Engineering terms to confuse the common man.

[Welfares]

Sitting around in a small room together and talking about/building cars, we have come up with a couple, including...

Infinately biasing (spool) differential.

Static Downforce (weight)

14 pounds of boost, atmospheric (naturally aspirated).

Good for a confused look or two, anyone else got any?

[Welfares]

Sitting around in a small room together and talking about/building cars, we have come up with a couple, including...

Infinately biasing (spool) differential.

Static Downforce (weight)

14 pounds of boost, atmospheric (naturally aspirated).

Good for a confused look or two, anyone else got any?

[Dr Claw]

You have your standard:

"Piston return springs"

"mufler bearings"

"left handed cresent wrench" (also known as the "French Wrench")

Asking a newbie for a "Drum of Vacuum"

"CG" as pretty ambiguous

Grade 8 duct tape..

1/2-link master link (aparantly those really do exist though!)

[Superfast Matt McCoy]

I always liked referring to compliance in the wheels as "passive dynamic kinematics"

[Jersey Tom]

Grade 8 duct tape holy crap that would be the most BA thing of all time.

I'm pretty stoked that in addition to aluminized tape ("speed tape" as we call it) they sell stainless steel tape. Im gonna have to get my hands on some of those.

We had a Swedish exchange student on our team this year.. one of the best workers and coolest guys I've ever met. His term for zip ties was "cat stranglers."

[Dan B]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Welfares:
Static Downforce (weight) </div></BLOCKQUOTE>At Pomona we always used to say aerodynamic and gravitational downforce.

[bribyk]

Can't forget those self-machining parts. Like uprights with insufficient clearances and drivetrains with no bearing retention strategy.

[James Waltman]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by bribyk:
Can't forget those self-machining parts... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

We called that "Rev-Hone" and gave it decal space on our '04 car.
http://dot.etec.wwu.edu/fsae/HostedPics/Viking35/Thumbnail_Galleries/Main_V35_Gallery/images/DSC00936.jpg

[James Morrison]

Ahh yes...self-machining parts. We have those on our old car but we call them "self clearancing" bolts. We also have the automatic chain oiler (leaky diff).

[Wesley]

We were running a "variable length aerodynamic device" during testing.

Until the asphalt ground it all off of the endplate. http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

There's also "dynamic sensitivity adjustment," or the slop that comes from driving cars hard.

We're real fond of just labeling things as "self-correcting problems" - like bits that grind, scrape, or interfere with each other occasionally. Like blow-by. After a while... you won't have any. Probably because you're on fire. http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif

And "compound geometry a-arms" after you bend one in transport. I could go on and on.

[absolutepressure]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jersey Tom:
"cat stranglers." </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Ha Ha! Yes! Hilarious visual!

One of our terms is the "Baja Wrench," which is a 14" Crescent wrench that's frequently used as a hammer to motivate bolts through +-0.00in drilled holes.
And, as previously stated, there's the "Naw, it'll self-correct."

[Pete M]

Yeah, we've had a few "Self Tolerancing Bolts" due to tight clearances with the chain...

Plus, there's that interfilter between your turbo and engine to catch all the shards of compressor blade that get thrown from the wheel when it collides with the housing. That's never happened to us, i swear. http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_razz.gif

[Drew Price]

We use the 'Baja-Booster-Bar' to refer to any tool that I consider too large to ever be allowed to manipulate a fastener on our car.

It usually refers to our 24" Crescent.

A guy in the shop made a crack about precision measuring instruments following the Heisenberg principle, when he closed his eyes to read his caliper, "I can't see it, but it must be reeeeal accurate!"

The bodywork for the next car may well be a duct-tape/JB-Weld laminate, with foamcore stiffeners.

Best,
Drew

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">It has been proposed that we name the car after my girlfriend, so that I can spend all my time with her. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Smartest thing ever said on this forum!

[MH]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">It has been proposed that we name the car after my girlfriend, so that I can spend all my time with her. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Last year we named the car after the girlfriend of our teammanager. However this year's teammanager didn't like the idea of all these guys (drivers) riding ...ehmmm.... in her. Strange, isn't it? http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

Miki Hegedus
Delft University

[The AFX Master]

we ran a CBT this year... A Continuously Breackable Transmission...

