Readings & References

General Solar Car

Solar Car Guidebooks

Found by: Ishan Deshpande

https://utexas.sharepoint.com/:u:/s/ENGR-LonghornRacing/EVFKnJ6lz8RElFbbc2jzoU4BDKySox-sP6J9LgXMsHiCgw?e=2JDGfx

The Winning Solar Car: A Design Guide for Solar Race Car Teams

The first two chapters in the book are on energy management, and the information in these chapters is helpful when doing design trade-offs and developing a strategy for racing the car. Chapter 2 includes information on how to drive the car efficiently and is helpful in driver training. Chapter 3 focuses on design methodology and project management and provides an introduction to the general design process. The remaining chapters are about designing the different subsystems of the car. In each chapter, I have referred the reader to books and articles that I have found helpful on designing and building solar cars. The goal of the book is to provide an introduction to all aspects of designing, building, and racing solar cars

A Solar Car Primer: A Guide to the Design and Construction of Solar-Powered Racing Vehicles

This exciting primer on Solar Racing literally starts from the ground up, describing how the interactions of a vehicle with its environment circumscribe its ultimate success, from aerodynamics to resistance and propulsion. By demonstrating how to mathematically model these underlying physical phenomena, the author helps solar racing competitors carefully select key characteristics of the vehicle, such as weight and shape, to produce optimal speed. Energy conversion and demand are given particular attention, followed by chapters devoted to examining solar racers’ design, manufacture and testing using a structured problem-solving process to keep projects on track and on schedule. A chapter devoted to energy management strategies provides invaluable tips on maximizing average speed during a race. Complex issues such as ventilation system analysis and performance simulation are covered in dedicated appendices. The financial aspect of project design is not neglected, as both fund-raising and cost estimation are given in-depth consideration.

Reddit says best reading order is Winning Solar Car -> Solar Car Primer since the latter is more mathematically and technically heavy.

Optimal energy management for solar-powered cars
This is a thesis by an Australian professor Dr. Peter Pudney. He is now the chair of the technical committee for the World Solar Challenge.

Introducing the Design Process to Beginners: The Spiral Model

This paper describes the extension of the typical sequential design process to a "spiral" process, where the design activities are repeated, producing outcomes that have increasing levels of detail.
...
The approach is described in terms of vehicle design projects such as solarcars for Sunrayce events, Formula SAE vehicles, and SAE Mini Baba vehicles, and is illustrated with a start-up pass through the design activities for a solarcar.