Thanks to a generous sponsorship from Hexcel, UTSVT was able to obtain pre-preg Kevlar for the construction of various enclosures in the Samsung Solorean. Among the items needed to be enclosed was the 624 lithium-ion cells. As seen in the video below, it took at least 1.5 minutes to burn through, giving the driver enough time to escape.

WARNING: DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME

On February 8, 2008, UTSVT members went to Samsung Austin Semiconductor to receive the $ 54,000 sponsorship check in a ceremony attended by students, Professor Gary Hallock, Samsung Austin Semiconductor President H.K. Park, and other members of the press.

Image courtesy Samsung Austin Semiconductor

UTSVT would like to thank Samsung Austin Semiconductor for their sponsorship, confidence, and assistance in its goal of building the Samsung Solorean for the North American Solar Challenge 2008, a 10-day race from Dallas, TX to Calgary, AB, Canada. Approximately 30 teams are participating this year.

More information:
Samsung Austin Semiconductor: www.sas.samsung.com
North American Solar Challenge: www.americansolarchallenge.org
Press release

For the third consecutive year, UTSVT members wowed students at Bridge Point Elementary during Science Day, a day in which students were able to attend lectures from members of the Austin community. UTSVT members engaged students in a presentation of what the team does and a conversation about renewable energy and the basics of how electricity works.

The University of Texas Solar Vehicles Team would like to thank Samsung for their generous support in the development of the Solorean!

Based in South Korea, Samsung's consumer electronics division offers cellular phones, televisions, home appliances, printing equipment, and computer peripherals. Recent developments include its line of solid state disks (SSD). With no moving parts, SSDs yield higher performance and operation in tougher environments.

Today, UTSVT welcomed over 570 engineering parents to the UT campus as they came to see what the students are up to. In addition to Solar Steer, the team also had a few prototypes of Solorean components on display.

The team's next outreach event will be at Allan Elementary on November 5, 2007.

On Saturday, May 18, the University of Texas Solar Vehicles Team joined the IBM Spirits in displaying cars from the past, present, and future.

On March 3, The University of Texas at Austin was host to over 20,000 curious minds from all over the country. Various colleges, departments, and student organizations put together activities showcasing the latest in research and development.

Many came to our booth to see how a solar car works. Some even wanted to drive it. Fortunately, we had a few toy cars for them to play with:

The University of Texas Solar Vehicles Team would like to thank the University of Texas Electrical and Computer Engineering department for their generous donation of $ 6,500!

We are still in need of donations to reach our goal of $ 100,000 to build our next car. Please consider making a contribution through our Adopt-a-Cell program or corporate sponsorship.

The Edison Lecture Series was essentially a sold-out event as the auditorium was completely packed with students and teachers from the Austin community! Indeed, no class at the University of Texas at Austin could achieve that, even at full attendance. Our lecture featured information on how solar cells work, what is involved in a solar car "rayce," and a live demonstration of National Instruments LabVIEW-based battery remote control program. The lecture was so well-received, we have been asked to perform at all the subsequent lectures!

At approximately 7 AM, Professor Hallock, Jerome, Fred, Sunny, Behn, and John met at Pickle Research Campus to prep the car and to move it to Welch Hall, where the Edison Lecture Series was to take place. The car was navigated into the building through some narrow doors without incident.

Jerome explaining the basics of a solar car.

The team will present their lecture on the solar car tomorrow, January 11 from 10-11 AM.