Benchmarking

For the 2014 car, the team looked into optimizing the frame so it would work for anyone.
However, by the rules for 2017-2018 the car only needs to accommodate the range of 5th
percentile female to 95th percentile male which according to fsaeonline.com is the following:

height range: 151.5 186.5 cm

hip range: 74 100 cm
hip width: 31 - 40.5 cm
erect sitting height (sitting straight up): 79.5 97 cm

These are the core dimensions the team should focus on since this determines the max width and
height of the driving compartment. It is important to note this does not accommodate for the
chair or any other structure.
To ensure the 2014 was successful, the design team looked into reducing the weight of the car
while also stiffening the structure. One thing they utilized was the slant of the main hoop. The
angle the team chose to go with as 10 degrees, which is also the max for this years rules. Its
stated that the Main Roll Hoop that lies above its attachment point to the upper Side Impact
Tube, must be within ten degrees of the vertical. Now we know from rule T3.10.3 that the
drivers head cannot be behind the Main Roll hoop if front bracing is used. To overcome this, one
possibility would be to make the roll hoop face forward 10 degrees and have a bracing coming
from the back at 30 degrees or more to comply with the rule.

Need to understand the different loads acting on the structure which are:

Longitudinal Torsion
Vertical Bending
Lateral bending
Horizontal Lozenging

Refer to the end of page 1 and page 2 for descriptions from

http://users.telenet.be/AudiR8/Chassis%202002-01-3300Design,%20Analysis%20And
%20Testing%20Of%20A%20Formula%20Sae%20Car%20Chassis.pdf
At Cornell, the car is designed to withstand 3.5 g bump, 1.5 g braking, and 1.5 g lateral
acceleration.
Torsional Rigidity the amount of force required to twist the body frame by one degree. Higher
TR will result in a stiffer feel. As stated by the 2016 team, the best way to determine this value is
8-10 times the spring rates for the suspension

Space Frame structure system assembled of linear elements so arranged that forces are
transferred in a three-dimensional manner.

Usually arranged in an array of single, double, or multiple layer of intersecting members.

Source for below: http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?

article=1220&context=mesphttp://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?
article=1220&context=mesp
One example to be referred to is the Cal Poly FSAE car. Although it is a Monocoque based car,
it shows how having a combination of steel tubing and fiber materials can reduce the weight.
However from the table below it is important to take away that a car with a low weight and a
greater power is obvious, thus the team will want to get a car with a low weight.

A key way to reduce weight is to remove unneeded tubes in the previous designs. However a
couple of things to consider are:

ANY REMOVAL OF SUPPORT COMPONENTS NEEDS TO MAKE SURE SAFETY

IS NOT AFFECTED
To ensure the wheel remains in contact with the ground, the weight distribution needs to
be > 50 in the rear (including all sub-components and driver)
o UD 2011-2012 wanted to achieve a 45/55 weight distribution
o UD 2015-2016 wanted to achieve a 40/60 weight distribution
o Cal Poly 2013 theoretically achieved 44-45/55
Keep the anti-intrusion plate as small as possible to reduce weight in the front
All supports to main structures need a reason for why they are providing support and if
possible, consider re-positioning the pipes geometry to remove supports without the
metal reaching its yield or tensile strength
Stated in the 2014 report, by removing extra structure, a loss in rigidity and stiffness is
also lost. Therefore when the target value is set, it is important to try and maintain it

NEED suspension node points

Trapezoidal front profile

Cut in the frame in the back to reduce space