27
September
2019
|
00:00
Europe/Amsterdam

Bridgestone to supply solar car tyres using fuel-efficient tyre technology to 32 teams competing in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge

Summary
Bridgestone

Bridgestone to supply solar car tyres
using fuel-efficient tyre technology to 32 teams competing
in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge

Bridgestone Corporation (Bridgestone) will supply solar car tyres using its fuel-efficient tyre technology to 32 teams participating in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (BWSC), for which Bridgestone is the naming rights sponsors.

Held in Australia once every two years, the BWSC is the world’s foremost solar car race, with Cambridge University flying the flag for the UK as its team bids for podium success.

Twenty undergraduate students from the university’s Eco Racing (CUER) have completed work on a four-seat solar powered electric car, collaborating with the top automotive companies and experts in the UK to develop and manufacture their new vehicle, “Helia.”

Xiaofan Zhang the team’s Programme Director commented: “CUER was founded in 2008 and built ‘Affinity’, a very large single seat road legal solar car that drove from Lands’ End to John O’Groats. Now, just 10 years later it’s incredible to see how Electric Vehicle technology has developed so far in such a short space of time. These innovations have allowed us to build a four seat car that is much faster, more efficient and practical.”

As a result of these cutting-edge collaborations the team vehicle boasts some impressive figures including:

  • Being able to drive with four occupants at 80kph (50mph) using just the power of a kettle.
  • Having a single-charge range of over 900km even without using the solar cells, an equivalent of a London to Edinburgh trip.
  • Helia’s battery allows for more than double the range of a Tesla, whilst being a quarter of the size.
  • Achieving a motorway capable top speed.

CUER is targeting a podium finish in the Cruiser Class – a race category where teams must build multiple occupancy vehicles that are practical, fast and efficient.

The toughest part of the competition this year includes a 1200km stretch which the Cambridge University team will need to complete in just two days without recharging from the grid, all whilst carrying four people on board. The 2019 race event will begin on October 13, 2019, and racers will compete on a course spanning 3,000 km from Darwin on the northern edge of Australia to Adelaide on the southern edge over a period of approximately five days.

The solar car tyres “ECOPIA with ologic” to be supplied to teams competing in this race are fuel-efficient tyres designed specifically for solar cars using fuel-efficient tire technology from Bridgestone, “ologic.” “ECOPIA with ologic” tyres ensure the necessary durability while featuring reduced rolling resistance. Tyres using ologic technology are narrower than standard tyres with a wider diameter, making for a shape that realizes high levels of fuel efficiency and safety. The wider diameter limits changes in the shape of the contact patch to yield lower rolling resistance, which improves fuel efficiency. In addition, the narrower shape reduces air resistance while driving.

This event partnership seamlessly aligns with the three priority areas of the Bridgestone global corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitment, Our Way to Serve: mobility, people and environment. The Bridgestone World Solar Challenge embodies that philosophy with their purpose to contribute to the development of solar cars, support young engineers, and contribute to the environment while using a new power source: solar light. The Bridgestone Group employs innovation and technology to improve the way people move, live, work, and play.

Teams to be supplied with tires by Bridgestone (as of September 27, 2019):

*No.

Team

School

Country / Region

5

SunSPEC

Singapore Polytechnic University

Singapore

7

Adelaide University Solar Racing Team

Adelaide University

Australia

8

Agoria Solar Team

Solar Team vzw

Belgium

9

Onda Solare

University of Bologna

Italy

10

Tokai University Solar Car
Team

Tokai University

Japan

11

SolarCar-Team Hochschule
Bochum

Bochum University of Applied
Sciences

Germany

12

Cambridge University Eco
Racing

University of Cambridge

United Kingdom

14

Flinders Automotive Solar
Team

Flinders University

Australia

15

Western Sydney Solar Team

Western Sydney University

Australia

16

Stanford Solar Car Project

Stanford University

United States
of America

18

UiTM EcoPhoton Solar Racing
Team

Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM)

Malaysia

25

IVE Engineering Solar Car
Team

Hong Kong Institute of Vocational
Education

Hong Kong

30

Team Arrow

Team Arrow Racing Association

Australia

35

University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle Project

University of Minnesota

United States
of America

37

Goko High School

Goko High School

Japan

40

Solar Team Eindhoven

Eindhoven University of Technology

Netherlands

41

MTAA Super Sol Invictus

The Australian National University

Australia

42

TAFE South Australia

TAFE South Australia

Australia

45

Lodz Solar Team

Lodz University of Technology

Poland

47

NITech Solar Racing

Nagoya Institute of Technology

Japan

49

Siam Technology Motor Sport
(STC3)

Siam Technology College

Thailand

51

Chalmers Solar Team

Chalmers University of Technology, Department of Industrial and Materials Science

Sweden

55

Mines Rabat Solar Team

National School of Mines Rabat

Morocco

66

CalSol

University of California, Berkeley

United States
of America

75

Sunswift

University of New South Wales

Australia

77

Blue Sky Solar Racing

University of Toronto

Canada

80

Sun Shuttle

Beijing Institute of Technology

China

82

KUST
(Kookmin Univ. Solarcar Team)

Kookmin University

South Korea

84

Team Solaris

Dokuz Eylül University

Turkey

88

Kogakuin University Solar
Team

Kogakuin University Solar Team

Japan

92

Eclipse

École de technologie supérieure

Canada

98

ATN Solar Car Team

Australian Technology Network of
Universities

Australia

*Note: No. represents the number that the team will adorn while competing in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge.

Overview of BWSC:

1. Official Name: 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge

2. Date: October 13-20, 2019

3. Host Country: Australia (Start: Darwin; Goal: Adelaide)

4. Host: South Australian Tourism Commission

5. Race Classes

  • Challenger Class
    • A race to reach the goal the quickest in vehicles designed for speed; vehicles require four wheels and one driver.
  • Cruiser Class
    • A race testing vehicles’ energy efficiency and practicality; vehicles must have four wheels and be able to be ridden by one driver and more than one passenger.
  • Adventure Class
    • A race open to vehicles that are based on the criteria for participating in previous BWSC races or that otherwise do not meet the requirements to compete in the Challenger Class or Cruiser Class.

Media information:

Liesbeth Denys, Director PR and Corporate Communications, Bridgestone in EMEA: +32 478 78 26 22

About Bridgestone Corporation:

Bridgestone Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, is the world’s largest tire and rubber company. In addition to tires for use in a wide variety of applications, it also manufactures a broad range of diversified products, which include industrial rubber and chemical products and sporting goods. Its products are sold in over 150 nations and territories around the world.