Walter Lackey
Mechanical Engineering Technology
ASME Baja R/C Car Scarab
2017
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Baja Car competition challenges engineering students to design and build a radio controlled car. This car must compete in races over a variety of terrain and obstacles. A complete rules list can be found HERE.
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The vehicle entered by Central Washington University in the 2017 competition was completed by Aiden Pringle and myself (Walter Lackey). This vehicle was a complete redesign of last years entrance aside from the chassis. Aiden was responsible for the suspension system of the vehicle while I was responsible for the drive train. The steering system and protective reinforcements were a joint effort between Aiden and I.
The Scarab not only won the 2017 ASME Baja R/C competition but is nearly as capable as high end hobbiest grade R/C cars, which took years to develop with large budgets and design teams. The Scarab however, took Aidan and I seven months to complete with only chassis dimensions, a motor, and electronics to start with.
Aidan and I wanted a simple design that would be modular, fast, controllable and effective on any terrain. We feel that the final design of the scarab blended these traits wonderfully.
The success of the design was made possible largely through stellar communication between Aidan and I. since the suspension and drive-train of the Scarab must interface seamlessly, keeping each other updated on our designs was absolutely essential. It should also be noted that designing in modules greatly aided in our ability to communicate effectively. Instead of having to consult each other with every slight design modification, we were able to give each other exact spatial regions that our components must or must not occupy. If we did not opt for a modular design I am convinced that our vehicle would not have come together as flawlessly as it did.
