Hovercraft "EVA" - ENGR 100

EVA is a lightweight hovercraft designed, manufactured, and programmed by a 5 person team as the cumulative project for ENGR 100 at the University of Michigan. There were 3 main challenges that had to be completed by the craft while being held to certain constraints.

First was a straight line speed test where the craft had to race down a set distance, turn around, and come back. The second test was a 3-lap figure-eight race where the craft had to be piloted around rougher terrain that could potentially lead to the hovercraft becoming stuck. The last test was a payload capacity test. In a set amount of time, the craft had to carry as many standard size payloads and transport them to a designated area, rinse and repeat.

Our craft performed exceptionally well, ranking highly in each category. This was due to the hovercraft's unique design, with recessed electronics and payload storage, we were left with a smooth top surface to allow for more efficient air flow, resulting in a low drag coefficient of 0.3 compared to a more standard design at 0.48.

This project course was an introduction into the engineering design process and team collaboration and was one of the most enjoyable classes I have taken so far in my academic journey.