College students to design next generation of MVs

College for Creative Studies student Dan Nikonchik created a
concept rendering as part of TARDEC’s Fuel Efficient ground
vehicle Demonstrator program, which engaged a team of
Transportation Design students at the CCS in Detroit to help
develop the interior and exterior features of vehicles under
development.

DETROIT ARSENAL, WARREN, MI – The U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) has launched a program that harnesses government, industry and academic solutions to provide the next-generation of fuel-efficient ground vehicles.

While a systems-engineering approach to military vehicle technology development is underway with Select Engineering Services, Inc., (SES) and World Technical Services, Inc. (WTSI), TARDEC tapped a non-conventional resource for the vehicles’ design – college students.

TARDEC’s Fuel Efficient ground vehicle Demonstrator (FED) program engaged a team of Transportation Design students at the College for Creative Studies (CCS) to help develop the interior and exterior features of one of the two fuel-efficient demonstrators under development.

The CCS work will be displayed in TARDEC’s exhibit at the 2010 SAE International 2010 World Congress at Cobo Center in Detroit.

Approximately 15 CCS Transportation Design juniors are spending the semester researching requirements for military vehicles and designing fuel-efficient demonstrator concepts. Throughout the semester they are covering design principles, drawing, rendering techniques and digital modeling while working with WTSI and TARDEC engineers. These lessons are incorporated into design work that produces concepts that address functional needs in the field, fuel efficiency, weight and aerodynamic principles. The three top student designs will be produced as scale models, with the top design incorporated into the WTSI FED demonstrator under development.

"The collaboration between WTSI, TARDEC and our Transportation Design students on the Fuel Efficiency Demonstrator is a perfect opportunity for CCS students to work in a professional environment with real-world requirements aimed at delivering a creative outcome," said Professor Mark West, Transportation Design, CCS.

The WTSI FED is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2011.

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