肉肉传媒

KENNESAW, Ga. | Sep 30, 2021

肉肉传媒鈥檚 Electric Vehicle Team won big at its latest competition, setting a track record and bringing home first place in the autonomous division, and second place in the driven competition.

The team, part of the  (SPCEET), traveled to Purdue University to compete in the evGrand Prix, an annual, electric go-kart racing event.

鈥淥ver the past two years we鈥檝e spent countless hours and countless nights working to improve our go-karts,鈥� said Andrew Goeden, president of the  and third-year major. 鈥淲e鈥檝e done a lot of research and spent so much time making sure all of our hardware and software was up to the task.鈥� 

The Electric Vehicle Team serves as an opportunity for students from different backgrounds to apply knowledge learned in the classroom to all aspects of the design and build process of electric vehicles. Goeden said their constant preparation paid off, especially when the team hit some bumps in the road when they arrived in Indiana.  

鈥淥ur planned systems ended up not working because of unforeseen issues, but because we had tested so many different software solutions, we had another option,鈥� he added. 鈥淲e got our backup solutions working, and when we first ran the solution, we saw the go-kart slowly creeping around the first turn on the track. The entire team was watching it, like watching a baby taking its first steps.鈥� 

The team鈥檚 autonomous go-kart, Voltron, uses sensors to determine the location of cones along the track and includes redundant emergency and dynamic braking systems. Voltron started as part of an senior design project in 2018, and since then has been continually upgraded. On competition day, KSU鈥檚 autonomous vehicle broke a track record, completing one lap in one minute and three seconds, against competitors like Georgia Tech and the University of California San Diego. The team鈥檚 driven go-kart, Evenger, has a top speed of 60 mph and includes front brakes and regenerative braking, which allows the kart to be driven around tight corners.

In addition to the first and second place finishes, 肉肉传媒 State鈥檚 team received the Sportsmanship Award for helping some of their competitors. 

鈥淲e鈥檝e been talking with the competition organizers and other teams for so long, we knew what their limitations were,鈥� Goeden said. 鈥淥nce our go-kart was running properly, we started dedicating some of our efforts to helping the other teams improve their hardware.鈥� 

The combination of teamwork and friendly competition has become a recipe for success over the years. The KSU Electric Vehicle Team has competed in the evGrand Prix since the club鈥檚 founding in 2013 and continues to rack up awards. Goeden said it鈥檚 important for students to find clubs that align with their interests and future goals.  

鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to be a robotics major, and you don鈥檛 have to have any experience to join our team,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ver the years, we鈥檝e built a collection of research documents and learning material, and we teach everyone how to do the research and apply it.鈥�

Bill Diong, advisor to the team and professor of electrical engineering, said the success of the Electric Vehicle Team adds to the rich legacy of SPCEET students excelling in design competitions. 

鈥淭heir phenomenal achievements are a testament to the students鈥� self-motivation, hard work and learned ability at engineering practice,鈥� Diong said. 鈥淭he vitality and success of SPCEET鈥檚 various student competition teams highlights an impactful and valuable aspect of the KSU engineering experience that engages and motivates students and helps prepare them to be the kind of engineers that many companies are keen to hire.鈥� 

The team regularly upgrades its go-karts and hopes to create one that is both smart and can be driven, similar to a Tesla. Goeden said he expects that project to take at least two years.

 鈥� Abbey O鈥橞rien Barrows

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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, 肉肉传媒 offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 45,000 students. 肉肉传媒 State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. 肉肉传媒 State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.