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The EcoR2 is the first made-in-Spain hybrid car selected to participate in Formula Student Silverstone (United Kingdom), the most prestigious international competition for engineering students
Single-seat EcoR2 hybrid represents UPC at Formula Student Silverstone
The single-seat EcoR2 hybrid – which is competing at the Silverstone Circuit from 13 to 17 July along with 120 teams from 27 countries around the world – has been designed and built by the UPC’s ecoRacing association, whose members are students at the Terrassa School of Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering (ETSEIAT).
13/07/2011
For the second consecutive year, Formula Student Silverstone, the world's foremost international university competition for engineering students, has accepted the EcoR2 racing car as an entrant in the competition. The EcoR2, Spain's first hybrid racing car, has been designed and built by ETSEIAT students who are members of ecoRacing, a technological research association of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. BarcelonaTech (UPC).
The new and significantly improved EcoR2 hybrid is representing the UPC at the Silverstone Circuit (United Kingdom) from 13 to 17 July. The UPC crew is competing against 120 other university teams from around the world, with the competition taking place just a few days after a world championship Formula One race at Silverstone. The vehicle is also scheduled to compete at the Circuit de Catalunya (Montmeló, Barcelona) from 29 September to 2 October.
The EcoR2 hybrid was created by 12 industrial engineering students who are members of ecoRacing, a UPC technological research association. The team members are Baltasar López (the coordinator, responsible for the idea and the project), Edgar Aeneas, Segi Arnau, Joel Cibil, Robert Falcó, José Luis Garcia, Marc López, Francesc Xavier Moreno, Adrian Pleguezuelos, Noël Sánchez, Gabriel Seguí, and Sergi Tomás. All are studying industrial engineering at the ETSEIAT, and for the last three years they have been working on an unprecedented project in Spain. The result is the first hybrid car built by university students to be selected to compete in the prestigious Formula Student competition at the Silverstone Circuit. The single-seat racing car, dubbed the EcoR2, may be regarded as the first racing car to be built in Spain.
The car will compete on the Silverstone Circuit in the full slate of Formula Student events, which focus on acceleration, handling, endurance, fuel economy, technical design, and the presentation of the project. But the part of the competition the team is most excited about taking part in is the sustainability event, which takes into account the ecological impact of the vehicle. The UPC students are the first Spanish team to participate in the competition with a hybrid model and will be up against rival teams representing prestigious universities around the world.
The batteries of the futureThe EcoR2 hybrid is a single-seat Formula-style car designed to comply with the strict regulations of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in order to be eligible to participate in international competitions like Formula Student. It features a hybrid power train that combines a 16-kW combustion engine and an electric motor with a maximum power of 34 kW. The car is also equipped with a regenerative braking system that recaptures the vehicle’s kinetic energy during braking.
Compared to the model with which the team competed last year, the new version incorporates a number of important new features and technological improvements. The state-of-the-art lithium batteries that power the vehicle are one example. Widely regarded as the batteries of the future, they offer maximum energy density and a higher charge capacity, as well as being lighter than other types of batteries. Another advantage is that the batteries can be recharged using any electrical outlet, which makes it possible to have maximum performance without sacrificing autonomy. The vehicle that will compete this year is also 20% lighter than its predecessor and the drivetrain is 25% more efficient, which reduces the energy consumed by the car. In the current model, the driver can control a number of engine parameters or change the mode of operation from behind the steering wheel. The three modes available are electric with zero emissions, combustion mode, and parallel hybrid drive.
As for safety (one of the most important considerations for the Formula Student judges), the EcoR2 has been subjected to a full battery of stringent crash tests.
The electric motor is powered by state-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries, and a regenerative braking system recaptures kinetic energy during deceleration. The result is a vehicle that emits 70% less CO2 without compromising performance features.
The competition is organised by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in each country, and the national automotive engineering societies together form the international federation FISITA.
Formula Student has become the most prestigious competition of its kind in Europe, where more than a hundred teams from around the world take part each year. The participating universities must assume that a car manufacturer has commissioned them to produce a prototype for evaluation, and that in principle the company is planning to produce a thousand units. In this scenario, the racing car is to be marketed to weekend driving enthusiasts for use on closed circuits. The vehicle must therefore deliver very high performance in terms of acceleration, braking and handling. At the same time, the cost of production must be kept down.
In addition to the purely technical aspects of the project, the competition has a multidisciplinary character, bringing into play a range of skills and factors, including project management, negotiation, strategy, teamwork, the ability to innovate, responsibility, financing, and public relations.
From 29 September to 2 October, the vehicle will also participate in Formula Student events at the Circuit de Catalunya (in Montmeló, Barcelona). On this occasion, the EcoR2 will compete alongside another vehicle developed by UPC students: the Cat04, designed and built by the ETSEIB Motorsport team. The two single-seat racing cars will take part in the competition at Montmeló.
