Mike Puckett's Blog

Letting Loose On The Weekends

There is that saying about all work and no play, well it's a pretty good saying to follow!  Over the past few years here on this blog I have shared with you a few different hobbies I like to mess around with including R/C cars, SCUBA diving, and other fun stuff.  Well over the past 10 months I have taken up a hobby that has a bit more speed to it.

Here is a quick video of me partaking in my new hobby this past weekend:

 

That is a 2012 CRGRoad Rebel Shifter Kart.  It's motor is a 1999 Honda CR125 dirt bike motor that is basically a 125cc two-stroke motor with a 6-speed gearbox.  It is capable of accelerating from 0-60 in under 4 seconds, and has a top speed of just over 100MPH, all while sitting just an inch off the ground!  On the tracks we run on, it's also capable of hitting as much as 2.5 G's in turns, both positive and negative G's.  Stopping, or slowing down the kart for the turns is handled by a front and rear brake system that has is bias adjustable, and uses ceramic brake discs for better braking under extreme brake loads. 

Since it's a two-stroke motor it runs on a 32:1 mix of oil and 100 octane gas.  Here in Nevada you can purchase 100 octane gas at the pump for the low cost of $6.50 a gallon.  A gallon of mixed fuel is usually good for about half a day at the track.  The power is transferred to the rear wheels via a chain, and there is no differential meaning that in order to get around a corner, the chassis has to be set up in a way that will allow for the inside rear tire to lift off the ground so the kart can turn more efficiently.  There is no suspension, so the design of the frame is such that it will flex and twist to achieve the needed changes to get around a turn as fast as possible.

The kart also has a data acquisition system that records a number of channels including, motor temps, lap times, and rpms, and it also has a gps system that is uses to map out the track you are on, provide gps measured speed, and also the G loads via an on board accelerometer.

Here is a sample track map generated from the system.  The yellow lines represent the path the kart took and that data was then imported into Google Earth and overlaid automatically based on the gps coordinates:

 

Here are a few pictures of the kart itself:

And yes, the kart is designed in SolidWorks!  Along with probably most of the add-on parts!

BOXX Raffle At The CSWE/CSWP Event At SolidWorks World 2012

Are you all set to head to SolidWorks World 2012?  Ready for a chance to win a high end computer workstation while you're there?  Well SolidWorks Solution partner BOXX has stepped up to the plate.

The first thing you'll need to know about having a chance to win this powerful workstation is you have to be a Certified SolidWorks Expert (CSWE),or a Certified SolidWorks Professional (CSWP), and you have to be attending SolidWorks World 2012 and be present at the CSWE/CSWP party on Monday night February 13th.

If you meet those requirements, simply go to the entry website and fill it out: Boxx Tech SolidWorks Solutions.

The computer to be given away at the event is packed full of the latest workstation tech including:

• CPU: Intel i7 Quad Core Enhanced Performance 4.5 GHz
• RAM: 8GB DDR3 2133MHz
• Video Card: NVIDIA Quadro 4000 with 2GB memory
• Hard Drives: 20 GB SSD cache hard drive; 1TB SATA
• 20X dual layer DVD+/-RW Writer
• Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Edition 64-bit 

And the best part?  The winner of this powerhouse computer will walk away with the actual computer from the event!  No waiting for this bad boy to be built and then shipped, you'll be plugging it in as soon as you get back to the office.

So how do you get in on the action to possibly win?  Well as stated before you must be a CSWE or CSWP, you must be attending SolidWorks World 2012 in San Diego, and you must be present at the CSWE/CSWP party on Monday night February 13th to win.

What if you don't meet those qualifications?  Well there is still time to register for SolidWorks World 2012, and you can even take and pass your CSWE or CSWP exam before you arrive!

We'd like to thank BOXX for stepping up to offer this great prize, and we hope to see you all in San Diego!  Find out more about their SolidWorks Certified solutions.

BOXX is the host of this contest, and is responsible for all rules and regulations.  You can find those rules here: Contest Rules

Consumer Electronics Show 2012

One of the fun parts about living here in Las Vegas is the fact that just about every trade and industry has an annual trade show here in town.  With out a doubt the Consumer Electronics Show is the largest convention of the year.  It's so big that it generates over 150 million dollars in non-gaming revenue for the city, and this year attracted over 3,000 companies, 153,000 attendees, and launched over 20,000 new products.

