The Industrial Design department’s success in last year’s NASA’s “Great Moonbuggy Race” in Huntsville, Alabama, placing third and receiving the “Rookie of the Year” award, prompted a great deal of interest in continuing the life of the project back at RISD. This came in the form of a club, started by seniors Cliff Warren (BFA ’11) and Bryan Cloyd (BFA ’11). In order to help bring in new members, teachers Michael Lye and Matt Grigsby, assisted by Warren and Cloyd, held a studio this Wintersession. The class taught students the necessary skills and familiarized them with the competition as well as the design process that goes into building a human-powered moonbuggy. The students learned how to braze, sandblast, lay carbon fiber, and became acquainted with some basic physics and structural concepts.
The class began with concept development for new buggy designs, thinking more “blue sky;” that is, envisioning broadly how the moonbuggy might function without worrying too deeply about specific mechanical features. Once the students spent a few weeks thinking generally, they formed separate groups, each focusing on a specific subsystem that goes into a human-powered moonbuggy, from how the steering might work to the branding and uniform design. In the final two weeks, the students worked in new groups, each consisting of a single member from each of the previous groups. Each team member put forth his or her expertise in one of the subsystems or aspects to help create a model of a moonbuggy. These designs may become fully functioning buggies for entry in NASA’s annual race in years to come.
Below are some images taken of the studio.
Posted by Kegan Tawney and Wesley Chau | Date Posted: 10 February, 2011