Racetech Issue 120 by Kimberley Media Group

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DRIVING TECHNOLOGY INTO POLE POSITION

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

VW RACE TOUAREG 3 MIXING EVOLUTION AND REVOLUTION

From operating theatres and outer space, to express trains and the battlefield...

How Racing is Changing the World

PAT SYMONDS

F1 rules reignite carbon brake development OCTOBER 2010 NO. 120 UK £4.95 USA $9.99 Cover 120 V1b final.indd 1

KERS IS BACK – BUT NOT EVERYONE’S HAPPY 750FORMULA BUILD CHASSIS UNDERWAY SPECIAL REPORT ON ELECTRONICS

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October 2010 CONTENTS Issue 120

Cover Story - Page 16 For once even the bean counters will have to defer to engineers with bright ideas”

How motorsport is changing the world FROM OPERATING THEATRES AND OUTER SPACE, TO EXPRESS TRAINS AND THE BATTLEFIELD INDUSTRY NEWS 6

PAT SYMONDS

Volume 17 Issue 12 Published October 2010

“Innovate or stagnate,” former government minister warns race industry; Aston Martin goes topless for LMP1; Mini WRC shakedown; jet-powered Jaguar breaks cover

The next issue will be published in early November 2010

The refuelling ban has refocused attention on Formula One brakes. Pat Symonds reveals the latest thinking on cooling and re-examines some of the basics of carbon/carbon brakes

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KERS returns to F1 in 2011. But not everyone is going to use it, and some question whether it’s useful at all…

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A cost cap and switch to production engines has turned LMP2 sportscar racing upside down for 2011, bringing new engine badges into the category

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DRAG RACING 52

BACK ISSUES AVAILABLE:

With the restoration of Britain’s first dragster nearing completion, we report on a machine that changed the course of European motorsport

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SPECIAL REPORT ON ELECTRONICS

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The rapid evolution of motorsport electronics has led to a vibrant marketplace. We consider some of the latest offerings

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Graham Templeman and Rod Hill enlist the 750Formula champion’s help with a 3D FEA program, then make a start on their new T5 chassis

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How two teams from Germany and the US have united to launch a Formula Student assault

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INTRODUCTION ISSUE 120

EDITOR William Kimberley

LESSONS TO BE LEARNT

ASSISTANT EDITOR Chris Pickering

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Pat Symonds John Coxon Steve Bridges Graham Templeman Matt Youson

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AST MONTH I asked where automotive turbine technology would be now if it had not been banned by the various sports governing bodies around 40 years ago. I said that the proscriptive tendencies by the regulators needed to be revised if the motorsport industry was to continue to push the technology boundaries and not fall behind as it seems to be doing right now. And now, lo and behold, a situation has arisen that perfectly illustrates two points – one that a carmaker has gone to a nonmotorsport/automotive supplier for key components and other that if it wanted to prove it out on the race track, it cannot do so. Jaguar stunned the world when it introduced its jet-powered concept hybrid car at the Paris Show at the end of September. It was thinking right out of the box – a twin turbined hybrid car with the turbines being used to recharge the vehicle’s lithium-ion batteries. Admittedly it is just a concept car but one that offers beauty and performance along with viable green technology. It is just the sort of thing that should be in the realms of motorsport – and yet it is not.

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As Paul, Lord Drayson states in our lead news story, it is vital that the governing bodies realise the importance of being flexible, of being in a position to let competitors try out new technologies. I know the backdrop is one of cost and cost capping, but this really has to be balanced by the bigger picture. The American Le Mans Series really is showing the rest of the world a clean set of heels here. Not only is it not afraid of encouraging new technologies but it has made a point of highlighting the fact. With new rules being discussed in many other series, including Formula One, there really is a fantastic opportunity to encourage new thinking and new technologies which really must not be overlooked.

After discussions with Ulrich Baretzky, head of engine technology at Audi Sport, who has kindly agreed to be the chairman of the Race Engine day at the next World Motorsport Symposium on 10/11 January, this is exactly the theme we will be discussing. Under the title How can Motorsport Secure the Future? we are asking speakers to present their views on what the industry should be doing to enhance its position in a wider society and ensure that it has answers if and when it comes under attack from those who are opposed to it. The key, though, are the governing bodies. If they decide to lock down on technology and prohibit development, then as an industry we will be terribly exposed to a modern day Ralph Nader. For those unfamiliar with the name, this is the man who became a household name in the US and around the world after the publication of his book in 1965 called Unsafe at any Speed which absolutely rocked the automotive world, particularly in North America. He contended that cars were killing Americans off at the rate of 48,000 people a year while the manufacturers were fuelled by greed, peddling the drug of speed and style while totally ignoring safety. The carmakers were left reeling by the accusations and the amount of negative publicity that was generated. In today’s environment, if such an attack was made on the motorsport industry, the results could be devastating. So if you care about our industry and if you want to hear from senior motorsport engineers and executives, including those who make the rules, what it should be doing to protect its future, then please get your tickets now from www.worldmotorsport-symposium.com.

