Bridgestone to supply solar car tires using fuel-efficient tyre technology to 32 teams competing in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge
Bridgestone Corporation (Bridgestone) will supply solar car tyres using its fuel-efficient tyre technology to 32 teams participating in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (BWSC), for which Bridgestone is the naming rights sponsors.
Held in Australia once every two years, the BWSC is the world’s foremost solar car race. The 2019 race event will begin on October 13, 2019, and racers will compete on a course spanning 3,000 km from Darwin on the northern edge of Australia to Adelaide on the southern edge over a period of approximately five days.
The solar car tyres “ECOPIA with ologic” to be supplied to teams competing in this race are fuel-efficient tires designed specifically for solar cars using fuel-efficient tyre technology from Bridgestone, “ologic.” “ECOPIA with ologic” tyres ensure the necessary durability while featuring reduced rolling resistance.
Tyres using ologic technology are narrower than standard tires with a wider diameter, making for a shape that realises high levels of fuel efficiency and safety. The wider diameter limits changes in the shape of the contact patch to yield lower rolling resistance, which improves fuel efficiency. In addition, the narrower shape reduces air resistance while driving.
This event partnership seamlessly aligns with the three priority areas of the Bridgestone global corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitment, Our Way to Serve: mobility, people and environment. The Bridgestone World Solar Challenge embodies that philosophy with their purpose to contribute to the development of solar cars, support young engineers, and contribute to the environment while using a new power source: solar light. The Bridgestone Group employs innovation and technology to improve the way people move, live, work, and play.
Teams to be supplied with tires by Bridgestone (as of September 27, 2019):
| *No. | Team | School | Country / Region |
| 5 | SunSPEC | Singapore Polytechnic University | Singapore |
| 7 | Adelaide University Solar Racing Team | Adelaide University | Australia |
| 8 | Agoria Solar Team | Solar Team vzw | Belgium |
| 9 | Onda Solare | University of Bologna | Italy |
| 10 | Tokai University Solar Car Team |
Tokai University | Japan |
| 11 | SolarCar-Team Hochschule Bochum |
Bochum University of Applied Sciences |
Germany |
| 12 | Cambridge University Eco Racing |
University of Cambridge | United Kingdom |
| 14 | Flinders Automotive Solar Team |
Flinders University | Australia |
| 15 | Western Sydney Solar Team | Western Sydney University | Australia |
| 16 | Stanford Solar Car Project | Stanford University | United States of America |
| 18 | UiTM EcoPhoton Solar Racing Team |
Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) | Malaysia |
| 25 | IVE Engineering Solar Car Team |
Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education |
Hong Kong |
| 30 | Team Arrow | Team Arrow Racing Association | Australia |
| 35 | University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle Project | University of Minnesota | United States of America |
| 37 | Goko High School | Goko High School | Japan |
| 40 | Solar Team Eindhoven | Eindhoven University of Technology | Netherlands |
| 41 | MTAA Super Sol Invictus | The Australian National University | Australia |
| 42 | TAFE South Australia | TAFE South Australia | Australia |
| 45 | Lodz Solar Team | Lodz University of Technology | Poland |
| 47 | NITech Solar Racing | Nagoya Institute of Technology | Japan |
| 49 | Siam Technology Motor Sport (STC3) |
Siam Technology College | Thailand |
| 51 | Chalmers Solar Team | Chalmers University of Technology, Department of Industrial and Materials Science | Sweden |
| 55 | Mines Rabat Solar Team | National School of Mines Rabat | Morocco |
| 66 | CalSol | University of California, Berkeley | United States of America |
| 75 | Sunswift | University of New South Wales | Australia |
| 77 | Blue Sky Solar Racing | University of Toronto | Canada |
| 80 | Sun Shuttle | Beijing Institute of Technology | China |
| 82 | KUST (Kookmin Univ. Solarcar Team) |
Kookmin University | South Korea |
| 84 | Team Solaris | Dokuz Eylül University | Turkey |
| 88 | Kogakuin University Solar Team |
Kogakuin University Solar Team | Japan |
| 92 | Eclipse | École de technologie supérieure | Canada |
| 98 | ATN Solar Car Team | Australian Technology Network of Universities |
Australia |
*Note: No. represents the number that the team will adorn while competing in the 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge.
Overview of BWSC:
1. Official Name: 2019 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge
2. Date: October 13-20, 2019
3. Host Country: Australia (Start: Darwin; Goal: Adelaide)
4. Host: South Australian Tourism Commission
5. Race Classes
(1) Challenger Class
A race to reach the goal the quickest in vehicles designed for speed; vehicles require four wheels and one driver.
(2) Cruiser Class
A race testing vehicles’ energy efficiency and practicality; vehicles must have four wheels and be able to be ridden by one driver and more than one passenger.
(3) Adventure Class
A race open to vehicles that are based on the criteria for participating in previous BWSC races or that otherwise do not meet the requirements to compete in the Challenger Class or Cruiser Class.
