Preliminary Prototype
Ultimately we were able to demonstrate with our prototype proof of concept with all of our subsystems. It is clear from our demonstration and preliminary prototype that this system is capable of functioning in the Notre Dame Baja car. However we were not able to implement our prototype in the Baja car. Instead we demonstrated our system using a bicycle. Our RPM sensors functioned consistently and reliably at a variety of speeds. The GPS was able to acquire a signal and parse the necessary data from it. We found that the LCD screen was a valuable addition to the system and allowed us to display relevant data to the driver of the car in real time.
However to implement the system in the actual vehicle we would need to make several modifications. Ideally, we would have had greater access to the Baja vehicle to better determine the implementation of sensors in the car. Furthermore the accuracy of both our temperature and GPS sensors could be improved. We did not consider the effects of wire resistance in our original design which may have accounted for some of the difficulty we had with calibration of our sensors.
Overall it is apparent that our system has the potential to function well in the Notre Dame Baja Car however several adjustments must be made to our prototype before we can implement the system fully into the Baja vehicle.
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