William Kimberley EDITOR

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October 2010

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MOTORSPORTS PROFESSIONAL

By William Kimberley

SILVERSTONE, UK: The motorsport industry has reached a crossroads about its future. With everything to play for, including whether motor racing still has a place in society, the onus as never before is on the sport’s governing bodies to get it right, according to Paul, Lord Drayson, driver, team owner and former British government minister. “The big shift in pharmaceuticals in the last few years has been the development of genetics,” Drayson told Race Tech. “Up until then, all medicines were based on chemistry not biology. For me, the equivalent shift is happening right now in both the car and motorsport industries and the regulators must respond accordingly.” Drayson points out that unlike all other industries, motorsport is governed by rule books, so it is not a question of companies being innovative to improve products for their own sake, but simply to comply with the regulations. “It has always been that way but what’s changed now compared to 10 years ago is that the variety of technology is now far greater and so the rules need to reflect that. A lot of motorsport has become single make series and it’s been more about marketing. This means that we no longer have engineering technologies competing against each other on the track. This is absolutely fine for some race series and I am not criticising them but my plea is that at a time when science and engineering is moving as fast as it is, let’s not be too proscriptive on the engineers about what’s possible. “Let the different technologies fight it out on track. I think that diesel versus petrol versus bio-fuel versus light hybrid versus full hybrid versus all electric versus hydrogen fuel cell versus turbine would be so cool.” He points out that some of these technologies will also be quite disruptive. For example, if electric motors can be distributed across the four wheels, it is bound to cause a massive ripple effect – the engine will be smaller and lighter or possibly completely removed while the

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October 2010

shape of the car can be totally changed. He argues that it is therefore imperative that the rulemakers adopt regulations that allow such things to happen. “I applaud the way in which the ACO, IMSA and the FIA are being really open to this because in the discussions I’ve had, people really understand and are excited by the opportunity and they can see how this is the future for the sport. They also, I think, understand that it’s a massive opportunity for the sport to get back to where it was in the times of Colin Chapman when it was as much about engineering and technology as it was about marketing. “It requires an open-ended flexibility which I know cannot happen overnight but I’m optimistic that people are thinking like this and hope that it happens fast enough. We’ve been through a terrible economic downturn but the world is now teetering on the point of recovery, meaning that now is the right time to be thinking about such things. “However, if the rules remain proscriptive, we would see the pace of innovation moving far more slowly leading to the potential of these new technologies taking longer and consequently costing more money. It would also mean fewer jobs while this industry would not grow as fast as it could otherwise. “The other thing we need to recognise is that people who are not fans of motor racing question its relevance in a world that is becoming increasingly worried about energy and climate change. We have a responsibility to show that we are relevant in providing the answers and can do something to help and we need to be aware of the warning signs. We’ve seen, for example, the concerns over noise produced at race tracks. “Heaven forbid if people start objecting to fuel being used to race cars for fun. We need to be able to get ahead of that argument and show that we are a test bed, a racing laboratory for new technology where new ideas are proven which then go onto road cars to make them more

efficient and sustainable. “What I am therefore keen to see is that we have a sport which encourages this because it’s so exciting to have the potential of this level of innovation. I am therefore quite excited about the future but how quickly it arrives I think very much depends on how the rulemakers respond to the opportunity. That for me is the essential point.” One of the key elements in all this, according to Drayson, is the role of the small companies. “The point that people make to

ABOVE Lord Drayson: the sport’s regulators must be prepared to be flexible to meet new technology challenges (Courtesy of Regis Lefebure All Rights)

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MOTORSPORTS PROFESSIONAL

me is cost but my experience as a science entrepreneur and 15 years in developing new technologies is that the best ideas don’t always come out of the most money spent. Time and time again small companies come up with a breakthrough idea, apply that innovation and then sell it to the big companies, so I’m sure the large manufacturers will not feel threatened. “What’s important is that the Colin Chapman of 2012 has the opportunity to apply his or her breakthrough technology on the track and become famous for it. That’s what he was able to do. He was able to try his ideas out, race them and win which established his reputation and enabled him to build his car company. So I believe that small companies are going to be very complementary and important to this industry in making the shift to green cars.” Drayson believes that sportscar racing

Technology transfer key to the future SILVERSTONE, UK: Technology transfer is vital for the future health of the motorsport industry. As part of his plea to ease up on the regulations governing different race series, Paul, Lord Drayson, driver, team owner and former British government minister, told Race Tech that if the motorsport industry is to continue to meet the needs of other industries, then motorsport companies must be encouraged to be innovative in applying green tech to race cars. “The future of our economy, as it is with the French, German, Italian and US economies, is in innovative, high-tech industry. This is what China wants and so we have to continue to invest in it. I’m optimistic that it can be done because the way the motorsport industry embraced the safety agenda, driven by a combination of the regulators deciding that it was the big issue that had to be addressed, led to huge improvements in this area. Now is the time to do it for the green agenda. “When I was a defence minister, because I knew how good the motorsport industry was in rapid prototyping and just the way the culture of motorsport is so focused on getting

things done quickly for the next race, I saw that it had a huge contribution to make to the defence industry and help solve some of the problems that we were facing in Iraq and Afghanistan. The defence/motorsport initiative which subsequently came about in the UK has been a huge success and as a result has seen new things introduced to our defence equipment, specifically armoured fighting vehicles that we wouldn’t have otherwise seen that have saved people’s lives. The motorsport industry has benefited because those companies now have another opportunity to generate business in a sector that complements what they are doing. Clean-tech is a massive growth market and is another area the industry can apply its expertise if the sport takes up the green challenge.” RT

