EcoMotors launches design competition with LA and Detroit automotive design institutions

24 January 2012

EcoMotors International, developer of the opoc engine (opposed-piston, opposed cylinder), is partnering with two US transportation design institutions—Art Center College of Design (Pasadena) and the College for Creative Studies (Detroit)—to launch a competition to showcase the automotive design revolution enabled by the compact EcoMotors opoc engine. During the Winter/Spring 2012 semester, students at the two colleges will create vehicle designs enabled by the packaging flexibility of the clean, efficient, and lightweight opoc. (Earlier post.)

The idea for this competition came out of internal discussions about a year ago. We were talking about the dramatic ways that our opoc, which is roughly half the size and weight, per horsepower, of a conventional internal combustion engine, can transform every category of vehicle. We looked at each other and said, “opoc can literally reshape the future of automotive design”—and the concept was born. We were absolutely thrilled when both Art Center and CCS signaled their enthusiasm not only for the design challenge, but also for some friendly LA versus Motown competition.

—Don Runkle, CEO of EcoMotors

Students will choose from three vehicle categories for their designs:

• Mid-size passenger sedan
• Full-size pickup truck
• New-concept global car vehicle for emerging markets

Later in the semester, each school will select three designs—one from each category—to move on to the final round of evaluation by an independent jury led by Jack Telnack, retired Global Vice President of Design at Ford Motor Company and including two other “emeritus” design chiefs—Wayne Cherry of General Motors and Tom Gale of Chrysler. Results and awards are scheduled to be announced coincident with the 2012 Los Angeles International Show, in November.

The opoc engine operates on the 2-cycle principle, generating one power stroke per crank revolution per cylinder. Each module consists of two opposing cylinders per module, with a crankshaft between them; each cylinder has two pistons moving in opposite directions. This design configuration eliminates the cylinder-head and valvetrain components of conventional engines, offering a more efficient, compact and simple core engine structure, the company says. The power density is more than 1 hp per pound of engine weight. The fully balanced opoc engine can be run on any liquid fuel. The two primary investors in EcoMotors are Khosla Ventures and Bill Gates.