Brennan’s sketch
The sketch displayed above is a very similar take to the sample AEV design, but with a different motor placement, and a larger carrying capacity. The motor placement is located on the angled wings, and in the back of the AEV, there is now ample space for passengers/payload. This design weighs more than the sample but could offer more stability. Due to the increased weight (although it is minor), the speed of the AEV is probably slightly slower than the sample. The weight and price are quite average, not costing much more or much less than the competition.
Michael’s sketch
This sketch of the AEV is similar to the sample, however, the side platforms for the motors are collinear with the base of the AEV and are smaller than the sample AEV’s. This concept also uses the smaller and shorter of the two arms available. The smaller pieces allow for a lighter AEV which leads to less power being used to propel the AEV. The price of the AEV is competitive with other models and advanced beyond the concept screening and concept scoring.
Jacob F’s sketch
Although slightly costly and heavy, the purpose of this design is to allow for more power and safety. The sketch has a lot of free space, allowing for many people to safely fit on the AEV. The motors are spread far apart at the rear of the AEV to allow for more efficiency overall. This design ultimately did not pass the concept scoring phase due to the high price and weight as well as being surpassed in efficiency by other designs.
Jacob L’s sketch
Easily identifiable by its lack of wings, this AEV was designed with the goal of eliminating all extraneous weight. It is the lightest and cheapest design by a significant margin. The placement of the motors may be less than optimally efficient, however this may be offset by the decreased weight. It has less open space than the other proposed designs, but still is likely to have sufficient space for passengers. This design did advance past the concept screening and concept scoring.
These sketches are all based on the original design with which all of the original tests were done. The original vehicle is shown in the photo below:
The second and current vehicle being used does not use the trapezoidal shaped platforms, but uses rectangular surfaces instead. The rectangles are flat instead of sloped upward. The motors are placed in the middle of the surfaces. The point of this design is to have a lot of space for safety and stability. The design is shown below:
The concept screening and scoring sheets used to grade each drawing can be found here.
The evoluton of the AEV did not stop here. Further research and designs can be found here.
The designs will tried to focus on incorporating a more aerodynamic shape. According to NASA (see citations) the most aerodynamic shapes take the form of a circle, bullet, or teardrop. A design that is long rather than wide and has a rounded front will likely be considered in the future. The Physics Hypertextbook (also see citations) was also used for research regarding the aerodynamics of the AEV. Drag is increased when objects have more weight and more surface area, so reducing both of those was a priority in future designs.