Team Descriptions

• Project Management Team (PM)

  WHAT IS IT?

  The Project Management Subteam, led by the Project Manager, define organizational processes, create project plans, provide project oversight, and assert authority to monitor & control the execution of project tasks.

  WHAT DO STUDENTS WORK ON?

  The PM subteam works very closely with the Lead Faculty Advisor to plan, execute, and manage all competition deliverables and requirements, and to ensure the team can operate efficiently and align with business and automotive industry practices is a competition-funded graduate engineering student who serves in a key management role for the overall team.

  WHAT'S THE IMPORTANCE?

  The PM subteam will not only develop the overall project timeline and work plan but is responsible for tracking and executing all project-level activities, knowledge transfer, and recruiting and retention activities. The PM will also work with the Lead Faculty Advisor, College of Engineering staff, and the rest of their student team to manage all local sponsorship and fundraising activities.

  SKILLS GAINED

  • Agile Management Techniques
  • Critical Path Identification
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Peer-to-Peer Management
  • Stakeholder identification and management

  MAJORS

  • Graduate Engineering Program (MSME, MSEE, etc.)
  • Engineering Management
  • Industrial Engineering
  • MBAs with an engineering undergrad or dual major

  CAREERS

  • Program Managers
  • Project Managers
  • Sales Engineering
  • Senior Leadership
  • Engineering Manager
• Communications (Comms) Team

  WHAT IS IT?

  The Communications Management Subteam oversees communications and outreach activities for each individual EcoCAR Team. The Communications Manager (CM) will lead all group activities for this Sub Team.

   

  WHAT DO STUDENTS WORK ON?

  Students in the CM subteam will write standard communications plans, develop program key messages, plan and host events, educate local K-12 students on Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM), manage government relations, and maintain social media. Students will gain invaluable experience through these activities which align with industry practices for standard communications programs.

   

  MAIN COMMUNICATION FUNCTIONS

  • Operations: Oversee team’s logistics such as organizing events, managing merchandise inventory, etc. ensuring team has resources to perform efficiently
  • Branding: Responsible for team and competition promotion through creative digital composition, blogging, social media management, coverage of events and marketing data analytics. 
  • Fundraising: Perform business development through gaining sponsors and supporters for the team (businesses, donors, government etc.), partnering with and spotlighting the competition’s sponsors and fostering these relationships.
  • Outreach: Public Relations management through promoting STEM education among K-12 students, gaining rapport with underserved communities and government, and boosting awareness of the EcoCAR Team and Challenge within the local community.

   

  WHAT'S THE IMPORTANCE?

  The CM subteam will enhance the visibility of Advanced Vehicle Technology Competitions (AVTCs), the EcoCAR EV Challenge and individual EcoCAR teams. This subteam will Promote the benefits of advanced vehicle technologies and highlight team achievements through creative writing/ blogging, social media, and local events.

   

  Skills Attained: 

  • Leadership and management proficiency 
  • Strong presentation skills 
  • Adeptness in comprehending and conveying advanced vehicle technologies
  • Competence in Public Relations 
  • Event Planning 
  • Social Media Management 
  • Content Creation & Video Production 

   

  MAJORS:

  The Communications team welcomes various majors and skillsets, including but not limited to: 

  • Public Relations
  • Journalism
  • Business Administration
  • Communications
  • Graphic Design
  • Education
  • Public Policy
  • Film

   

  CAREERS

  • Communications Specialist or Strategist
  • Communications Coordinator
  • Marketing Specialist
  • Social Media Manager
  • Event Planner
  • Journalist
  • Public Relations Specialist
• Equity in Mobility Team (EiM)

  WHAT IS IT?

  The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Subteam is a new workstream to the EcoCAR program that will challenge students to increase representation in STEM, understand & address mobility inequities and foster an inclusive team environment that allows everyone to contribute, grow and thrive in the program. 

  WHAT DO STUDENTS WORK ON?

  Over the four-year competition, students will learn how to develop skills in E-Mobility education through social and civic support outreach in order to tackle mobility inequalities while also implementing DEI initiatives on a team while.

  WHAT'S THE IMPORTANCE?

  EcoCAR students are the future leaders of mobility in North America. The EiM Subteam seeks to educate all students on how to build clean energy mobility solutions and opportunities for all. Students participating in this subteam will learn the best practices for implementing DEI initiatives in a team setting and establishing metrics to measure progress of these initiatives. They will also learn to problem solve through an equitable and accessible lens in our Equity in Mobility technical challenge. Overall, this track will help develop well-rounded and inclusive leaders in mobility.

  SKILLS GAINED

  • Equitable problem solving
  • Written & verbal communication
  • Ability to identify underserved & overburdened communities
  • Best practices in recruiting, retention, and leadership development
  • Data collection and analysis
  • Ability to distill technical concepts into digestible content for different audiences

  MAJORS

  • All majors and skillsets are welcome to participate in the DEI sub-team! To have a successful DEI sub-team, you will need diverse perspectives from many different majors including those not pursuing careers in STEM.
    Non-Engineering Majors strategically beneficial for DEI Track / Equity in Mobility:
    • Psychology
    • Industrial Psychology
    • Human Factors & Ergonomics
    • Political Science
    • Anthropology
    • Public Policy
    • Public Administration
    • City & Regional Planning

  CAREERS

  Potential Careers Opportunities: 

  • Any position where you work with or lead a team of individuals
  • Additional Roles (If you need specifics):
  • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Manager
  • Program Manager
  • Project Manager
  • City & Regional Planners
  • Urban Planners
  • Any engineering careers
  • Roles in DOE’s EERE and VTO offices
  • Researcher at the National Laboratories like Argonne
• Propulsion Controls and Modeling (PCM) Team

  WHAT IS IT?

