: Day 1 - Check In

After a night's sleep in the local hotel, Sleep Inn, we headed to the Fayetteville lake to unload, diagnose the sprint lower unit, and perform some other last minute repairs.

Mike and Paul both headed to a local marina for a second opinion on how to fix the sprint lower unit. After consulting with a technician about the E-Tek motor specifications, it was discovered that the motors run at a maximum of 3,000 RPM, less than the expected RPM of the propeller that was attached. It is hypothesized the slippage occurred because of this. To rectify this problem, a different propeller was purchased with a larger radius and a lower pitch. This new configuration should work but needs to be tested.


Also pictured below are the new solar panels mounted on the boat. The panels have been graciously loaned to CMSS from the CMU Solar Decathlon team (specifications for the panels, as well as all other critical system components can be found in the 2010 Technical Report.) The mounting system is hinged at the center and held in place with pins to allow for easy removal of the solar panels from the boat.


Back at the lake, the final decals were applied, with the front Hydra logo looking particularly good. The entire hull was then waxed and polished to reduce drag.




Baby Bear (the boat trailer) is being unloaded from Papa Bear.
Chris is unloading a solar panel from the trailer.

Ibuki is chilling next to the boat. The solar panel mounts are in the upwards configuration.

The new solar panels mounted on the boat.


David is explaining the motor controller box for the electrical inspection.

The hull has a reflective finish after being waxed and polished.

Chris, David, and Austin are analyzing data and working on the LabVIEW code.

Tomorrow both configurations will be tested in the qualification events.

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