I hesitate to post because I don't think I'll be able to keep up with the conversation, but what the heck ...
Yay, solar power, a subject I actually know anything about! I hope I'm not totally derailed here ... could the future of transportation (which also touches on the future of energy supplies and delivery systems) be considered a progressive topic?
(snip)
It's not a prototype, its a finished product.
http://wise.web.itd.umich.edu/?page_id=11
"There are plenty of opportunities to brainstorm ideas, develop solutions and test prototypes with faculty, staff and fellow students on campus. Team Design Projects, small group work, collaborative classroom assignments and multidisciplinary projects provide opportunities to hone skills as leaders and develop talents as a team player. From refining the design of the Human-Powered Submarine or racing with the Michigan Solar Car Team to building greenhouses for middle schools, you will work with many interesting students at Michigan. Collaborate with others to enrich your experiences as an engineer."
I'm sorry but .... They call it a prototype themselves. See that picture? That's the same one in the article.... If they call it a prototype and use it as their exemplar prototype.... It's a prototype.
Truean, I think you're still a little wide of the mark here. The paragraph you quote lists opportunities to engage in a number of steps of the engineering design process ("brainstorm ideas, develop solutions and test prototypes"), but it does not at all mean that the activities of the groups it lists are limited to only those listed activities. The paragraph is describing opportunities for collaboration, it's not even primarily about the solar car team. I'm sure the students on that team do prototyping ... prototypes of the solar car, the final version of which is what they enter into races.
I'm sure the team will make a new car in the next two academic years, and will build on the knowledge they gained from this car, but that no more makes this a prototype than it makes any 2011-model-year car a prototype of the 2012-model-year car. Their goal for a given car is to win a solar car race, and the car they enter into the race is their final product.
First, its not even trying to be a car. Second, it's likely not the best we can do, just the best thats been bothered because its not a particularly lucrative field since the vast bulk of the populace (like yourself) are unwilling to accept the trade-offs it would entail. Finally... why no? Seriously?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Michigan_Solar_Car_Team
http://www.saturnelectronics.com/pr_umsolarcar.htm
Yes... it is trying to be a car.... That is why car companies are sponsoring it; they want to one day build one sorta like this. All those logos on the side.... They call it the "solar car" team. Also it is the best they can do; this is cutting edge man and it's expensive. Speaking of which....
As for the trade offs, this thing cost $1 Million ($1,000,000).
http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2009-06/detroits-latest-solar-powered-infinium-unfortunately-cant-be-bought
People can't afford that stuff dude. It is an entirely valid thing to be "unwilling to accept the trade-offs it would entail," when those trade offs include a million dollar price tag.... That said, safety and functionality are equally valid concerns.
(snip)
Of course it's a car. Specifically, it's a race car. (See the first sentence of
http://solarcar.engin.umich.edu/the-car/.) It's no more practical than a Formula 1 race car, and it's not meant to be. It's meant to win a race.
I agree that these race cars are totally impractical as personal transportation, but I don't think any large car company expects to sell anything like that. There's just not much solar energy available falling on the surface area of a car; any car that would go a reasonable distance on that energy must be exceptionally light. Being much lighter than other cars on the road necessarily impacts the safety of the driver, regardless of how well the car is built. And the heavier vehicles just aren't going anywhere any time soon: think delivery trucks, busses, people carpooling, shuttle-vans, carpenters and plumbers and the like with their trucks full of tools, and so on.
My guess is that the future of personal transportation will involve solar-powered cars, but they won't be directly solar-powered like these are. Instead, we will drive electric cars, charged from the grid, and the electricity will increasingly come from renewable energy sources such as solar. (I suppose by my definition I should say, people who live in the southwest U.S. will probably drive solar cars; in other regions they might be hydro, nuclear, wind, etc. - powered.) Although there will be some hit in efficiency from transporting the energy through the grid, it makes more sense to put solar panels on fixed installations such as rooftops or dedicated plants with one- or two-axis trackers than to put them on every car to be carried around. Actually, with triple-junction cells there might not even be a hit in overall efficiency -- those cells are more efficient when operated at a high concentration ratio, which is much easier to do on a fixed installation.