LJM RC Baja Vehicle Project Chassis, and Suspension

An RC car was designed, analyzed and manufactured to compete in the ASME RC Baja competition. The focus was to optimize the suspension and chassis components to minimize the weight while maintaining the structural strength of the components which would intern supplement the overall speed and stability of the vehicle. Other components were the responsibility of the teammate Cam Jamison. To complete this there was extensive research done on Traxxass RC cars and what went into making a high performing vehicle that would compete well in the 3 races that comprise the competition (slalom, sprint, and obstacle course). There were then designs produced using structural stress analysis with methods from statics, mechanics of materials, and mechanical design. Moreover, 3D Computer Aided Design and Finite Element Analysis was used for more complex loading scenarios to thereby increase or reduce the cross-sectional area where necessary. The manufacturing process of 3D printing was used for the creation of the suspension components as it allowed the use of light weight yet strong materials and the manufacture of complex component designs that would otherwise be tremendously challenging to produce in a timely and cost-effective manner. The car surpassed its expectations after the optimization of the final assembly. The stiffened suspension allowed for a 10% decrease in the compression of the coils on the 3-foot drop test of the vehicle. Meeting all the requirements allowed the car to complete the slalom test, sprint test and obstacle test on average 10% faster than predicted