Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Students Win Challenge X ''Crossover to Model-Based Design'' Award from The MathWorks

NATICK, Mass.--(EON:Enhanced Online News)--The MathWorks^tm today announced it has awarded a team of engineering students from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology with The MathWorks “Crossover to Model-Based Design” Award at Challenge X, the four-year student engineering competition sponsored by General Motors Corporation (GM) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

“This way, anyone who so much as turns a wrench on our car knows how to approach the vehicle from a controls and modeling standpoint. Everyone can speak the same language when diagnosing problems in our vehicle.”

The award was given to the team that best applied Model-Based Design using MATLAB^® and Simulink^® to reengineer a 2005 Chevrolet Equinox for better fuel-efficiency. The Ohio State University, last year’s award winner, achieved second place in this year’s competition, while the University of Waterloo received third place.

“Rose-Hulman set the standard by systematically applying Model-Based Design to the entire vehicle development process,” said Paul Smith, director of North American consulting services at The MathWorks. “They mastered the use of models to verify and validate through each incremental step in the development process, and ensured that the final design met the vehicle requirements.”

“Our team found that Model-Based Design using Simulink is so valuable that we have been teaching the process to all of our team members,” said Ben Ciavola, a senior mechanical engineering student on the Rose-Hulman team. “This way, anyone who so much as turns a wrench on our car knows how to approach the vehicle from a controls and modeling standpoint. Everyone can speak the same language when diagnosing problems in our vehicle.”

Out of over 100 applicants, 17 teams were chosen to participate in the elite competition that challenges top engineering students from the United States and Canada to reengineer a Chevy Equinox, a crossover sport utility vehicle. This is the third year of Challenge X, during which students refined their advanced technology vehicles with the goal of delivering a showroom-ready vehicle that meets consumer requirements for performance, safety, and aesthetics. In this year’s segment, which took place at GM’s Milford Proving Ground in Michigan from May 30-June 7, teams were evaluated in their ability to optimize the vehicle’s utility, reduce energy consumption, and decrease emissions.

The MathWorks, which offers software and support for all the participating teams, has sponsored the competition since its inception in 2004. By providing Challenge X teams with these technologies, The MathWorks is preparing hundreds of highly skilled engineering students to lead the automotive industry using Model-Based Design.

The other teams participating in the 2007 challenge include: Michigan Technological University; Mississippi State University; Pennsylvania State University; San Diego State University; University of Akron; University of California, Davis; Texas Tech University; University of Michigan; University of Texas at Austin; University of Tennessee, Knoxville; University of Tulsa; University of Wisconsin – Madison; Virginia Tech; and West Virginia University.

Additional information about Challenge X is available online at www.challengex.org.

About The MathWorks

The MathWorks is the world’s leading developer of technical computing and Model-Based Design software for engineers and scientists in industry, government, and education. With an extensive product set based on MATLAB and Simulink, The MathWorks provides software and services to solve challenging problems and accelerate innovation in automotive, aerospace, communications, financial services, biotechnology, electronics, instrumentation, process, and other industries.

The MathWorks was founded in 1984 and employs more than 1,600 people worldwide, with headquarters in Natick, Massachusetts. For additional information, visit www.mathworks.com.

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