Moonbuggy Mania Takes Over Some Out-of-this-World Utah State Students

Moonbuggy Mania Takes Over Some Out-of-this-World Utah State Students

Many college students dream of spending vacation time lounging on a beach in the Bahamas or biking along the coast of southern Europe. However, a team of Utah State University engineering students has different dreams, dreams that include traveling to and exploring on the moon.

And while space exploration is something that few will experience, the Utah State team got a taste of what it might feel like as they competed in NASA's Great Moonbuggy Race in Huntsville, Ala., at the Space and Rocket Center. The team, comprised of undergraduate and graduate mechanical and aerospace engineering students, encountered some of the same challenges conquered by the original lunar rover team on the moon in the 1960s.

And while the team had some especially unexpected challenges upon arrival to Alabama, such as receiving a moonbuggy that had been badly damaged in shipping, the team overcame those challenges. The team received awards for the Best Engineering Design from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics as well as Most Unique Design. The unique design award was presented by Ronald Creel, an original member of NASA's Lunar Roving Vehicle program. This was the first time Utah State entered the competition, but the students were confident from the start that their buggy would represent the school well.

The students' moonbuggy challenge was to design a human-powered vehicle that could withstand the punishment of rigorous course obstacles and to power and drive their moonbuggy over a half-mile obstacle course of simulated moonscape terrain.

"We took special care in designing our buggy because we want it to make it through the course," said Jake Hamilton, a senior in mechanical engineering.

The team designed the buggy using a systems engineering approach, meaning they looked at everything on the buggy as one system instead of several smaller systems. Since every action affects the buggy as whole, the team decided that using this approach would give them a unique edge.

According to Utah State mechanical and engineering graduate student Kelly Packard, many buggies don't make it through the course and those that do "take a lot of time."

The buggy's frame is made of an all-fiber composite that is lightweight, strong and, according to team members, "just looks cool." Instead of sprockets and chains, the team used a drive shaft on its buggy because of its efficiency and also because, "if there are no chains, nothing can fall off." Hydraulic steering and disc brakes are also included on the buggy, as well as other features you might find in today’s luxury automobiles such as four-wheel independent suspension and fully adjustable seats.

The team worked on the moonbuggy during the past school year, and the students said they learned a lot about "hands-on" engineering.

"There is a whole wealth of information you can't learn in a classroom," said Andrew Hansen, a senior in aerospace engineering. "We not only designed this buggy, we built this buggy. We had to get into the machine shop and use the machines. This is a skill I would not have learned without this project."

Skylar Cox, a senior in mechanical engineering, said he learned a lot about working as a team.

"As we all went out and worked on our individual parts of the buggy we had to think about how our design would mesh with the rest of the buggy's design," he said.

Graduate student Megan Mitchell agreed, saying that working as a team created certain challenges and the team had to learn to set and meet deadlines.

"We had to look at the big picture, things came up all the time that we didn't foresee on the drawing board," said Brian Hansen, a senior in aerospace engineering.

The students faced some major challenges including the damaged buggy. They didn't know the obstacles in the course and several schools had previous experience in the competition, competing for several years and having previous buggy designs to tinker with.

"We have no heritage in this competition," said Hansen. "We were brand new at this and thought it might hurt us, but we also thought it might be an advantage."

The team also believed that although some schools had more resources available to them, the Utah State team could compete intellectually with the best of them. Todd Mosher, assistant professor in mechanical and aerospace engineering, is the team's faculty supervisor, and the team also credits Carl Wood, associate professor in mechanical and aerospace engineering, and Wes Davidson, a technician in the industrial and technology education department.

"Utah State has prepared our team well," said Cox. "We learn rigorous problem solving in every engineering course, and I have used the skills learned in these classes and applied them to this project."

"We have such great access to our faculty and staff, and we feel better prepared for our careers," said Hamilton.

Mitchell said that industry looks for experience, and working on projects like these in school really enhances a resume.

The team used that experience to its advantage in competition. Excitement was high and the team enjoyed the competition.

"It was fun to compete," said Packard.

Now that the big event is over the team would like to have a luncheon and thank its sponsors. The team raised nearly $17,000 to build the buggy and realized that without help from generous donations, it may not have made it to the race. Companies including the Utah State Space Dynamics Laboratory, Thiokol ATK, Hypercomp Engineering, Aerospace Corporation, Raytheon Company, Boston Gear, Parker Hannifen and Joyride Bikes all helped support the cause.

For more event details, race rules, information on the course and photos from previous competitions, visit: http://moonbuggy.msfc.nasa.gov

Team members are: Megan Mitchell, graduate student, aerospace engineering, team leader, ergonomics, female driver; Kelly Packard, graduate student, mechanical engineering, team leader, ergonomics; Andrew Hansen, senior, aerospace engineering, drive train, propulsion system; Jake Hamilton, senior, mechanical engineering, drive train; Skylar Cox, senior, mechanical engineering, suspension system, male driver; Brian Hansen, senior, aerospace engineering, steering and braking; Jared Noorda, senior, mechanical engineering, frame.

Contact: Todd Mosher (435) 797-2881, tjmosher@engineering.usu.edu
Writer: Maren Cartwright (435) 797-1355, maren.cartwright@usu.edu