Micro Electric Urban Vehicle

A Bradley University Electrical Engineering Senior Design Project

Updates 

5/14/09 - All goals of Phase 1 of the Micro Electric Urban Vehicle test platform were demonstrated.  The Final Report and Final Presentation have been added to the Deliverables section.

5/13/09 - The data acquisition subsystem software has been completely debugged and is fully operation.

4/29/09 - The group has been informed that the batteries used for the vehicle appear cracked and bulging.  The batteries will be taken in for testing and will hopefully return in time for a final vehicle test to confirm regenerative braking.

4/28/09 - The Cycle Analyst has been mounted on the vehicle and is ready for the next vehicle test.

4/26/09 - Photo Gallery updated.

4/24/09 - Poster presentation was done for the Industrial Advisory Board.  Pictures of these posters can be seen in the Deliverables section.

4/23/09 - More vehicle tests were completed.  Videos of the test runs can be seen in the here.  Evidence was found that suggests regenerative braking is working.

4/21/09 - The Cycle Analyst's RPM sensor was tested by attaching it to a wheel on the vehicle.  The RPM sensor was verified to be working as the Cycle Analyst displayed a speed as the wheel spun.  The vehicle was able to be taken outside and short test runs were done to verify that the vehicle does in fact run.  A laptop was connected to the controller as the test runs were done and data was logged for later analysis.

4/14/09 - The Cycle Analyst has arrived.  Dr. Huggins has purchased three Interstate SLA1161 12V, 44Ah batteries for use with the vehicle.  This will allow test runs at 36V.  The group was able to test the Cycle Analyst and verify that it works.

4/7/09 - Added pictures to the Photo Gallery.

3/24/09 - A circuit was constructed using a Maxim MAX232CPE chip to convert a TTL signal from the Cycle Analyst into an RS-232 signal that can be used to interface the data with a laptop.
- Multiple pictures have been added to the Photo Gallery.

3/10/09 - A device was found that may be able to measure current, RPM, battery capacity, and much more.  More information on the Cycle Analyst can be found here.  Multiple battery chargers that suit this test vehicle were also identified. 

3/5/09 - On Tuesday, tests of how the controller deals with motor load were simulated by using variable power resistors in place of the motor.  By varying these resistors, we were able to draw more armature current, just as the motor would while under load.  Through these tests, it was seen that the controller does not change field PWM or current to supply more torque to overcome the load. 

3/3/09 - First cut of the Data Acquisition Display is completed.  Found code that is used to communicate between a Palm PDA and an Alltrax Controller.  The PDA reads the data measurements from the controller and displays them for the user.  Began to port the PDA code to Python.

3/2/09 - Platform has arrived.  Information can be seen in the Project Details section.

2/26/09 - The last 2 weeks consisted of testing the motor and controller together.  Current, RPM, and voltage measurements were taken at 24, 36, and 48 volts.  Preparations were made to test the motor controller under a simulated load using power resistors next week.

2/12/09 - Controller and motor test photos have been uploaded to the Photo Gallery.

2/10/09 - The controller was connected to a computer to better understand the ControllerPro software.  After a brief testing, the controller was hooked up to the motor and we were able to control motor speed via a 5k ohm potentiometer used as a throttle.

2/6/09 - Motor photos have been uploaded to the Photo Gallery.

2/3/09 - The Motor and the Controller arrived over winter    break.  The motor was tested for the first time.  Data was taken to create a model of the motor that may be useful for later versions of this project.  Solutions for measuring the wheel rpm are currently being researched.
-Decided to use Python to create Data Acquisition Display.

12/18/08 - Deliverables page updated.

10/23/08 - Website created.

10/21/08 - Functional Description and Block Diagram completed.