Individual Concept Sketches
Alex Berman:
The pros of the design are that they are aerodynamic and have little weight on the wings. The front of the AEV is similar to the design of a sports car. The solid design should make for a smooth ride on the rail, and the sturdiness would make sure bumps in the track are not felt.
The cons are that all of the aerodynamics add weight to the design and there is little aerodynamics behind that may cause problems.
Ryan Burko:
The main component of this design that differs from others is the means of power, which is belt driven.
The pros of the belt driven design is: A reduction of weight and cost, with only using one motor. More fuel efficient, with less energy being wasted with propellers. And faster acceleration and deceleration times.
The cons of this are: There is no good way to accomplish this with the materials provided. The safety of the belt would be a large concern, the ride may not be smooth which could in time lead to parts breaking down, and an eventual jump of the track.
Tanya Balwani:
The design I thought of is similar to the reference design but a 3D printed shell is added onto the body to cover the LiPO battery, the automatic control system and the electrical motor. The pro of my design is that it will be a safer and the chance of any of the parts of the AEV not screwed down falling will be reduced. A con of my design is the fact that adding a shell will increase the weight of the AEV which might affect how it runs.
TJ Knight:
This design was thought of out of its unique characteristics, it is almost like a future aircraft. The body is covering all of the internals except the arm, motors, sensors, and a few wires. This was meant to be a sleek looking AEV, like stated earlier it is supposed to based off of a futuristic aircraft. It is designed to be 3-D printed and make itself stand apart from any other AEV out there. It should be about the same weight as the others and more aerodynamic considering all of the internals are covered meaning it would be more efficient.