🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <102559@netnews.upenn.edu>, jhaines@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Jason Haines) writes:
> In article <1992Dec18.012654.26238@ra.oc.com> rodder@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Jon D. Rodder) writes:
> >In article <1992Dec17.011649.987@cmkrnl.com> jeh@cmkrnl.com writes:
> >>
> >>Then we come to electric motors to drive the wheels.  Electric motors have
> >>wonderful torque/speed characteristics for vehicles (they generate maximum
> >>torque just before stall speed, which may make transmissions and clutches
> >>unnecessary) but lousy power density -- look at the size of a 1-hp. electric
> >>motor sometime and tell me how big a motor would have to be to accelerate a
> >>car fast enough to keep up with gasoline-powered ones.  

> original message).  The 20hp DC brushless motor in our solar
> car is also about 6" in diameter and less than 6" (not counting the cooling
> fan and wiring set-up attached to the side) long.    I haven't weighed the
> motor recently so this is from memory but I thinkj it weighs about 30 lbs

Ok, so we can use a smaller flywheel to drive this car, but a smaller IC
engine would do it, too.  These solar cars are tiny, very light (usually
made of composites, etc) and very low air friction.  Sure, they could
make all cars this way, and they'd get 800 mpg.  So the real gain here
is the design of the car, not the engine or power supply.  They can't sell
cars of this design, however.


--
Richard Stead
Center for Seismic Studies
Arlington, VA
stead@seismo.css.gov