SEE WHY TECH TRANSFER IS NO LONGER A HIT AND MYTH AFFAIR PAGE 16 hmag.com

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COVER STORY

TECHIS WHY SF ER TRAN NG ER NO LOAND A HIT AFFAIR MYTH

of racing is transfer out that, t technology Cynics sugges Pickering argues is e myth, but Chris port’s influenc an ancient before, motors ‘real world’ more than ever lives in the money and saving energy, and like disc brakes

things The days when were simply of a cylinder heads the very idea car and of four-valve O SOME something the competition industry is unbolted from version may motorsport of grown the road-going The notion stopped installed on will an oxymoron. but that hasn’t cars is, they largely be gone, round in racing real and tangible at all – men tearing providing very theatre industrious motorsport particularly self from operating argue, not to everything of mildly Freudian benefits to is some kind hospitals through instead it’s motorsport for children’s don’t have procedures countries where for those who the third world. the Western indulgence transport for a time when do. Well, they’d is it? it’s come at cost-effective grown up to altruistic. Or starting to strongest, and anything more worthy and the motorsport were already It’s all very In the UK alone be – I daresay corporate sponsors be wrong. 45,000 jobs t to anything may indeed Some of it for more than commitmen of a motorsport £6 of re-think their employees sector accounts some, motorsport the excess in somewhere polluting. For a turnover are crafting it has perceived as and produces the entire GDP company really any more; more than composites isn’t viable for injured alone simply billion – somewhat it happens. die. prosthetic limbs country as of their of evolve or carbon fibre either. The become a case out of the kindness of a small European benefit purely a rather puppies just a financial adheres to And it’s not much of it of racing has and hearts – but THE RESCUE? and philosophy RACING TO set of problems technology of other more pragmatic in a multitude The facing the industry. expected. been used however. currently s them too, of s of opportunitie in the midst and not all There are opportunitie in environmental out that applications, notably, we’re to Perhaps most cynics will point decades. Just dramatic shift legislation recession in Of course the transfer are long-term hard in sudden the worst global led to new direct technology hit particularly won’t thinking has instances of matters, it’s that simply road car compound CO2 targets many respects The for road car rare, and in technology. its racing equivalent. with current to has eclipsed be achievable has pledged technology with , for example, Ricardo has co-developed neutral by UK government FLYBUS project is an impressive transport carbon BELOW The worth and Allison Transmissions Formula One project make all private far away, it’s Torotrak, Optare is essentially an aborted if that seems what Euro 6 2050. And, application of the dreaded mind that are bearing in EU type approval for emissions standards coming into effect in ly close, be disconcerting while this may years. Yet, side less than four the road car people on giving some opening for also the perfect grey hair, it’s

offers the best platform for proving technology due to the long distances, the collection of massive amounts of data on the reliability and effectiveness of these systems, particularly where there are question marks about reliability and capacity. However, he believes that global uniformity of regulations is vital, citing how running his flex-fuel engine has been particularly challenging for his team this year. “We’ve seen from racing in the US how the American Le Mans Series approach to green racing has encouraged an impressive diversity of new technologies, ideas and teams that are promoting and generating sponsorship on a green message . Now, though, the question is how quickly can the rules which regulate the Le Mans 24 Hours, the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup and the Le Mans Series come to a point where it allows teams to develop their technologies and then apply them internationally.

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COVER STORY

TRANSFER TECHNOLOGY

chmag.com www.racete

Ferrari and Saving vital seconds: Ormond Street ABOVE & LEFT both helped Great to transfer McLaren have doctors and nurses with the care Hospital, enabling surgery to intensive (Photo: Ferrari) patients from pit stop Formula One precision of a recently it’s such as those quantum leaps order books companies’ have seen any s we may not swelling engineering So the opportunitie fine job of still doing a economic pressures). other sectors, along the current diversify into (even under it be looking to but why should companies are there for the bank manager, lies with the shove from The answer with a robust into the breach? in, as Lord has to work firms that step our industry motorsport former set of constraints and the UK’s rather unique Drayson Racing illustrated in principal of rather aptly Drayson, team last year. and innovation, Symposium state for science Motorsport minister of Tech World any other industry,” at the Race quite unlike his address be there pace that’s of ‘it has to works at a I “The culture “Motorsport delegates. t which is unique. assembled commitmen a he told the to a leads told by for the race’ I’d just been on Sunday of our one week where parts for one very clearly remember new suspension nine supplier that going to take in Iraq were defence industry from a means on operations come back these targets time I’d just Le armoured vehicles of meeting At the same preparing for solutions The necessity be delivered. where a team can provide fresh ideas. 9 am months to Snetterton those who those with and fitted by defer to weekend at market for designed, built will have to [racing] test they of dampers to there is a guaranteed and said, ‘If the bean counters complete set be possible to the office at For once even Mans had a simply won’t went back one’s life is that work. because it morning. I – where no bright ideas, in 24 hours the following enough’. engineers with for a racecar isn’t good without them. of climate tanks, it just ised threat get that done the forecourt that our on can for car a that much-public put companies one. The and the we can’t get with motorsport hard times even darker stake – yet was partnership It’s not just factor is an result of the and it’s not personnel carrier the next major As a direct of conflict 2 armoured and change, though; an awful lot entire Mastiff jet engines or so has seen technology, followed, the past decade up. Nuclear and although signs of letting in the past, showing any out of war chmag.com www.racete have all sprung October 2010 the computer

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October 2010

“For example, we’ve developed the flexfuel LMP1 car and have been through the challenges of optimising the engine for second generation E85 fuel while at the same time doing the same for E10 to comply with the regulations governing the 1000km race at Silverstone, the opening round of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. However, when we go to the next round, which is Petit Le Mans in the US, then it’s back to E85. “We are competing in the series because we really believe it is the future for sportscar racing but it would have been better if we could have run the same bio-fuel at every race as this switching backwards and forwards is a real burden. It also limits our ability to market the green tech message effectively in Europe because we cannot run the fuel which provides a 40% improvement in greenhouse gases. I hope that changes in the future.” RT

October 2010

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ASTON GOES TOPLESS

ABOVE Official rendering of the 2011 open cockpit LMP1 Aston Martin

By Chris Pickering

BANBURY, UK: Aston Martin Racing has officially outlined its LMP1 plans for Le Mans 2011, including an open topped design and an all-new engine. The company remains tight-lipped about the exact specification of the powerplant, although it is known to be gasoline fuelled, following reassurances from the ACO that next year’s performance balancing will grant petrol cars a level playing field on which to engage the diesels.

