High School Collegiate Autonomous Electric Racing for Students Program Overview Created and hosted by: 2018 evgrand Prix www.evgrandprix.org 1 / 5
Origins evgrand Prix began in 2009 with a professor at Purdue University receiving a $6M grant from the Department of Energy to expand electric vehicle education. The program was to provide students with hands-on technical projects while simultaneously raising awareness of electric vehicles and training a workforce skilled in this industry. Thus, evgrand Prix was born and electric go-kart racing began. Early Days The inaugural race took place in 2010 at Purdue University with collegiate teams coming from all over the country to participate. Races would average 20-30 karts competing each year from 10-15 different Universities. As the event grew in popularity, evgrand Prix started welcoming teams from countries such as England, Ireland, Canada, and China. Strategic Partnership In 2012, evgrand Prix partnered with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to host the event in the infield of the world-famous track. The race now takes place during the Month of May festivities, which includes INDYCAR Grand Prix, Indianapolis 500 Time Trials, Indy 500 Pit Stop Challenge and the renowned Indianapolis 500 Mile race. Students would now experience the true thrill of racing with Indy Cars practicing around them. Equally as important, the professional racing scene would now have a highly competitive and innovative electric karting competition going on in their backyard. Two worlds of racing began to join together. 2018 evgrand Prix www.evgrandprix.org 2 / 5
Technology & Innovation Each year, teams have pushed the technological capabilities of their karts further and further. Similar to the early days of combustion engines, evgrand Prix allows for many different drive train combinations to be utilized. New motors, batteries and controllers are tested against each other every year, and the best performing EV technologies are being discovered. With every new race, evgrand Prix sees more advanced systems being designed and implemented by students; including wireless telemetry, custom battery management, active cell-balancing, dynamic regenerative braking, and even split-axle dual-motor karts. This is, across the board, true vehicle engineering. More than a Race Though most students are attracted to the thrill of driving an electric go-kart at the Racing Capital of the World, evgrand Prix is much more than just a race. The program is an academic competition hosted and supported by Purdue University. Teams are judged in the following categories, with their weighted scores contributing to their total event placement. - Race Placement 40% - Energy Efficiency 20% - Design Challenge 20% - Community Outreach 20% Trophies are given out for each category within the challenge, and an overall event championship trophy is awarded to the team who performed the best across-theboard. 2018 evgrand Prix www.evgrandprix.org 3 / 5
Motorsports STEM After six successful years of collegiate evgrand Prix, the organization began to turn its attention to a new, younger group of students. As a land-grant school, Purdue University has a commitment to the state of Indiana to educate and train a competent workforce. To fulfill this responsibility, efforts must go beyond higher education and work their way toward K-12 students. Under Mitch Daniels' request, the Office of Engagement rolled out a new initiative titled Motorsports STEM, or MSTEM. Though MSTEM encompasses many programs, evgrand Prix High School was established and quickly began to expand the student karting scene. High School Growth evgrand Prix first welcomed high school teams in 2016 with an experimental race that utilized a less powerful and more simplified go-kart. It was determined that the high school series would have a spec go-kart design that included lead-acid batteries (instead of lithium) and a brushed DC motor. This decision keeps the cost of participation affordable for high schools and very much lowers the complexity of the go-kart. Two years later, evgrand Prix has a partnership with one of North America s most popular go-kart suppliers, Top Kart USA. An electric karting kit is now offered that high schools can purchase to easily get started. Total cost for a high school to join the program and build a kart is estimated to be about $5,000, which is quite affordable when compared with similar motorsports or karting programs. 2018 evgrand Prix www.evgrandprix.org 4 / 5
As a high school project, these electric gokarts must engage the students as well as fit into the teachers curriculum for science and physics. To address this, Purdue developed a set of comprehensive labs and teaching material for educators to easily use and incorporate the kart into their classroom. This resource combined with all the technical support and training that is provided makes joining evgrand Prix quite simple. Autonomous True to its original purpose of STEM education and workforce training, evgrand Prix is now developing its newest competitive division: Autonomous. Society is on the verge of a transportation revolution, and this electric karting competition provides the perfect platform to train and test new self-driving strategies while exposing students to the cutting-edge technology. In 2016, Purdue announced a partnership between evgrand Prix and one of the premiere engineering firms knowledgeable in the autonomous sector, LHP Engineering Solutions (www.lhpes.com). Incorporating their vehicle systems and self-driving expertise into one of these karts, LHP is paving the path for student teams to join the autonomous challenge and have a resource for training and development. In 2018, LHP announced an eight-week Autonomous Bootcamp to formally train and certify students in this area of vehicle engineering. In the coming years, evgrand Prix expects to see autonomous karts from colleges across the U.S. and hopes to continue to drive technological innovation through education and workforce development. 2018 evgrand Prix www.evgrandprix.org 5 / 5