Michigan Tech Takes Second in FutureTruck Competition
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HOUGHTON MI -- These students are more accustomed to snow than the 112-degrees in the Arizona desert. But the Michigan Technological University FutureTruck team beat the heat, and 13 other teams, finishing second in this year's challenge. The University of Wisconsin-Madison won the overall prize.
Michigan Tech earned first place finishes in the best acceleration and lowest regulated emissions categories during the competition. Their modified Ford Explorer was the only one of the 15 competitors to meet the state of California's strict Super Ultra Low Emissions standards.
These categories are crucial to the FutureTruck program goals of decreasing emissions, improving fuel economy and maintaining customer acceptance of vehicles.
The grueling 10-day competition involves 15 teams from top universities across North America. Each group modifies a Ford Explorer to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions. Teams competed in 12 rigorous events that measured all aspects of the vehicles including: safety, performance, consumer acceptability and design evaluation.
It was Michigan Tech's best finish in the seven-year history of the FutureCar and FutureTruck competitions. Tech was the only Michigan university invited to participate this year.
The Michigan Tech team advisor, mechanical engineering professor John Beard, earned the National Science Foundation Faculty Advisor Award. The team will receive $20,000 from this honor. All told, the team drove away with $28,000 in prize money.
"Our plan, coming into the competition, was to reduce weight and make sure the basic systems were up and running," Beard said. "We came in as the lightest vehicle there.
"I have worked with the students on taking reasonable technical risks, which I think is valuable to them in their future careers. We hope to finish high, but we go in with the idea that this is a learning process."
Beard also said the team's philosophy was customer-driven. "We designed this Explorer to be manufactured--not just to be a custom-build," he said. "We also looked at added safety features. We designed a rear-view mirror, for example, that uses four cameras to give the driver a 180-degree view."
Beard praised the resourcefulness of Tech students throughout the competition, including a team leader that came prepared.
"We had just finished the acceleration test and were moving to the off-road test," Beard said, "when one of the coolant lines sprung a leak. We were a long way away from the pits and all of our tools. Our team leader pulled his Leatherman tool from his pocket, they fixed the leak, and we were back in the running. Everyone on our team was well-prepared."
FutureTruck judging began June 11, 2002, at the Ford Motor Company Proving Ground in Yucca, Arizona, and concluded at the California Motor Speedway in Fontana, California, on June 21.
Ford Motor Company and the U.S. Department of Energy were the title sponsors for 2002. Ford will continue its commitment to FutureTruck and the 2003 competition will be part of the 100th Anniversary of Ford Motor Company taking place in Dearborn, Michigan at Ford headquarters.
Competing universities in the FutureTruck 2002 competition were: California Polytechnic State University, San Louis Obispo; Cornell University; Georgia Institute of Technology; Michigan Technological University; Ohio State University; Pennsylvania State University; Texas Tech University; University of Alberta; University of California, Davis; University of Idaho; University of Maryland; University of Tennessee; University of Wisconsin-Madison; Virginia Tech; and West Virginia University.
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