23.04.2008
Stuttgart student group develops wind-powered vehicle
The Ventomobil as a Lego model. (Copyright: Alexander Miller, Universität Stuttgart)
The first Aeolus Race will be held in the Dutch coastal town of Den Helder in August 2008. The object of the contest is to cover the three-kilometre race course in a wind-powered car, driving into the wind at the highest possible speed. The team from Stuttgart will be taking on seven competitors from a number of different countries. Researchers, enterprises and universities from around the world will be meeting and sharing experiences at the event.
The wind-powered vehicle, which was initially built as a Lego model, will be four meters long, two meters wide and three and a half meters tall. Its first test drive is scheduled for May. Powerful, continuous wind is essential, so the car will be tested at the North Sea coast. Energy from the oncoming wind captured by a rotor at the rear is used to power the car via a motor. The speed of the car will therefore depend on the wind speed.
The Stuttgart InVentus Team – a group of aerospace engineering students with a special interest in wind energy – was founded the summer of 2007 in co-operation with the endowed chair for wind energy at the Universität Stuttgart. The Aeolus Race is a side event of the Tall Ships Race. Windenergy Events, a partnership to promote innovative wind energy ideas and inform the public of alternative sources of energy, is sponsoring the competition.
More:
http://www.inventus.uni-stuttgart.de http://www.windenergyevents.com/