I spent a day and a half traversing the halls of the show which took up the same space as 30 football fields, over a million square feet!  I stopped by a few booths to chat with company's that I knew were using SolidWorks, and ended up running into lots more customers who as soon as they saw my SolidWorks shirt proceeded to tell me how much they love using SolidWorks, and explaining to me how they used it to design their product.  Here are a few of the cool tech items I saw at the show, some of which I wouldn't mind having in my own home!

The MakerBot Replicator by MakerBot

3D Printers have been around for years but in the last few years the push has been to make them more affordable so that everyone can buy one.  The MakerBot is a cool little printer that is extremely affordable and stands out from it's competitors in the DIY market with one huge advantage, it can print dual colors!  MakerBot debuted their 'Dualstrusion' version at CES and pretty much captivated the 3D printer industry part of the show.  The dual color printing is what sets their product apart from the other printers in this range of the market.  These guys have used SolidWorks to design many of the parts of their product, and chatting with them you simply get the feeling these guys love what they do!  You can check them out here: MakerBot Industries

Urban Green Energy

A few years ago at SolidWorks World there was a similar device on display that allows a house to generate energy via wind.  These guys have brought to market a system that you can custom order and then have installed at your house to generate electricity from wind.  You can either choose a battery type of system that stores energy, or a system that will power your house and sell extra energy back to the power company.  I didn't know this company used SolidWorks, but when I stopped to chat with them the first thing they mentioned was SolidWorks and how they used it to optimise the shape of the fins, and to also study the structural integrity of the system as well.  I briefly chatted with them about SolidWorks Sustainability and they were pretty excited to look into it so they could find out of they could make their green product, even greener!  You can check them out here: Urban Green Energy

Mercedes 

Car companies are getting more and more into tech these days.  Smartphones have paved the way for smart cars now.  One of the big trends at the show on the automotive side was 'apps for cars'.  No they don't mean playing angry birds on the windshield of the car, that might get a bit distracting!  Mercedes was showing off a prototype system that is basically a windshield size heads up display.  As you drive past a business you simply make a hand swiping motion and on the display an information window will come up showing reviews of the place, menus, and it will also allow you to make a reservation.  Of course one of the on lookers asked how distracting that will be to the driver, and the BMW rep simply replied, by the time this is out on the marker, cars will be driving themselves!  Here is another picture of their concept car:

Case Mate

There is so much mobile industry products at CES it's easy to get overwhelmed.  One of the stand out company's was Case Mate who was launching a new iPhone case called the Phantom.  The case is a two material injection molded cover that is designed to make your iPhone pretty much destruction proof.  The idea was to create a case that's both durable and affordable.  Case Mate had so much confidence in the case that one of their sales guys spent 4 days at the show repeatedly dropping his phone over and over to show how sturdy the case was.  And yes, they use SolidWorks to design their products as well.  I was speaking with one of the design engineers who told me they use a sketch program to mock up the design of a new case, and then when they are ready to make a final design that works, they put sketch pictures into SolidWorks and design away.  Pretty cool stuff from a company that loves their products.  Find out more about them here: Case Mate

 3D Everywhere!

3D Tv's have been at CES for some years now, but this year seems to be a break out year for them.  With glasses free 3D Tv's being displayed by Sony, and passive 3D Tv's being displayed by everyone, there simply was no way to avoid them!  LG seems to have stole the show with their awesome display at their booth:

And you thought your dual 30" monitors were cool huh?  I have a 3D Tv in my house and it uses the active shutter glasses which require batteries.  The passive system is the same thing you would encounter when you go see a 3D movie in a theatre.  The Tv companies seem to have figured it out quite well, and I would say that 3D Tv's are pretty much ready for prime time!

Of course if having a 3D Tv simply isnt cutting edge enough for you, then OLED is for you!  How about a 55" Tv that is 4mm thick (A little less then 3/16 of an inch) and weighs 16 pounds?

Here are some pictures of the Samsung model:

Can you spot the Tv in this side shot?

Rumored price tag is said to be around $10,000, but once you see the picture you'll want one.  And who wouldn't want a tv you could hang on your wall with velcro!

The CES show is an industry show only meaning it's closed to the general public.  But if you have connections into the industry this is definitely a show to attend some day.  You'll simply be amazed at whats out there!