2015: Drive Your Passion.
Biography:
Emre YAZICI is an Aeronautical Engineer. Throughout his career he was deeply involved in quality assurance, aircraft certification, systems engineering and program management activities. After having spent a quarter of a century in defense aviation, at several positions as Engineer, Manager, Director and finally as Executive Vice President, he decided to retire in 2014. Industrial design and computer graphics are his long time hobbies. His design EGO received the 2nd place award in 5th Peugeot Design Competition (2008). He now has time to practice daily to improve his “stuck to intermediate” level design skills. Emre lives in Ankara, Turkey with his wife, two cats and a turtle. Their son left home three years ago to become an engineer. By 2030, Emre will be 68 years old.
Description:
My iconic road is Ruta Cuarenta (Route 40) in Argentina. I chose it because of the great challenge it represents with the varying nature of its parts and the enormous length it spans.
Ruta Cuarenta (Route 40) – known in Argentina simply as La Cuarenta – is one of the wildest and least travelled roads on the planet. It is a long, almost straight route stretching over an enormous 2500 km in the North-South direction.
In the year 2029 The Government of Argentina together with Automovil Club Argentino – ACA commemorating its 125th year, organized a “24hr Le Mans” like international competition on La Cuarenta, to help increase tourism and the country’s popularity worldwide. Upon huge success of the first organization, ARGO is sponsored by ACA and designed to win the second organization (in 2030) of this demanding and popular race, which requires maintaining high speeds on unpaved portions of the road, with minimum roadside assistance.
ARGO’s design concept is centered around the Argentinian Flag, with white and blue strips and a fan location coinciding with the sun figure in the Flag. The bull logo represents the relentless character of the car by means of a local figure. The upper canard is also shaped as bullhorns. While the name ARGO is putting Argentina and mobility together, it also loosely refers to the mythological Greek ship Argo that was designed to travel 12,000 miles. Argo means “swift” in Greek. The tire, a brand new design by Michelin for La Cuerenta, also contains local motifs.
ARGO incorporates a sleek aerodynamic design more akin to aircraft, to reduce drag and wind noise. Lifting surfaces consisting of two pairs of canards, a high wing and rear horizontal stabilizers are integrated to control and assist the wing-in-ground-effect solution. The air cushion created under the aft of the car by two high-speed counter rotating fans keeps the aft of the car floating over the ground and boosts the maneuverability to unattainable levels by removing ground friction losses at the back of the car. Due to the unstable nature of the car, a “drive-by-wire” control system is introduced coupled with sensors to keep it horizontal to the ground at all times.
A total of four direct drive electrical motors, two in wheels and one for each fan, drive the car. There are no moving parts in the transmission. Traction is provided by the front tires (This eliminates the gripping problem of other “wing in ground effect” machines, i.e. hovercraft). Steering is performed through differential rotational speed of the wheels.
ARGO is designed as a drive-by-wire, high speed, high maneuverability, high visibility, all composite, all electric two seat vehicle to provide pure driving pleasure to its occupants and spectators alike, all over La Cuarenta, regardless of road conditions.
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