The new and significantly improved EcoR2 hybrid is representing the UPC at the Silverstone Circuit (United Kingdom) from 13 to 17 July. The UPC crew is competing against 120 other university teams from around the world, with the competition taking place just a few days after a world championship Formula One race at Silverstone. The vehicle is also scheduled to compete at the Circuit de Catalunya (Montmeló, Barcelona) from 29 September to 2 October.
The EcoR2 hybrid was created by 12 industrial engineering students who are members of ecoRacing, a UPC technological research association. The team members are Baltasar López (the coordinator, responsible for the idea and the project), Edgar Aeneas, Segi Arnau, Joel Cibil, Robert Falcó, José Luis Garcia, Marc López, Francesc Xavier Moreno, Adrian Pleguezuelos, Noël Sánchez, Gabriel Seguí, and Sergi Tomás. All are studying industrial engineering at the ETSEIAT, and for the last three years they have been working on an unprecedented project in Spain. The result is the first hybrid car built by university students to be selected to compete in the prestigious Formula Student competition at the Silverstone Circuit. The single-seat racing car, dubbed the EcoR2, may be regarded as the first racing car to be built in Spain.
The car will compete on the Silverstone Circuit in the full slate of Formula Student events, which focus on acceleration, handling, endurance, fuel economy, technical design, and the presentation of the project. But the part of the competition the team is most excited about taking part in is the sustainability event, which takes into account the ecological impact of the vehicle. The UPC students are the first Spanish team to participate in the competition with a hybrid model and will be up against rival teams representing prestigious universities around the world.
The batteries of the future
Compared to the model with which the team competed last year, the new version incorporates a number of important new features and technological improvements. The state-of-the-art lithium batteries that power the vehicle are one example. Widely regarded as the batteries of the future, they offer maximum energy density and a higher charge capacity, as well as being lighter than other types of batteries. Another advantage is that the batteries can be recharged using any electrical outlet, which makes it possible to have maximum performance without sacrificing autonomy. The vehicle that will compete this year is also 20% lighter than its predecessor and the drivetrain is 25% more efficient, which reduces the energy consumed by the car. In the current model, the driver can control a number of engine parameters or change the mode of operation from behind the steering wheel. The three modes available are electric with zero emissions, combustion mode, and parallel hybrid drive.
70% less emissions
By making these changes, the students responsible for building the EcoR2 hybrid have managed to reduce emissions by 70% compared to any other petrol-powered model without impacting performance parameters such as lateral and longitudinal acceleration, which are comparable to those for any high-end sports car. The EcoR2 hybrid can reach a top speed of 100 kph after covering 75 metres in five seconds.As for safety (one of the most important considerations for the Formula Student judges), the EcoR2 has been subjected to a full battery of stringent crash tests.
The electric motor is powered by state-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries, and a regenerative braking system recaptures kinetic energy during deceleration. The result is a vehicle that emits 70% less CO2 without compromising performance features.
Over 30 sponsors
To build the EcoR2 and travel to Silverstone, the students have received support though INSPIRE, an ETSEIAT programme aimed at encouraging creative talent. The future engineers have also worked to raise funds from private companies and institutions, which have provided material, technology, and financial resources to move the project forward. Among more than 30 collaborating institutions and companies involved in the project, the sponsorship of the Terrassa City Council and the firms Ascamm, Derbi, CTM, SKF, Recam Laser, Circutor and RS has been particularly significant. Inter-university competition
Formula Student is a university competition first held in the 1980s. The programme – aimed at promoting innovation and R&D by challenging student teams to design and build a vehicle – runs in Europe, the United States, Japan and Australia. The international event brings together the world’s most prestigious universities to compete with Formula-type car projects.The competition is organised by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in each country, and the national automotive engineering societies together form the international federation FISITA.
Formula Student has become the most prestigious competition of its kind in Europe, where more than a hundred teams from around the world take part each year. The participating universities must assume that a car manufacturer has commissioned them to produce a prototype for evaluation, and that in principle the company is planning to produce a thousand units. In this scenario, the racing car is to be marketed to weekend driving enthusiasts for use on closed circuits. The vehicle must therefore deliver very high performance in terms of acceleration, braking and handling. At the same time, the cost of production must be kept down.
In addition to the purely technical aspects of the project, the competition has a multidisciplinary character, bringing into play a range of skills and factors, including project management, negotiation, strategy, teamwork, the ability to innovate, responsibility, financing, and public relations.
From 29 September to 2 October, the vehicle will also participate in Formula Student events at the Circuit de Catalunya (in Montmeló, Barcelona). On this occasion, the EcoR2 will compete alongside another vehicle developed by UPC students: the Cat04, designed and built by the ETSEIB Motorsport team. The two single-seat racing cars will take part in the competition at Montmeló.
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