Posted to News on 25th Apr 2014, 16:23
Harwin sponsors TUfast ecoTeam for Shell Eco-Marathon
Harwin is sponsoring the TUfast ecoTeam from Technical University Munich (TU Munich) for the Shell Eco-Marathon in Rotterdam 2014. The team uses several highly reliable and rugged Datamate and Hotshoe connectors in their energy-efficient race car.
The Shell Eco-marathon competition challenges students to design, build and drive the most energy-efficient car. At three events around the world, hundreds of teams compete to travel the furthest on the equivalent of one litre of fuel. All types of drive concepts and energy sources are allowed, including battery, petrol and diesel, as well as bio fuel, hydrogen and solar. At the Rotterdam 2014 event, the cars must travel a fixed route of about 16.3km in a maximum allowed time of 39 minutes with an average speed of at least 25km/h. The consumed energy is exactly measured and converted to get the equivalent of "kilometrage per one litre of regular petrol'.
Harwin was recommended to the TUfast ecoTeam by another sponsor, as the team was experiencing connectivity problems with the connectors previously used. Well known for its high-reliability and rugged connectors that can withstand high shocks and vibrations, Harwin now sponsors the race team from TU Munich with HotShoe connectors to connect the photovoltaic system. Datamate connectors are used for the battery management system and also for several PCB connections. In the future the team is also planning to use Datamate connectors for their new motor controller they need to build due to an upcoming change of rules.
Philipp Wurdak from the TUfast ecoTeam comments: "The proven ruggedness was the most important criterion for us in choosing Harwin's connectors, as the streets of Rotterdam can be quite bumpy compared to a smooth racetrack. But of course the light weight was also important as our car in total only weighs about 26kg."
Katja Purrmann, Business Development Manager at Harwin says: "The project with the new car from the TUfast ecoTeam went very smoothly and the people at TU Munich are great to work with." Maximilian Amm from the TUfast ecoTeam concludes: "We got some great support from Harwin and they certainly know about sponsoring university projects."
For more information on the TUfast ecoTeam, visit tufast-eco.de. For information on the Shell Eco-Marathon, visit www.shell.com/global/environment-society/ecomarathon.html. To learn more about Datamate and Hotshoe connectors from Harwin, please go to www.harwin.com.