It is also said to have been designed as a dedicated race engine from the start – Aston’s first in more than 50 years – rather than borrowing from one of the company’s road engines. “In recent years, it has been impossible for petrol cars to compete on equal terms with the diesels. However, we now have assurances from the ACO that, with the adoption of the 2011 regulations, they will properly balance the performance of these new cars,” commented Aston Martin chairman David Richards. “Under

these circumstances we have been prepared to develop Aston Martin’s first purpose-built racing chassis and engine for more than 50 years. Even with this new car, it will still be a ‘David and Goliath’ fight against the massive resources of our competitors, but we have become accustomed to this and relish the challenge.” It comes as no great surprise that the new Aston Martin Racing LMP is going al fresco. Team principal George HowardChappell is known to favour an open-topped configuration for the current Le Mans rules having

World Rally Championship Mini completes initial shakedown tests KENILWORTH, UK: Prodrive has finished the initial test and development programme of the 2011 World Rally Championship. Running with an interim body and aero package while the design of the final World Rally Car bodywork is underway, it ran primarily on tarmac but also on several kilometres on loose surfaces at Prodrive’s low grip facility in the UK. Next stage in the development is running on gravel in Portugal. “As with any totally new car, it is vital to take time to ensure all the systems are working as intended before embarking on a week long gravel test,” said David Lapworth, Prodrive’s technical director. RT

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October 2010

ABOVE First official sighting of the 2011 WRC Mini

stated in the past that “no one in their right mind would build a closed car”. He argued that additional weight, the presence of air conditioning and the need to engineer doors on a closed design outweigh the small aerodynamic advantage that it brings and marginally increased air restrictor diameter. Six different prototypes of the purpose-built race car will be produced, with testing to begin by early 2011. The car will join Aston Martin’s racing division line up of GT1 through 4 class cars. RT

Zytek continues work on LMP1 hybrid programme REPTON, UK: Zytek is still continuing its work on its LMP1 hybrid programme, working closely with a customer in Japan. “Ideally what we like to do is work with a sportscar team to develop it so that we can offer it almost as an off-theshelf system during the year,” said Zytek’s operation director John Manchester. “It can go with any engine and chassis, ideally a Zytek one but actually applicable to any engine for any race series.” RT

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ABOVE The twin-turbine powered Jaguar C-X75 concept car

JET-POWERED JAG BREAKS COVER PARIS, France: Although not destined for racing, Jaguar unveiled the C-X75, an all-new jet-powered hybrid concept car, at the Paris Show at the end of September. Capable of a top speed of 330 km/h (205 mph), it is powered by four 145kW

electric motors – one on each wheel – producing 790 ps (589 kW) and a total torque output of 1,600Nm (1,180lb/ft). It can accelerate from 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in just 3.4 seconds and from 80-145 km/h (50-90 mph) in 2.3 seconds.

While the C-X75 is capable of running for 110km (68 miles) in purely electric mode on a sixhour domestic plug-in charge, the range can be extended to 900 km (560 miles). This is due two lightweight (35kg/77lb) micro gas-turbines, running on

IMIS update INDIANAPOLIS, IN: The second International Motorsports Industry Show (IMIS) is almost sold out. With two months to go, there are just 23 booths left to sell which Tom Weisenbach, IMIS executive director, said, will be sold during October. “Last year we had 345 exhibitors while this year it currently stands at 555 which means that we have a couple of hundred new companies that were not part of it last year.” The concern that some exhibitors have expressed about the new third day and the expenses that that entails has been allayed by the organisers who have been busy to ensure that there are enough activities to keep the attendance up. “When we explained that we are going from 10,000 attendees to 18,000-20,000 and with the size of the space doubling, it will take some visitors that time to walk around the whole show. We are also doing things to ensure we have a good crowd on the third day such as the Youth Safety seminar. I think that what Dr Terry Trammell is doing on that will really allow us to bring in a lot of the young industry people with their families.

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USAC is also holding its banquet on Friday evening, so that will also bring people to the show. So we believe we can generate enough traffic on the third day to please everyone.” Weisenbach is also excited about the ‘Town Hall’ meeting for the Motorsport Supplier Advisory Group on the Thursday afternoon. “I think it will be overwhelmingly positive and have a packed house because people are going to want to learn what the advisory group is and what it proposes to do.” “Before we start to get things going formally, and after discussing it with Chris Paulsen, who is not only one of the IMIS organisers but is also the president of C&R Racing, we thought it best to have a town hall-style meeting to get feedback from interested parties, including hopefully the governing bodies and maybe one or two senior team personnel,” said Cheryl Archer, CEO of Superior Crankshaft and prime mover of this initiative. “With the enthusiastic support of the IMIS organisers fully embracing the idea, it seemed the ideal opportunity to have it at the same time as the show.” RT

October 2010

compressed natural gas, diesel, biofuel or LPG, that generate enough electricity to recharge the vehicle’s lithium-ion batteries quickly and efficiently. Each gas turbine produces 70kW of power at a constant 80,000rpm and 28 RT grams of CO2 per kilometre.