And a brand new deadblow hammer (the most brilliant invention of the man), that we call Mholnir's Hammer

[Wesley]

I tried my hardest to get Matt to throw in a reference to accounting for "variations in the local gravitational field" when asked about the Cp shift for our wing package, but he never did it.

I think it might get an eyebrow raised, but if you're lucky you could slip it right by while the judge is in the "I'm nodding cause you're saying correct things" phase.

[Superfast Matt McCoy]

Me and a buddy were working on his olds, trying to get it to start for about an 45 minutes until we realized the fuel gauge was broken and it was out of gas. We admittedly felt a little stupid and didn't feel like telling his wife the truth. So he explained to her that we blew the kanuter valve and had to rebuild the entire kanuter manifold. A few days later, her parents asked her what the problem was, and she went on to explain how the kanuter manifold had to be completely rebuilt because of the kanuter valve. When she found out that we made it up, she was irate.

hilarity...

[Dr Claw]

We also use the phrase "Dynamic Machining" for things that.. Dynamicaly machine themselves to that happy medium we all search for.

[bribyk]

Nice, I love the Heisenberg tolerancing method and the Rev-Hone sticker.

We also tested our driver-adjustable rear tire camber compensator. Doing donuts as soon as the car is driveable will automatically compensate for manufacturing tolerances and lack of alignment.

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

Someone posted up some pictures of some goofy bolts, ones that would never work in real life, but were funny. Anyone know what I am talking about?

[PatClarke]

Several years ago, Carroll Smith issued a list of Technical Terms that teams should be familiar with when in discussion with Design Judges.
With typical Aussie irreverence, I assembled a list of 'Aussie Tech Terms' we should be familiar with. Some may need explanation for our Northern Hemisphere friends.
Enjoy =]

Anti-Dive: Policy of closing rough pubs
Avgas: French term for flatulence
Brake bias: Bigots who reckon they don't brake
Brake fade: Discolouration of paint on disc calipers
Bump steer: Hitting a male bovine animal on the road
Camber: National capital city of Australia
Caster: Movie industry term: ˜... a bloody caster thousands.'
Centre of gravity: Government House
Centre Lock: Wrestling hold
Damping: Making bread in the bush
Data Logging: Finding out where you went wrong in the bush
Demon Tweak: A deal with the Devil
Diff whine: Cabernet de Hypoid
Drag: Men in women's clothing
Drag link: Web page for transvestites
Dry break: Period off the grog
Dry settings: Table with no glasses for grog
Exit point: The spot where you went off the road
Flat change: Loose notes in your wallet
Flat through Turn 1: One of the great lies, like "The cheque is in the mail"
Formula Three: Longevity product
Gyroscopic precession: A parade of Gyros
Head stud: The main man
Heel & toe: Line dancing step
Kingpin inclination: What the boss wants to do
Lift/Drag ratio: The number of transvestites you can get in an elevator..
Lift off: Malfunctioning elevator
McPherson strut: Scottish dance
Neutral Steer: A bullock
Oversteer: Leather
Panhard Rod: French kind of T bucket
Push rod: What your helper called Rod does
Roll centre: Bakery
Roll couple: Husband & wife at the bakery
Roll steer: What happens if you hit a steer at speed
Rose joint: A fag made out of dried rose petals
Rotary: A club devoted to good works
Self-aligning torque: Boasting
Sequential shift: Progressive Barn Dance
Shocks: Events like hitting a steer on the road
Slip angle: Rate at which a car spears off the road
Spring rates: Motel charges in December
Swaybar: Pub where you get pissed quickly
Synchronous drive: Going for a burn with your mates
Toe in/toe out: Line dancing step
Torque wrench: A girlfriend who won't shut up
Trail braking: Coming to a stop on a bush track
Trailing arms: Happens with improperly closed coffin
Turn in: Driveway entry
Understeer: A heifer