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Falcon Electric UPS helps North American Eagle reach 400 mph

  • July 16, 2008
  • Falcon Electric
  • News

Summary

July 16, 2008 – Falcon Electric announced that its ED Series online uninterruptible power supply (UPS) provided backup power and frequency conversion on board the North American Eagle supersonic land speed challenger. During its June 30 test run at the El Mirage Dry Lakebed in Mojave Desert, California, the supersonic race car, powered by a jet engine with an afterburner from an F-104, reached a record-breaking 400 mph achieving a significant speed milestone and advancing the team's goal to exceed the speed of sound (Mach 1) at a new world land speed record of 800 mph."We just finished up a successful week of testing the North American Eagle. In spite of the 110 plus degree heat of the El Mirage Dry Lake Bed, we made four test runs over three days, with the last one attaining a speed of just over 400 mph - making it the fastest active car in North America,” said Keith Zanghi, director of operations, North American Eagle. "The purposes of these test runs were to deploy the high speed parachutes and to integrate all of our electronic components to see how they work together. This included our PCB Piezotronics Data Acquisition System, Falcon Electric UPS/Frequency Converter, Topcon GPS, Space Age Controls transducers and Tropos wireless broadband. We also engaged the afterburner (AB) during a run and analyzed the effects, and erected our WRS Cover-All 32' x 65' shelter. In addition, we gathered video from our RocketCam and Olympus iSPEED HG on-board cameras to use in an upcoming Sundance Film Festival documentary. Lastly, we needed to gather air pressure data around the car to compare with CFD analysis, measure the rolling resistance of the car on the lake bed and finish filming the CBS News production for the Discovery Channel called Future Life series which will air in late 2008. We will conduct more testing in Black Rock, Nevada in late 2008 or early 2009. ""We're thrilled to be a part of this historic project. The dedication of Ed Shadle, Keith Zanghi and their team of visionaries to build the most advanced racing car in the world is very exciting,” said Michael A. Stout, vice president engineering for Falcon Electric. We're very pleased that our ED Series UPS helped the 56 foot long, 42,500 horse power dream machine attain its first major speed goal. We can now say we have the fastest UPS in the world.”Located onboard the race car, Falcon's ED-1 Series 1kVA converts the jet engine's 115 Volt, 400 Hz frequency power to 115 Volt 60Hz power for the onboard data acquisition, GPS and other key computers. In addition, the Falcon unit provides power conditioning and instantaneous backup power in the event the vehicle's electrical system is compromised. "Our ED Series is the perfect unit for this extreme application as it's built from the ground up for harsh military applications. This rugged unit can withstand high heat temperatures and vibration without degrading its reliability, while its light weight and small size allow the unit to be placed in tight spaces,” said Stout."The Falcon Electric UPS system works great. We have 30 minutes of data protection and I can't tell you how valuable that is,” said Zanghi.The purpose of the North American Eagle Land Speed Program is to realize Ed Shadle's dream to bring the land speed record back to North America. Data and knowledge gained through this program has the potential to impact high-speed rail, ground effects of high-speed aircraft in the landing configuration as well as deceleration methods utilized by high-speed vehicles. Primarily self-funded with help from private company sponsorships, North American Eagle continues to seek sponsors and technology donations.About Falcon Electric:Headquartered in Irwindale, Calif., Falcon Electric, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of award-winning power protection and conversion solutions. For two decades, Falcon has been dedicated to offering the latest in technology, superior engineering standards, and unmatched technical support and customized solutions. Falcon manufactures power systems that meet the exacting standards of the military/aerospace, scientific/labs, industrial automation, computer, telecommunications and other industries that demand the highest product reliability to meet their critical power needs. Learn More

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