The latest development of Team Sonnenwagen Aachen - The Covestro Photon

On Monday, August 2, the new racing car of Team Sonnenwagen Aachen, a team of students from RWTH Aachen University and FH Aachen University, was presented. The team was founded in 2015 and since then has been developing and building solar race cars to compete in zero-emission races around the globe. Named after the main sponsor Covestro, the Covestro Photon is the latest addition to the team's racers. Accumulated knowledge from previous seasons has gone into the development of the third-generation solar car. The team unveiled the car and its technical innovations on Monday. "After two years of hard work, we are finally ready to present the new Sonnenwagen," said Kersten Heckmann, technical lead of the team. "The vehicle is the outcome of the latest innovation and groundbreaking technology; driven by the goal of a more sustainable future." With the Covestro Photon, the only German team will compete in the toughest Solar Challenges in 2021, aiming for first place. With half the air resistance of a racing cyclist, the car offers the best conditions for maximum efficiency, the factor around which everything revolves in electric vehicles. For this value, the aerodynamics team went through approximately 250000 computing hours on 1100 different simulations. The catamaran design gives the car more stability and therefore a greater possible curve velocity. Apart from the great aerodynamics, a self-developed motor is again installed this season - the most powerful of the world's leading solar racing teams. The solar cells have been cut for improved efficiency and layered like roof tiles. Shingling the monocrystalline silicon cells allows for improved energy output and efficient use of space of over 95%. The structure was also further improved this year. With two partners from Cologne, Germany, who specializes in the structural manufacturing of professional racing cars, the CFRP parts could be made even lighter and at the simultaneously more durable. Thanks to the support of strong partners and the motivated team, the Covestro Photon can impress with its outstanding technical specifications and latest innovations. The race car has all the prerequisites to make it onto the podium in this year's races in Morocco and Belgium.

Innovative Technologies – Remote Cruise Control

The Covestro Photon is not only superbly designed and manufactured, but also equipped with intelligent software. The driving strategy, which takes care of the optimal use of available energy during the race, has developed new software for the current season. Dubbed Remote Cruise Control (RCC), the program can apply specified speeds and, even more importantly, speed changes as accurately as possible to the road. Using precise GPS data and an exact analysis of the weather data, both historical and current, it is possible to make the best possible use of the available energy of the race car. The specified speed can be transmitted directly to the race car via the escort vehicle. This is a first step towards autonomous driving. The driver can thus leave the speed to the computer and concentrate better on the steering and traffic.

Third time's a charm - Outlook for the third season

With the rollout of the new race car, the team is well prepared for the grand finale of the season. The European Solar Challenge (ESC) in Belgium and the Solar Challenge Morocco (SCM) are scheduled for September and October this year. The ESC in Belgium is based on Le Mans with 24h and offers 13 European solar racing teams to measure themselves against the competition. After the cancellation of the 2021 World Solar Challenge in Australia, Europe's top solar racing teams have joined forces to create a new challenge: The Solar Challenge Morocco 2021 (SCM21). The best solar racing teams from around the world will be challenged to prove their technical innovations in Morocco in October 2021. The SCM challenges with its 5 stages over 2500km in 5 days. The race starts and finishes in Agadir, a port city in southern Morocco. Only the team with the most innovative and efficient solar car that can withstand the challenges of Moroccan roads will emerge victorious. With the Covestro Photon, the team is confident of achieving another top ranking in Morocco.

Continuing a strong partnership - Three more years with Covestro

With the vehicle unveiling, Team Sonnenwagen Aachen is pleased to announce Covestro, a leading global provider of innovative and sustainable material solutions, as the main sponsor until the end of 2023. The plastics producer has been an important partner of the aspiring engineers since the very first season and became the team's main sponsor in 2018. Covestro supports the Aachen students not only with material, but also with valuable knowhow. With Covestro as a renewed main sponsor, the team is confident of achieving further top placements in the upcoming Challenges.