Life in the fast lane: Students of the DHBW Mannheim present their visionary automobile project ELMAR at the Geneva Motor Show.
Through an interdisciplinary project, 28 engineering students at the DHBW Mannheim have developed a radically modern electronic automobile with the future in mind. Their “electric motor on wheels” is now on display in the Geneva Motor Show for the first time from the 4th until the 14th of March, 2010.
The engineers of the Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg Mannheim have done it again: with their ELMAR study, they have designed such a radical automotive concept that the results could possibly secure them the title and position of global player of the industry as a partner. Moreover, they now show the prototype of this futuristic speedster to the public at the Geneva Motor Show from March 4th to the 14th, 2010.
The policy put forth by the project leader, Prof. Dr. Carsten Seidel, to “build a future-oriented, forward-thinking automobile with as little use of traditional tools and components as possible,” stood at the forefront during the entire project. Out of this policy was born a sporty two-seater, whose solution to old-fashioned construction principles is evident at first look. The young engineers gave up the bodywork of the car and instead installed free-hanging passenger cells. In the place where normally a traditional motor would be located, a newly-designed electric motor is found. The construction material of choice is carbon fiber synthetic materials, which are much lighter than steel and more energy-efficient to produce. This lighter carbon fiber material saves weight, which therefore saves energy. From top to bottom, everything in the ELMAR study has been specially designed to be as environmentally friendly as possible.
Since April of 2009, the engineering students of the DHBW Mannheim have been conducting project ELMAR throughout both their classes and the practical phases. They worked in seven groups, each with a different assignment – construction, energy, design, steering, propulsion, marketing, and support – in order to create a singular concept for an emission-free automobile.
From the start of the multi-leveled project, the training staff of the DHBW gave continual support and backing to the students working on it. The path the 28 young men and women would take to reach their goal was left up for them to decide individually. “In order to make the project decisions, we have to apply our theoretical knowledge from classes of management and engineer techniques in a practical environment and measure them in reality,” explains the student project leader Marjus Seubert, adding on, “Many possibilities have opened themselves up to us, but there are also occasional problems. We monitor very closely what the highest and lowest of a project a team requires, so that we can hopefully come to a good result.”
Project ELMAR stands as an excellent example of an innovative teaching and learning concept through the Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg in the field of engineering. Through project-oriented and interdisciplinary assignments such as this, the students have the chance to apply what they have learned from the practical phase into the theoretical phase, and vice versa, and see their ideas come to life. “The teamwork and actual contact with their partners as students really gives them a huge advantage towards practical experiences and skills relevant to their jobs,” explains Prof. Dr. Dirk Saller, vice-principal of the DHBW Mannheim and head of the engineering faculty.
One of the most important components for the success of innovative projects such as ELMAR at the DHBW Mannheim is to find a partner outside of the school for help to come up with a creative idea together. This was most successful in the case of ELMAR: the engineers could easily get into contact with distinguished businesses and firms of the Metropol Rhein-Neckar region, which gave them the possibility to have an exhibition at the Geneva Motor Show. The students and the companies worked together to build their new automobile and display it in Geneva. Together they worked, and together they shared the success.