New ‘Winter School’ at Mercedes GP for aspiring race engineers BRACKLEY, UK: The Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) is pioneering a two-day ‘Winter School’ to meet the demand for graduate engineers who need ‘hands-on’ engineering. Being held at Mercedes GP in Brackley, UK on 27/28 November, it is open to all UK or international engineering graduates as well as to those technicians who have some race/rally experience but who want to learn more about real race engineering skills from experts. Dan Walmsley, fresh from engineering a record-breaking season with Strakka Racing, and Jay Davenport, chief engineer at the highly successful MW Arden GP3 team, will be leading the two days. Topics covered include set-up procedures and double modules in real-world vehicle dynamics and data analysis and telemetry. Those successfully completing both schools – the second will be held in 2011 – will be awarded an MIA Certificate of Accreditation – Race Car Engineering. RT

CRP Technology becomes Zircotec reseller MODENA, Italy: Increasing demand for high quality durable coatings that protect composites against the effects of wear and abrasion has led Italian specialists CRP Technology to become the first reseller of Zircotec’s technologies. CRP will now offer its customers a range of Zircotec’s robust ceramic and metallic protective coatings for their own mouldings and parts. Zircotec’s surface finishes can be applied to CRP’s Windform rapid prototype material allowing teams to test thermal barriers without the expense or time of using tooled composite parts.

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MOTORSPORTS PROFESSIONAL BELOW Smoked out: Bowyer’s elation at winning the Sylvania 300 soon turned to dejection following his penalty (Photo: Gregg Ellman-Pool/Getty Images for NASCAR)

NASCAR OFFERS NO TOLERANCE FOR TOOHIGH CAR By Andrew Charman

LOUDON, NH: The opening round of NASCAR’s seasonending ‘Chase for the Sprint Cup’ was thrown into controversy after the car of race winner Clint Bowyer failed a post-race inspection. While NASCAR declined to be specific as to the issue with Bowyer’s Chevrolet Impala following the Sylvania 300 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on 19 September, simply stating it was due to “car body location specifications in reference to the certified chassis did not meet NASCAR-approved specifications”, comments by the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) team revealed that the car was too high in the leftrear corner. Bowyer was allowed to keep his win – NASCAR rarely changes the results of races – but he and Richard Childress

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were penalised 150 points in the Drivers’ and Owners’ championships. Bowyer had started the race 12th and last of the drivers qualifying for the Chase that will decide the 2010 Sprint Cup champion – the win vaulted him to second in the points but the penalty dropped him back to last place. Of possibly greater significance, RCR crew chief Shane Wilson was fined $150,000 and suspended from the next six Sprint Cup events, effectively depriving Bowyer of his most crucial team member for most of the remainder of the nine-race Chase. Car chief Chad Heney was also suspended for the same period. The car passed the post-race inspection at New Hampshire but was then taken to NASCAR’s Research & Development Centre at Charlotte for a more detailed

October 2010

study. It was here that according to the RCR team the rear bumper was found to be out of NASCAR’s strict tolerances, by less than 1/16th of an inch. Team owner Richard Childress said the team would appeal the penalty, claiming that any change to the rear bumper had occurred directly after the race. “We feel certain that the cause of the car being out of tolerance by sixty thousandths of an inch, less than 1/16 of an inch, happened as a result of the wrecker hitting the rear bumper when it pushed the car into the winner's circle,” Childress said. “The rear bumper was also hit on the cool down lap by other drivers congratulating Clint on his victory. That’s the only logical way that the left-rear of the car was found to be high at the tech centre. We will appeal NASCAR’s ruling and take it all

the way to the NASCAR commissioner for a final ruling, if need be.” NASCAR is thought to have chosen to take the car for further inspection as a result of events following the previous race at Richmond, when the RCR team were informed that Bowyer’s car had come very close to failing a post-race inspection due to the measurements recorded at its rear end. RCR officials were present at the inspection and further meetings were held on the issue in the days leading to the New Hampshire race. According to Childress, agreement was reached. “I am confident we fixed the area of concern and the New Hampshire car left the race shop well within the tolerances required by NASCAR.” NASCAR’s vice-president of competition Robin Pemberton

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MOTORSPORTS PROFESSIONAL

said the fact that the RCR team had been warned about the rear-end measurement before the race had contributed to the severity of the penalty. The very strict tolerances applied to the measurements of the Sprint Cup cars have been a bone of contention between teams and officials ever since the Car of Tomorrow was introduced in 2007. However, the new regime has also led to less instances of cheating in terms of trying to alter the car’s body shape. Kurt Romberg, head of aerodynamics at Hendrick Motorsports, in a presentation to Race Tech’s World Motorsport Symposium in 2008, described the COT’s tightened up tolerances as

IN BRIEF NASCAR’S switch from carburettors to fuel injection could happen in the middle of the 2011 season, according to vicepresident of competition Robin Pemberton. He told trackside media that development of the system was progressing well.

