Originally published on 1Sun4All.
The US Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2015 will feature the student-designed, -built and -operated solar-powered homes of 17 collegiate teams, most of which come from the United States — however, a few teams are working with international universities. They work on these houses for 2 years; most of the teams build them and then dismantle the entire house and ship the parts to the competition site. I say most because Clemson University from South Carolina is emailing the computer plans for their house to a partner company in California, and taking delivery of the construction pieces in the Golden State.
Carol Laurie, the communications manager for the US Department of Energy Solar Decathlon has a very cool look at the houses for this year’s competition in the following news:
If you are curious what the US Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2015 teams are planning for the competition, and can’t wait until October to see their houses in person, you’re in luck. Solar Decathlon 2015 has posted a treasure trove of information about the team houses — including computer-animated walkthroughs, renderings, and video interviews of the decathletes discussing their projects — on the Solar Decathlon website.
“The team walkthroughs and renderings introduce the public to each team’s house design,” says Joe Simon, Solar Decathlon 2015 competition manager. “This material also helps the teams articulate their competition strategies and what makes their houses unique.”
The walkthroughs, less than 1.5 minutes each, move viewers from the outside through the inside of each house, often accompanied by audio that describes the design philosophy. The renderings include (at minimum) two exterior views, one birds-eye perspective, and two interior views of each competition house. Recorded in Irvine, California, during the Design Development Review Workshop in January, the team videos capture students’ enthusiasm for their projects and feature footage from the walkthroughs and renderings.
These solar-powered, energy-efficient houses represent diverse target markets, technological innovations, and design approaches. You can watch more of the team videos at Solar Decathlon 2015 Computer-Animated Walkthroughs.
Planning on attending? This year’s competition is scheduled to take place at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California from October 8 through October 18.
The Solar Decathlon competition houses will be open to visitors — free of charge — from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. daily on eight days over two weekends:
- Thursday, October 8–Sunday, October 11, 2015.
- Thursday, October 15–Sunday, October 18, 2015.
Video Credit: NY City Tech Computer-Animated Walkthrough – Solar Decathlon 2015 | Image Credit: A computer-generated rendering of DURA (diverse, urban, resilient, and adaptable), the New York City College of Technology Solar Decathlon 2015 house, courtesy of the New York City College of Technology Solar Decathlon 2015 team.
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