"It is a unique opportunity to see the formula and motorbikes from CTU in full operation. Which is something that cannot be seen except at a closed airport or racing circuit that is not open to the general public," said Jan Cába from the eForce FEE Prague Formula team, whose members build autonomous electric formulae that they race on European tracks. The team, made up mainly of students from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, was among the top ten student teams in Europe last year. People will be able to see the current fusion of piloted and autonomous electric vehicles that eForce have developed for this year's racing season. The formula was created by combining two previous generations of piloted and autonomous formula.
The CTU CarTech team's FS.15 monoplane from the Faculty of Engineering, which competes in internal combustion engine formula races, will also be on display. Last year, CTU CarTech built a hybrid-powered formula for the first time and has refined it for the next season. According to spokesman Jakub Kaplický, the CTU CarTech team has had a very successful season, taking first place in races in the Netherlands and Austria, bronze in the Czech Republic and silver in Croatia.
In addition to the two types of formulas, a new prototype of the electric racing bike EVO 3.0 Electric of the CTU Lions team from the Faculty of Transport, which competes in the MotoStudent competition, will be presented during the race day.
Unlike the formulas, the MotoStudent competition has a two-year season, and the current one only finished in mid-October at the Aragon circuit. CTU Lions completed its third electric-powered motorcycle this year.
It's going to be something to watch.
"During the race day, there will be mainly dynamic demonstrations at various intervals, all passers-by can see how the formulae run and also find out how their construction was carried out. At the same time, there will also be the opportunity to talk to team members, join a team or meet representatives of our partner companies," Jan Cába described the event programme. "This is a unique opportunity for freshmen and juniors from different faculties to find out what it is like to be part of a team, how it works and what it brings for their later studies and careers," emphasized Jakub Kaplický.
The big news, which will be made official during the race day, will be the merger of the eForce and CTU CarTech teams. "It will continue under the name eForce FEE Prague Formula, but the colours on the car will be kept in the red and blue scheme of our combustion formula," specified Jakub Kaplický. "The merger will take place mainly because the rules of the most prestigious Formula Student Germany race currently favour only the electric autonomous formula. The combustion category, due to future trends, is slowly being phased out, and even the best combustion teams in the world have thus started to switch to building an electric formula. Which was also seen with the guys from CarTech, whose team has basically arrived at the top of the combustion category," explained Cába.
"If we all want to move on and compete against the best teams for the top spots, we need to join forces together. Above all, human resources and also finances, so that we can build the best car that is able to compete with the teams from Munich and Stuttgart," he added. eForce FEE Prague Formula will now consist of about seventy people, which is about twice the size of the original teams.
And what is the plan for the new team composition for the coming months? "After the merger, there will be a completely new concept of an electric autonomous formula. We will redesign the entire car - the monocoque, the build of the individual units or the mechanisms needed for unmanned driving. For better safety and serviceability, we will move the battery from under the pilot's feet to the rear of the car. It's a big bite for us, but we're happy to have a lot of us. Because we will be able to use the maximum potential of all members and the experience they have gathered during the construction of both cars," summarized Jan Cába.