LEFT Pushed out: as Clint Bowyer celebrates his win at top, Tony Stewart’s out-of-fuel Chevrolet is pushed off the track by a safety vehicle. Bowyer’s RCR team claimed similar actions after their car ran out of fuel could have caused the rear end alteration that led to it failing a tech inspection (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images for NASCAR)

difficult to contend with. “There are nine points on the car, referred to as hard points, where there is zero tolerance,” Romberg told delegates. “I have pushed cars through inspection where you could slide dollar bills under two of these points – and they (the inspectors) said that doesn’t work. When they said zero tolerance they meant it – but even the space shuttle has a tolerance…” Romberg also indicated at the time how easy it was for tolerances to change. “At Daytona in July the cars sit in technical inspection for four hours in the sun with everything moving about – and they say zero tolerance? That was tough…” RT

NASCAR is looking at a plan to speed up qualifying for its lead Sprint Cup and Nationwide series by allowing two cars on track at a time. Currently cars undertake their four-lap qualifying, including a warm up and slow down lap, singly but the third division Camping World Truck series recently successfully piloted a system with two vehicles on track simultaneously. The format also dispensed with a drawn qualifying order, the slowest car in earlier practice qualifying first running up to the fastest car going last.

Turner Motorsports, a two-team operation with four entries in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, is acquiring select assets of Braun Racing’s NASCAR Nationwide Series team and taking over operation of the organisation. Turner Motorsports will therefore field six teams in two of NASCAR's top-three premier series with plans for 2011 running three Nationwide and three World Truck teams. RT

FUEL CHANGE CUTS PITLANE CREW

By Andrew Charman

DAYTONA BEACH, FL: The ‘catch-can man’ could be disappearing from the pitlane at NASCAR races following a change to car fuel systems. NASCAR has confirmed that its second-division Nationwide Series is to follow the example of the third-tier Craftsman Truck Series and switch to single-point, self-venting fuel tanks. This will no longer require a crew member, the ‘catch can man’, to open a rear

vent and catch the overflow from the gravity-feed fuel canisters, allowing crews working in the pitlane to be reduced to six. The change will be made from the first round of the 2011 season at Daytona in February, and as Race Tech went to press rumours were circulating to the effect that the top-tier Sprint Cup series would also switch to the new system in time for 2011. RT

ABOVE Caught out. Days could be numbered for the catchcan man, seen here at the rear of Martin Truex’s MWR Toyota at New Hampshire (Photo: courtesy Toyota Motorsports)

October 2010 www.racetechmag.com

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How can Motorsport Secure its Future? The 6th RACE TECH WORLD MOTORSPORT SYMPOSIUM kicks off “International Motorsport Business Week” in Motorsport Valley with the Aerodynamics/Vehicle Dynamics Day on Monday, 10th January and the Racing Engine Technology Day on Tuesday, 11th January. As is now customary, the special networking Awards dinner is on the

evening of the first day. Once again Oxford Brookes University will be hosting the event, one of the highlights in the motorsport engineer’s diary. Engineers and executives across the breadth and depth of the motorsport industry attend, talking to and networking with their peers, striking up new relationships and making new friends.

2011 MONDAY 10TH - AERODYNAMICS/VEHICLE DYNAMICS DAY Chaired by John Iley , Head of Aerodynamics at McLAREN F1

TUESDAY 11TH - RACING ENGINE TECHNOLOGY DAY Chaired by Ulrich Baretzky , Head of Engine Technology at AUDI SPORT

NETWORKING AWARDS DINNER AWARDS RACE ENGINE DESIGNER OF 2010 AWARD RACECAR AERODYNAMICIST OF 2010 AWARD MOST INNOVATIVE NEW MOTORSPORT PRODUCT 2010 AWARD

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WORLD MOTORSPORT SYMPOSIUM JANUARY 2011 PREVIOUS SPEAKERS HAVE INCLUDED:

AERODYNAMICS/VEHICLE DYNAMICS DAY John Iley - Head of Aerodynamics, MCLAREN F1 Willem Toet - Head of Aerodynamics, BMW - Sauber Dr Robin Tuluie - Head of Research & Development, RENAULT F1 TEAM Dialma Zinelli - Chief Aerodynamicist, DALLARA David Floury - Technical Director, ORECA GROUP Sergio Rinland - Consultant, EPSILON EUSKADI Prof Joe Katz - Author, Racecar Aerodynamics Prof Diandra Leslie-Pelecky - Author, The Physics of NASCAR Claude Rouelle - President, OPTIMUMG LLC Dr Ben Evans - CFD Designer, BLOODHOUND SSC

RACING ENGINE TECHNOLOGY DAY Ulrich Baretzky - Head of Engine Technology, AUDI SPORT Lord Paul Drayson - Then Minister for Science & Innovation and Owner, DRAYSON RACING Tony Purnell - Committee member, ICONIC & former Technical Consultant, FIA Francois Coudrain - Engine Chief Engineer, PEUGEOT SPORT Jason Hill - Chief Engineer, PRODRIVE Thomas Laudenbach - Head of Motorsport Development/Powertrain, PORSCHE Donatus Wichelhaus - Head of Engine Development, VOLKSWAGEN MOTORSPORT Dr Wolfgang Warnecke - Global Manager Automotive Fuels Developement, SHELL Bruce Crawley - Motorsport Technology Manager, EXXONMOBIL Bruce Wood - Technical Director, COSWORTH RACING

The idea of using interchangeable body panels in the IRL can trace its roots back to one of the World Motorsport Symposiums. I put up a slide with lots of bubbles suspension, chassis, aerodynamics, tyres etc. - and discussed the idea that actually there were loads of areas of potential competition in between an open formula and a full spec series”

