The end of the semester is upon us and it is once again time to reflect on the past year. As you'll see from the items in this newsletter our students and faculty have been busy in the classroom and labs, as well as at a variety of intercollegiate competitions where our student teams continue to rise to the top against some formidable competitors from the nation's top schools. 

I'm also pleased to report that last week the Auburn University Board of Trustees approved a contract allowing us to begin the design process for the second Phase of the Shelby Center.  Earlier this year, the board challenged the college to raise $15 million in private donations to complete the funding package for this project.  To date we have $3.5 million in commitments. If you or your firm has ever considered a naming opportunity, now is the time to do it!  Check out the options by logging on to: www.eng.auburn.edu/naming.

Finally, I have retained a writer to work with our communications and marketing group to prepare a comprehensive history of the college of engineering. It is well past time to begin work on this project and unfortunately many memories have already been lost. My goal is more than a recounting of facts and figures, but rather a history based on stories from Auburn engineers about their time on campus and on the impact they have had on the world around them.

That is where you come in. I invite you to take a few moments to share your AU history and memories with us. They don't have to be long or complex. They can be about people, places, and events. 

You can send us a letter or note or, better yet, click on the button to your right to use our on-line submissions form. We're also looking for old photos, event flyers, posters, etc. -- anything related to the college. 

Sincerely yours,

Larry Benefield

P.S. If you send hard copy materials please make sure to include your return address and as much info as you can about the items.  We'll scan them and promptly return them.

Feature Story

Technology Reduces Fuel Consumption

Wei Huang is doing his part to help reduce fuel consumption on the highway. Huang works in the lab of David Bevly, an assistant professor in mechanical engineering, who received a grant from Intermap Technologies, a digital map company located at Denver, to investigate ways to save truck fuel by using the company's 3D road geometry.

In 2004, heavy trucks used up 15-20 percent of the country's highway fuel. A significant amount of the fuel loss was attributed to road slopes. Intermap noticed this problem and decided to sponsor Bevly's research team as they worked to solve it.

"Our project is unique in two ways," says Huang. "The designed system is tested with a real commercial 3D road geometry first. Then the influence of the road geometry and sensor accuracy on fuel economy is investigated. The 3D road geometry and GPS based control system is designed to reduce the heavy trucks fuel consumption. The system consists of vehicle state estimators, the road geometry and an optimal control system."

Huang's initial focus will be on getting some simulation results. During the simulation, he will design a predictive cruise controller and an automatic gear shifting algorithm to calculate the optimal vehicle speed, based on the 3D road geometry, resulting in fuel savings.

"Early simulation results have shown that the truck fuel consumption can be reduced up to 3 percent without significantly increasing traveling time, while the optimal control system is compared with a conventional PI cruise control system," he adds.

GPS technology is used to estimate the truck position, and Intermap's 3D road geometry is used to gain the road slope information ahead. An optimal control system is then designed to predict and achieve the optimal truck velocity, based on the road geometry with the consideration of fuel consumption and traveling time. The basic function of this optimal control system is to decelerate the truck in front of a sag curve and accelerate it before a crest curve.

"These are the types of opportunities that brought me to Auburn," Huang says. "Aside from excellent classroom experiences, students get the chance to practice real-world research under top-notch faculty members. It's something that will set me apart when I finish school and move out into the business world."

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