Huawei Sonnenwagen to Compete in Australia’s World Solar Challenge
German Environment Minister officiates at send-off for Huawei solar racer
[Berlin, Germany, July 20, 2017] The Huawei Sonnenwagen is ready for the world’s toughest solar race. For two years, a team of students from RWTH Aachen and FH Aachen had been working on the fully solar-powered race car. Now the car, with Huawei as its main sponsor, has officially been introduced and seen off to Australia, where it will take part in the World Solar Challenge 2017 – a 3,000 kilometer race through the Australian Outback - as the only German representative in the tough 'Challenger' racing class.
Huawei Sonnenwagen Event hold in Berlin
The German Federal Minister for the Environment Dr. Barbara Hendricks spoke in high terms of the project: "Sonnenwagen is a successful example of mobility powered by clean energy", she said during the presentation at ewerk in Berlin on Thursday. "Through their exemplary commitment to the first German Sonnenwagen at the World Solar Challenge, the students of RHTW Aachen are highlighting the potential for this type of engine. For electrical cars and trucks, solar can be an additional source of power. We are without a doubt only at the beginning of our possibilities”, she said.
The idea for Sonnenwagen was born in the summer of 2015. The big goal at the time: participating in the world championship for solar cars. Now, the car from Aachen will actually be heading to Australia in October to compete there. Xue Ming, Vice President of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. is confident: "In order to prevail in the Australian Outback, the vehicles have to make optimal use of the available solar energy. Thanks to the high-tech design and low weight, Sonnenwagen has an extremely high energy efficiency. Our technology contributes to adjusting the driving strategy in realtime according to external conditions such as weather changes. It also enables permanent communication between the driver and the team, even in areas without stable telecommunications infrastructure."
The guests in Berlin were able to get a glimpse of the car’s capabilities themselves during a test drive on the grounds of ewerk. "After two eventful years full of small and big challenges, we are extremely proud to be able to present our Huawei Sonnenwagen. With our solar race car, we want to contribute to researching tomorrow’s technologies, in order to help future forms of mobility to become even more sustainable. We are delighted to see that we are able to awaken so many people’s interest in sustainable mobility and we are thrilled with anticipation for the world championship for solar cars in October", said Niklas Kaltz, Second Chairman and co-founder of Sonnenwagen Aachen e.V.
After the birth of the idea in a shared flat in Aachen, during the span of just a few months, a team of 40 students came together in order to realize the ambitious project. After the farewell in Berlin, the whole team and their equipment will relocate to Australia by air and by sea prior to the race from Darwin to Adelaide, which will commence in October.