It was at the 2008 World Motorsport Symposium that I first publically brought up the idea of the Global Race Engine concept which has since gone on to become a reality” Ulrich Baretzky, Head of Engine Technology, Audi Sport

Tony Purnell, ICONIC Committee Member & Former FIA Technical Consultant

For more information contact Maryam Lamond on +44 (0)208 446 2100 or email maryam@racetechmag.com

ABOVE Lord Drayson explains a point of detail to Ulrich Baretzky

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COVER STORY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

WHY TECH TRANSFER IS NO LONGER A HIT AND MYTH AFFAIR Cynics suggest technology transfer out of racing is an ancient myth, but Chris Pickering argues that, more than ever before, motorsport’s influence is saving energy, money and lives in the ‘real world’

O SOME the very idea of a motorsport industry is something of an oxymoron. The notion of grown men tearing round in racing cars is, they will argue, not particularly industrious at all – instead it’s some kind of mildly Freudian self indulgence for those who don’t have anything more grown up to do. Well, they’d be wrong. In the UK alone the motorsport sector accounts for more than 45,000 jobs and produces a turnover in excess of £6 billion – somewhat more than the entire GDP of a small European country as it happens. And it’s not just a financial benefit either. The technology and philosophy of racing has been used in a multitude of other applications, and not all of them expected. Of course the cynics will point out that instances of direct technology transfer are rare, and in many respects road car technology has eclipsed its racing equivalent.

The days when things like disc brakes and four-valve cylinder heads were simply unbolted from the competition car and installed on the road-going version may largely be gone, but that hasn’t stopped motorsport providing very real and tangible benefits to everything from operating theatre procedures for children’s hospitals through to cost-effective transport for the third world. It’s all very worthy and altruistic. Or is it? Some of it may indeed be – I daresay somewhere the employees of a motorsport composites company really are crafting carbon fibre prosthetic limbs for injured puppies purely out of the kindness of their hearts – but much of it adheres to a rather more pragmatic set of problems and opportunities currently facing the industry. Perhaps most notably, we’re in the midst of the worst global recession in decades. Just to compound matters, it’s hit particularly hard in

BELOW The FLYBUS project Ricardo has co-developed with Torotrak, Optare and Allison Transmissions is an impressive application of what is essentially an aborted Formula One project

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October 2010

the Western countries where motorsport is strongest, and it’s come at a time when corporate sponsors were already starting to re-think their commitment to anything perceived as polluting. For some, motorsport alone simply isn’t viable any more; it has become a case of evolve or die. RACING TO THE RESCUE? There are opportunities too, however. The sudden dramatic shift in environmental thinking has led to new long-term legislation for road car CO2 targets that simply won’t be achievable with current technology. The UK government, for example, has pledged to make all private transport carbon neutral by 2050. And, if that seems far away, it’s worth bearing in mind that the dreaded Euro 6 emissions standards for EU type approval are disconcertingly close, coming into effect in less than four years. Yet, while this may be giving some people on the road car side grey hair, it’s also the perfect opening for

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COVER STORY 17

ABOVE & LEFT Saving vital seconds: Ferrari and McLaren have both helped Great Ormond Street Hospital, enabling doctors and nurses to transfer patients from surgery to intensive care with the precision of a Formula One pit stop (Photo: Ferrari)

those with fresh ideas. The necessity of meeting these targets means there is a guaranteed market for those who can provide solutions that work. For once even the bean counters will have to defer to engineers with bright ideas, because it simply won’t be possible to put a car on the forecourt without them. It’s not just hard times and the much-publicised threat of climate change, though; the next major factor is an even darker one. The past decade or so has seen an awful lot of conflict and it’s not showing any signs of letting up. Nuclear technology, jet engines and the computer have all sprung out of war in the past, and although

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we may not have seen any quantum leaps such as those recently it’s still doing a fine job of swelling engineering companies’ order books (even under the current economic pressures). So the opportunities are there for companies looking to diversify into other sectors, along with a robust shove from the bank manager, but why should it be motorsport firms that step into the breach? The answer lies with the rather unique set of constraints our industry has to work in, as Lord Drayson, team principal of Drayson Racing and the UK’s former minister of state for science and innovation, rather aptly illustrated in his address at the Race Tech World Motorsport Symposium last year. “Motorsport works at a pace that’s quite unlike any other industry,” he told the assembled delegates. “The culture of ‘it has to be there on Sunday for the race’ leads to a commitment which is unique. I remember very clearly one week where I’d just been told by a defence industry supplier that new suspension parts for one of our armoured vehicles on operations in Iraq were going to take nine months to be delivered. At the same time I’d just come back from a [racing] test weekend at Snetterton where a team preparing for Le Mans had a complete set of dampers designed, built and fitted by 9 am the following morning. I went back to the office and said, ‘If they can get that done for a racecar in 24 hours – where no one’s life is at stake – yet we can’t get that for our tanks, it just isn’t good enough’. As a direct result of the partnership with motorsport companies that followed, the entire Mastiff 2 armoured personnel carrier was

October 2010

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COVER STORY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

