Boeing is the world's leading aerospace company, the largest manufacturer of military aircraft as well as commercial airlines, and has capabilities in a variety of electronic and mechanical systems. Boeing has proposed the task of performing a trade study of the Penn State SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) formula car. Our goal was to study several different design approaches and determine which design yields the greatest advantage. Safety, speed, price, stability, and manufacturability are major concerns for the SAE formula car.
The project included the research of several design approaches including a steel tubular frame with a composite outer skin, a composite monocoque structure, and several other alternatives. A weighting matrix was used to determine the best design to compare with the current structure. After deciding on the monocoque honeycomb structure, calculations were performed to determine how the frame would respond and a model of the nose cone was constructed to show the complexity of the design as well as the partial composite and honeycomb contruction.
After completing the frame design and calculating the properties of the frame, several important conclusions were made concerning the performance of the frame and the practicality of manufacturing the frame. Several advantages were that the monocoque frame was 26.1 lbs (23.9 lbs lighter than the tube steel frame),and the monocoque frame was stiffer than the tube steel frame. There were also several clear disadvantages; the monocoque frame would be much more expensive to construct, it would also take much more time and be very difficult to build a monocoque frame with consistent properties.
Group Members:
Zachary Dailey
Jarred Grabiak
Adam Trozzo
K. Reid Collier
Kevin Kolonsky
The Composite Frame Group would like to thank:
