Marketing team

VDS GROEP T launched its first online newsletter. The team will publish four newsletter per annual. Each team briefly discusses the state of affairs, we provide a list of new partners, and a calendar of upcoming events. You can follow one of these links to download the newsletter of Q4/2008:

VDS GROEP T Newsletter Q4/2008 (low-res PDF, 1,53 MB)

VDS GROEP T Newsletter Q4/2008 (high-res PDF, 5,00 MB)

Mid summer of 2008, VDS produced the first VISION prototype in the Turin, Italy. Based on this experience, VDS GROEP T now develops a second prototype, the VISION GT. It will be assembled in spring 2009. The prototype will effectively be used for drive tests and endurance tests. The VISION GT will be a VDS GROEP T car: it will show the lightweight frame, electric motor and motor controller to the maximum. The power train, power steering, suspension and braking systems will be incorporated from another existing car. Our researchers won’t focus on these integration components; the innovative sub systems have our priority.

This academic year, the frame team will focus on composites in particular. They want to develop and build a 100% carbon composite frame. Our researchers also explore the possibilities of flax fibres, because they have an impressive low life cycle impact – which is the de facto target of VDS GROEP T. The frame will be produced in cooperation with several industrial partners.

The motor team finished the design of the PMSM motor in September 2008. This motor is obviously controller by the PMSM controller, which will be finished in Q2 2009. The production of the Switched Reluctance Motor is scheduled in Q1 2009. The VISION GT will be driven by a 30 KW SRM motor. The SRM motor has significantly better results in the life cycle analysis, compared to all other electric motors. Next to a cheap, fast and environment friendly production, it has a very high efficiency while in use.

The motor controller team will focus on two specific domains: the hardware implementation of the PMSM controller algorithm – both controller and high power electronics – and the first develop cycle of the SRM algorithm. In Q2 2009 VDS GROEP T will show their PMSM controller, and a first version of the SRM algorithm.

Leuven September 22 2008 – Vehicle Design Summit (VDS), the very first university knowledge network for the automobile industry, launched the VISION's first prototype in Turin. The VISION 200 is presented at the prestigious DREAM Expo at the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile in Turin, Italy, until the end of November. The expo selected 50 cars of the future to be showcased at the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile. The car stands side to side with famous classic cars of Bertone, Ferrari and Maserati.

The 200 is the first prototype in a line of cars to be expected over the coming years. The final version, a hybrid plug-in car weighing less than 600 kilograms, has an energy-equivalent of 1.2l/100km and a 20%-reduction in lifecycle costs compared to current standards.

VDS is an international project for which Group T collaborates with major international universities such as M.I.T. (US), Harvard University (US), TU Delft (The Netherlands) and Tsinghua University (China) to develop the car of the future. VDS GROEP T plays a key role in the project as it takes care of the frame, the electrical engine, and the motor controller.

Arthur was born as the first child of four more to come on August 31 1984 in Heerlen, located in the south of the Netherlands. He grew up and went to school in Valkenburg. After his third year of the highschool he went to a boarding school in Maaseik, Belgium. He then went to Leuven to study electromechanical engineering at GROUP T in Leuven. At the moment he still lives in Leuven, together with his girlfriend Leen (already seven years and both still in love).

Being the leader of several projects Arthur discovered his management capabilities during the past years. This year he was selected and chosen to be the leader of the VDS GROUP T Team. He supervises both technical teams and is in charge of shared tasks, including infrastructure, logistics, events, finance, public relations, sponsorship and marketing.

Hobbies: Computer, Music, PC-games, Piano, Hanging out with friends, ...

www.linkedin.com/in/arthurvijghen arthurvijghen Blog

Pieter Jan Jordaens was born on the 18th of October 1986 and grew up in a little city called Zoersel. As a little kid he already got a large interest in science and engineering. It was quite evident to start a study industrial sciences at the Free Technical Institute located in Zandhoven. After finishing these studies he got a real passion for engineering. Therefore it was evident to start a study at the Groep T Leuven Engineering school.

Currently he’s finishing the 2-year Master in Engineering (at the Groep T Leuven Engineering school.

It was very evident to join the VDS network: working in team, innovation, working together with universities all over the world, a passion for engineering, building a large network and making important contacts,….

His focus isn’t only building an environment friendly and sustainable car, but also developing his qualities as a future engineer and pushing the limits on that, are important goals for him in this project.

Interests: Social club Zoezel, festivals & music, drinking a beer and having a chat, traveling, movies, …

www.linkedin.com/in/pieterjanjordaens

Maarten Vanhove was born on the 22nd of November in the year 1986, after a scientific education at the Saint Peterscollege in Louvain it was clear that the engineering genes were passed on. Group T became an obvious choice for his higher education. Especially the interesting projects that this school promotes were a big part in the decision to join the VDS-project. Next to the world improving character that this project surrounds, there is the international aspect that made the biggest impression on Maarten, working together with universities all over the world, who wouldn’t dream about that? After hours you probably can find Maarten behind the bar at Eclips, Old Market, where he works as a bartender.

Hobbies: Cinema, music, books

www.linkedin.com/pub/6/9ba/aa8 maartenvanhove1

Welcome to the website of the Belgian Vehicle Design Summit Team. We're one of the 30 teams that are part of the global Vehicle Design Summit project. This projects aims at creating and building an environment friendly car and eventually bringing to the market. Every university team is responsible for one or two sub systems of the vehicle, called 'Vision 200'.

The Belgian team, located in GROUP T Leuven, is responsibnle for the vehicle frame and the electrical motor. Both sub teams work together with partner universities elsewhere. The vehicle frame team cooperates with Tsinghua University, Bejing, the electrical motor team with the Berner Fachhochschule Biel, Switserland.

The mission of the Vehicle Design Summit is to create a meta-team of the world’s best universities to solve global problems in the public domain, and to initiate this endeavor by designing and building a 200 MPGe 5-person vehicle with 95% reduction in life cycle costs. The design of this hyper-efficient vehicle will be eventually be placed into public domain and 40 copies of this car will be built for crash, but the most important outcome of this work is a robust infrastructure for global collaboration now and into the future.

The question remains: why do we have our own website, as there's also an official website? The Belgian VDS wants to reach a lot of people. We want to provide a platform to partners (sponsors), co-students and everyone who is interested or involved in the project, both nationally and internationally. This website keeps everyone updated in the progress of our team and the complete project. You can follow up the progress by visiting the weblog. This week the site will be updated to the current project status.

Feel free to register and post your comments about this article, the website or other VDS related matter .