  The Propulsion Controls and Modeling (PCM) subteam is responsible for designing and developing the propulsion controls for their electric vehicle. The controls development process involves using software development and modeling techniques to design a system that is optimized for performance and energy efficiency.

   

  WHAT DO STUDENTS WORK ON?

  Students will be working in MATLAB/Simulink to design their propulsion controls algorithm and how it interfaces with the rest of the vehicle. They will also model their controls system performance using model-in-the-loop and hardware-in-the-loop testing, before eventually engaging in vehicle testing to evaluate performance.

   

  WHAT'S THE IMPORTANCE?

  Propulsion controls are crucial to the vehicle in that it controls all of the devices that put torque to the wheels. Not only does the PCM team design a system that can efficiently drive the vehicle but establishes the interfaces for how other systems other than the driver (i.e., CAVs) may command torque.

   

  SKILLS GAINED

  • MATLAB/Simulink
  • Git – version control software
  • Software development processes
  • Simulation based testing
  • Vehicle based testing
  • Data processing

   

  MAJORS

  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Computer Engineering

   

  CAREERS

  • Control Engineer (not just automotive, controls are everywhere!)
  • Calibration Engineer
  • Test Engineer
  • Modeling Engineer
  • Scripting and Tools Developer
• Connected And Automated Vehicle Team (CAV)

  WHAT IS IT?

  The Connected and Automated Vehicle (CAV) subteam will be a multidisciplinary group of students leading the development of the connected and automated driving features. The features will include connected adaptive cruise control, automatic lane centering, traversing connected corridors, and optimizing vehicle controls for energy efficiency.

  WHAT DO STUDENTS WORK ON?

  Connected and Automated Vehicles have the capability to vastly improve the efficiency of transportation, reduce congestion, and completely eliminate accidents. Since this technology is still in development, the CAV subteam in EVC will directly contribute to making CAVs become a reality in our world in the near future.

  The CAVs students will be working on the full stack of autonomy software and hardware. The technical areas include raw image and lidar data processing, sensor fusion, object tracking, lane localization, Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (SLAM), motion controls, behavioral planning, and simulation.

  WHAT'S THE IMPORTANCE?

  Connected and Automated Vehicles have the capability to vastly improve the efficiency of transportation, reduce congestion, and completely eliminate accidents. Since this technology is still in development, the CAV subteam in EVC will directly contribute to making CAVs become a reality in our world in the near-future.

  SKILLS GAINED

  • Matlab / Simulink
  • Programming / Code development
  • RTMaps
  • Computer vision
  • Sensor data processing
  • Machine Learning / Artificial Intelligence
  • Software Development
  • Sensor fusion
  • Control systems
  • Modeling and simulation
  • Git
  • Sensor Integration
  • CAN communications

   

  MAJORS

  • Electrical Engineering
  • Computer Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Mechanical Engineering

  CAREERS

  Potential Careers Opportunities: 

  • Software Engineer
  • Software Developer
  • Machine Learning Engineer
  • Data Scientist
  • Autonomous Systems Engineer
  • Robotics Engineer
  • Self-Driving Car Engineer
• System Design and Integration Team (SDI)

  WHAT IS IT?

  The System Design and Integration (SDI) Subteam, is responsible for the design, integration, evaluation, and refinement the propulsion systems and components to ensure the vehicle functions as intended while maintaining safety for all planned competition events.

  WHAT DO STUDENTS WORK ON?

  The SDI subteams will follow an iterative design process, exploring different material properties, packaging, and wire routing strategies to achieve the desired safety, operation, and serviceability for their team design components.

  WHAT'S THE IMPORTANCE?

  The SDI subteam works with the PCM and CAV subteams to establish component and system requirements ensuring that the components selected for their vehicle architecture not only meet their vehicle targets in simulation, but can be effectively packaged, powered, and monitored in the competition donated Cadillac LYRIQ.

  The SDI subteam has a large role and emphasis in Years 1 and 2 of the competition when component packaging, electrical schematic and diagram planning, and thermal system design are core development tasks. In Years 3 and 4, the SDI subteam will have a minimal role in core development tasks as the focus is more on vehicle level refinement and calibration activities.

  SKILLS GAINED

  • CAD SpaceClaim and Component Packaging
  • Component Mount Design and Manufacture
  • Structural Analysis
  • Mass Management and Light-Weighting
  • Power Distribution
  • High-Voltage and Low-Voltage System Design and Integration
  • Thermal System Design and Integration
  • Vehicle Dynamics

  MAJORS

  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Industrial Engineering
  • Graduate Engineering Program (MSME, MSEE, etc.)

   

  CAREERS

  Potential Careers Opportunities

  • Structural Engineer
  • Automotive Engineer
  • Vehicle Calibrator
  • Product Designer