Week 11 & 12

The goal for these two weeks were to get the design ready for the Lockeed Martin presentation on November 15th. 


For week 11 and 12, I focus more on designing and improving the existing design from Futran.In their designs, the solar panels are 1.6x1 m; therefore, the total length will be more than 9m if we are going to build at least 9m long track. For week 13, my team and I have to have a solid design with a stress analysis on ANSYS. 


 




Figure 1: Assemble of two supporters and a cross canopy.

Figure 1 is an assembling of two supporters and a solar racking system. The new design has two cross trusses that were added to support the weight of the frame and the solar panels.



Figure 2: Using truss that was made out of sheet metal

Using sheet metal to construct the full-scale designs are considered as a low cost and lighter weight compared to I beams. If it was folded correctly it will generate alot stronger structure, thus it's more efficient to use sheet metal for the Spartan Superway than other types of beams.


Figure 4: A different way to connect and have a stronger rectangle truss

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