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StarShip at Sonoma Raceway - Shell EcoMarathon

Hello All -

This is Walter Concrete, your sidewalk reporter, reporting live from Sonoma Raceway in northern California where Shell is having its annual EcoMarathon.

For those unfamiliar with the Shell EcoMarathon Americas, students from the United States and South America are invited to compete in the ultimate EcoModder type challenge. There are 99 entries in two different categories.

https://www.shell.com/energy-and-inn.../americas.html

This venue is an EcoModder's nirvana.

This exclusive content is provided to EcoModder members and lurkers.

Hadda get in a few shots of the StarShip to begin with.
https://i.imgur.com/vmfVRPx.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/fR0UxcR.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/B15M7vq.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/CMT7xvr.jpg

High 70's in northern California today, so a carbon fiber canopy makes a great sunshade when the driver is enveloped inside a black color body and wearing a hot fire suit.
https://i.imgur.com/Enxwks1.jpg

This is the only team I saw with a portable dyno. NASCAR and Indy car paddocks are now used by the students.
https://i.imgur.com/6JjzfVc.jpg

This team used an onboard power tool and 3D printed gears to start their engine.
https://i.imgur.com/gElKhUV.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/J7bOpkh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/agBKw5a.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/kNgLUyI.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/dtKt9hC.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/7Qcmsb4.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/S1HxtRh.jpg

The engineering on this little car is way cool.
https://i.imgur.com/bIbkXxN.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/8jnYaF7.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Ib889ev.jpg

Quote:

This is Walter Concrete, your sidewalk reporter, reporting live from Sonoma Raceway in northern California where Shell is having its annual EcoMarathon.

Thanks. After the midterm election, it may become North California.

https://i.imgur.com/S1HxtRh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/bIbkXxN.jpg

That's quite a range, from Electrathon racer to Elio-level prototype.

Someone is blocking imgur, so these images are not showing up for me. Is anyone else having that problem?

Watch your back!

engadget.com:Nikola (Motors) is suing Tesla (updated)

https://s.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/mid...10.36%2BAM.png

Quote:

Nikola alleges (PDF) that Tesla infringes on three of its patents: fuselage design, a wraparound windshield on a semi truck and a mid-entry door. Nikola claims that these design similarities have "caused confusion" among customers and stolen away over $2 billion in business, and that if problems arise with Tesla's Semi (like battery fires or glitches with autonomous driving), they'll be attributed to Nikola. Typical patent troll stuff.

Well, StarShip had the "unique features" much sooner - the panoramic windshield from the start, iirc, and the midcab sliding door were identifiable on some build pictures shepherd777 shared here (no more visible due Photobucket bug).

I wonder how these patents could be filed when these designs were already in public domain???? 1:15 model of StarShip was already in public display, prototype being built, cab fabricated. (not speaking about 2012 MAN concept truck pictured in that electrek article)

Perhaps Shepherd777 should sue them in the first place...
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post513950

EDIT:

- according to this page https://electrek.co/2018/05/02/tesla...motors-design/ Nikola Motors filed patents on 30th of December 2015. At this point it had to be rough sketches, as five months lated they posted some CGI with lot of marketting babble. Damned patent trolling.
Lets hope shepherd777 has some design documentanion somewehre.