News of SOLAR SPLASH® 2007
Volume 15 - Number 2 - January 2007
Sponsored by: Johnson Controls Inc., ASME, and others
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‘Early’ Entry Forms Due by Monday, January 22rd
You will find the Entry Form for the competition at the website. The fee has not changed from last year -- the ‘early fee’ is $400 if you get your entry form in by January 22th, but the entry fee increases to $500 if you enter after that date. Again, the entry form is critical for meeting the dates, not when your check arrives! However, the entry form is your ‘promise’ that you will pay the fee, even if you withdraw or cannot attend the competition. The cut-off date for entries is April 23th.
Changes for the 2007 Competition
Two rule areas that are going to change are: 1) battery forced ventilation will no longer be required; and, 2) supplemental batteries will be allowed to power the motor controller. Further details on these and other items will be ‘highlighted’ when the 2007 Rules are posted on the website next month.
Note: Currently there are two changes that were implemented for the 2006 Competition which will continue for the 2007 competition:
The Visual Display: The Visual Display in the past has been a poster(s)/display oriented to the general public on any topic (solar or boat related). This was changed last year to a poster(s)/display whose topic is directly related to significant and/or new features of that team’s boat. The poster/display should be oriented to include both the general public and the Solar Splash judges who will evaluate your boat for the various awards.
The Technical Report: In the past, the Technical Report has been a ‘self-contained’ document which was to have covered all systems of the boat. This was changed last year to a document which covers only those systems which have been changed or modified from your previous boat. A brief (less than 2 page) section ‘up front’ will allow description of the previous design and systems history, but the remainder of the Report is to be devoted to description of changes and modifications for the current competition. Obviously, if your team is building a completely new boat, then ‘everything’ must be described.
As in the past, we won’t be publishing the 2007 Rule Booklet until sometime in late February. Until then, use the 2006 rules as found in the 2006 Rule Booklet and as listed on the website. We do not anticipate any rule changes of significance [see above paragraph], but we often find some areas where we clean up the wording, to make the meaning as clear as possible. I know we have a few of those.
Although the Rules do appear on the web site, the "Official Rules" are in the booklets we send you later. The difference is that there may be diagrams or other graphics in the rules that may not appear on the Web Site. Typically, we try to be sure the text is on the site for general information and use.
For those of you new to the Arkansas location, the park in Fayetteville where Solar Splash 2007 will be held has a conventional concrete boat launching ramp. Thus, teams will be able to walk their trailers/trolleys directly into the water and float their boats off – and then on again to get their boats out. We do not need to use the ‘two-pole lifting’ approach used in Buffalo for launching. And the water does feel good in June in Arkansas!
We have reprints of the 2006 Technical Reports available for sale. The price for a set of the top 5 technical reports from last year is $35, which includes Priority Mailing anywhere in the U.S. If you want other specific school reports, they can be purchased at $8 each. Even if you feel you have your plans in place, the reports represent an invaluable source of format and content from past years. When you start outlining and writing your report, which is scored and points given, good examples may be very valuable.
Send a check made out to “ASME-Solar Splash” for the top 5 reports for $35 (or $8 for each other report) to:
Dr. Jeffrey H. Morehouse
Mechanical Engineering Dept.
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208
Materials and Parts Sponsor Page
You may have noticed the “Materials and Parts Sponsor Page” which is on the menu of the webpage. This is to be an on-going, growing site where companies can list their products with application to solar-electric boats. I am soliciting both team members and companies to send information on companies and products to me which might be useful to any and all the teams. I do expect the company to “discount” their offerings for the teams! So let me know if you have a contact or you are a company which wishes to be listed.