FSAE Racing Competition

Formula SAE is a student design competition organized by SAE International. The competition requires each team to produce a standard formula racing car from scratch, which should have good performance in accelerating, braking and manipulating. Besides, the Endurance Race part of the competition is a challenge for the team to improve the stable duration of the racing car while keep it running in high performance.

I was a member of Chang’an University Racing team from 2016 ~ 2017. Our team had to build three racing cars (one gas-powered formula, one electric-powered formula and one Baja racing car) from scratch. I quickly learned to design mechanical drawing and structure with CAD and CATIA, established dynamics simulation model of suspension by ADAMS to optimize parameters like camber angle and caster angle for the Baja race car. I also contributed to the geometric design of our gas-powered formula.

Upon the completion of design, I joined our manufacturing group. Over five months, we made use of all the lathes and tools we have (including wire-cutting machine, CNC milling machine etc) and spent days and nights modeling, prototyping and assembling all of the components such as the lifting lugs and steel tubes. All the arduous work paid off for the ones who persisted the moment our formula’s engine started.

Finally our work paid off with three national prizes earned for all the three racing cars. The experience in FSAE team is valuable for me. All our teammates shared joys and sorrows during the competition. It also taught me how to play my role well as a team member in a cohort aiming at finishing a big project.