Milwaukee, Wisconsin – A team from Murray State University in southeastern Kentucky won the National Fluid Power Association’s (NFPA) 2018 Vehicle Challenge Competition at Danfoss in Ames, Iowa.
The Murray Team’s vehicle, a three-wheeled recumbent tricycle with a rear drive wheel powered by hydraulic energy, won the overall challenge, the sprint race, and the efficiency challenge. All other teams except one used modified bicycles – some with powered training wheels.
The most unusual vehicle was Western Michigan University’s monowheel design – in which the driver since inside of the wheel. Student designers noted that the monowheel left more space for hydraulic components than a two-wheeled vehicle (though less than the winning three-wheeled option). Aesthetically, though, they said the monowheel was the best option.
The Vehicle Challenge is a competition that challenges students to design and build a bicycle using fluid power. For many engineering students, it was their first experience with fluid power.
Winners in the competition were:
- 1st Place: Murray State University
- 2nd Place: Cleveland State University
- 3rd place: Milwaukee School of Engineering
- Best Presentation: Milwaukee School of Engineering
- Best Teamwork: West Virginia University
- Best Workmanship: Western Michigan University
- Best Reliability and Safety: Purdue
- Outstanding Achievement: Western Michigan University
- Sprint Race: Murray State University
- Efficiency Challenge: Murray State University
- Endurance Challenge: Milwaukee School of Engineering
NFPA officials thanked sponsors for supporting the competition, including Danfoss, for hosting the competition for the second year in a row; SunSource and Eaton for serving as parts suppliers; Lube-Tech for serving as the fluids supplier; and Parker Hannifin for support.
Judges were Jim Kaas of Iowa Fluid Power; Bill Hotchkiss of SunSource; Nathan Lord of Eaton; Brad Kramer of HUSCO; Matt Loeffler and Eric Holland of FORCE America; Jason Skarphol of HYDAC; and Joe Budden, Travis Dillinger, and Aaron Darnell from Danfoss.