Engineering Students Place First in Aero Design Competition

Akron, Ohio, May 2, 2008 ― University of Akron engineering students placed first in the Micro Class in recent unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) competition sponsored by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).

The competition, called Aero Design, was held in Marietta, Ga. UA's College of Engineering team bested California State University at Long Beach and the University of Puerto Rico in the Micro Class, and Puerto Rico and the College of New Jersey for the highest payload fraction award.

The Micro Class is “the ultimate real-world challenge,” says Oliver Alvarado of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., SAE Rules Committee chair. The competition, held April 18-20, was hosted by Lockheed Martin.

UA's Micro Class team is composed of senior and team captain Michael Hoffman of Norton and juniors Reese Eichhorn of Hinckley and Amanda McGrail of Steubenville.

Hoffman also captained a group of younger students new to the team. “They entered the Regular Class and performed well, considering this was their first competition,” Hoffman says. Members are sophomore Andrew Smith of Wadsworth and freshmen Greg Meine of Brecksville; Eric Miller of Romulus, N.Y.; Logan Riley of Avon; Catherine Rucki of Canal Fulton; and Shengfen Shen of Ashland. Hoffman, Eichhorn, McGrail, Riley, Rucki and Shen are in the university‘s Honors College.

“All of these students are creative, self-starting, self-motivated and very much deserving of their victory,” says team faculty adviser Jerry Drummond, associate professor of mechanical engineering.

UAVs are used chiefly for surveillance and reconnaissance. They are either expendable or recoverable and can fly autonomously or be piloted remotely. Small, portable, Micro Class UAVs can carry video or transmitting equipment, and/or digital cameras.

Teams were judged on written reports, oral presentations, flight performance and an assembly exercise with a cap of three minutes by two people.

Competitors transport their entries and gear in self-designed packages. The University of Akron teams have a new trailer bought with monies from the Bridgestone Firestone Trust Fund, the former Akron/Canton SAE Section and the SAE student section. Their tow vehicle, a new Chevrolet Silverado, was purchased largely with funds from the Orr Family Foundation.

For more information, visit http://students.sae.org/competitions/aerodesign/.

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