FROM NASCAR TO THE BATTLEFIELD LIFELINE Fire and Safety Systems is a company with its roots firmly in motorsport. It was set up in 1980 to provide fire suppression systems to the racing industry, and that remained more or less the company’s sole market until a chance occurrence three years go. “It was the MIA’s Motorsport to Defence programme which gave us the push to break into the military market,” recounts managing director Jim Morris. “Although we had been doing short-term contracts of five or six vehicles for military applications in the past, it wasn’t a market we’d really pursued. Our first proactive move was exhibiting at the DSEi defence exhibition in London in 2007. We went there not really sure what to expect and came back with a major contract for vehicles which were being brought in from the USA and modified to British MoD spec.” Since then the company has gone on to supply something in the region of 700 systems to defence customers and they’re all basically an adaptation of its NASCAR system. “We identified that we had a high quality product that could be applied to other sectors with very little adaptation,” says Morris. “When we looked into it we actually had most of the systems required for military contracts – things like ISO 9001 – in place from our motorsport activities already. There can be a lot of quality assurance paperwork associated with the defence sector and you have to audit your suppliers as well as your own product, but now we’ve overcome the initial learning curve it’s not too bad.” As for the designs themselves, Morris explains the key word is ‘ruggedised’. Understandably troops in active service have little time for niceties when it comes to equipment and it has to be extremely tough. Far from motorsport’s usual minimalistic ideal, the components in vehicles like armoured personnel carriers have to be designed to perform not just to, but well beyond, their intended operating conditions. It’s not just the defence industry, either. Lifeline’s latest contract is in fact a fire suppression system for student accommodation in London. So does this represent another example of technology transfer? Apparently so: “The system used was originally developed for boats,” replies Morris. RT

ABOVE Fire suppression systems devised by Lifeline for the cut and thrust of NASCAR have been adapted for the defence sector (Photo: Jerry Markland/Getty Images for NASCAR)

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October 2010

designed, built and delivered into Iraq in just 23 weeks. It’s since gone on to become by far the most successful armoured fighting vehicle the British army has had in recent years.” Motorsport’s influence stretches beyond the delivery time of any one product, however. The punishing timescales enforced on companies in racing, and the constant need to stay one step ahead of the competition, force relentlessly short product lifecycles, which drive development at a phenomenal rate. The technical constraints of modern racing may lead to some areas of motorsport technology arguably lagging behind their road-going counterparts, but, within the scope of the rules, they still evolve at a pace that huge, bureaucratic and heavily cost-controlled automotive companies could only dream of. The financial commitment to this level of innovation is also huge. The average motorsport company ploughs 30% of its turnover back into R&D, which is virtually unprecedented – it dwarfs even the figures from other high-tech sectors like IT and the pharmaceutical industry. What’s more, because the companies tend to be small, they are inherently adaptable to changes in the market and new opportunities. Similarly, most are geared up for prototyping and low volume production, which is something of an unusual commodity itself; large manufacturing firms often simply can’t produce a run of 10 or 20 components even if they want to. Next – and perhaps most obviously – comes the skill set you find in motorsport. Something like 65 per cent of the industry’s workforce is comprised of professional-level engineers. Many of the specialist skills they bring, such as working with composite materials and computational fluid dynamics, have historically borrowed from the aircraft industry. Yet recently this has come full circle with Renault F1 striking up a research partnership with Boeing, McLaren’s composite expertise contributing to the Beagle 2 Mars lander and a solar probe

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COVER STORY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

For once even the bean counters will have to defer to engineers with bright ideas”

ABOVE & BELOW Prodrive’s World Rally Championship transmission expertise (above) has spawned projects like the automated manual transmission system (below) that has found widespread application in developing countries like India project, and seemingly dozens of motorsport companies contributing to unmanned aerial vehicles (better known as UAVs). You also need to consider the cyclical nature of motorsport. As rules change, budgets fluctuate and contracts come and go, they inevitably free up additional people and resources, in a way that wouldn’t normally happen in less volatile industries. Rather than let this excess capacity go to waste, motorsport companies quickly cottoned on to the idea of applying it to side projects. Prodrive, for example, began exploring other opportunities in the early nineties and has since diversified to the point where over 50 per cent of its business comes from outside the sport. “In the run up to the season everyone’s working like mad, but during the season you can’t always make many changes, so rather than having the engineers twiddling their thumbs we started selling their services,” explains Prodrive’s managing director Tony Butcher. “It works particularly well on the road car side, because motorsport is driven largely by marketing budgets and the road car business is mainly

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October 2010

driven by engineering budgets and vehicle cycles. As a result, the peaks and troughs of these two areas are usually out of sync, so they cancel each other out.” Once established, the Automotive Technology arm of the business also brought other staffing benefits. Professional motorsport tends to entail a lot of travelling and employees have a habit of defecting to the mainstream automotive industry once they grow tired of chasing cars round the globe. With a fixed ‘family friendly’ alternative, however, Prodrive was able to keep hold of its most experienced

personnel and put them to good use. One of the first examples of this was the company’s automated manual transmission (AMT) system. Prodrive had been toying with the idea of a ‘bolt-on’ actuation system for manual gearboxes to use on its rally cars for some time. It would, the engineers reasoned, provide a cost-effective means of automating just about any existing manual gearbox, greatly improve shift times and also allow drivers in the slippery world of rallying to go straight across the gate from sixth gear to first after a spin. Soon the design found its way onto the company’s Subaru Legacy rally

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COVER STORY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

cars and variants can still be found on the latest Impreza WRC, but it didn’t take long to see there could be other markets. “As well as the shift times, we noticed that automatic control greatly extended the life of the gearbox, dramatically reducing maintenance costs,” says Butcher. “We decided to try it on a Legacy road car, followed by a TVR and a Ferrari Testarossa. It worked very well and we’ve since done everything from motorcycles to buses.” Recently the biggest market for the AMT system has become developing countries such as India. Because driver training is often minimal in these areas they can be an unforgiving environment for gearboxes at the best of times, but the biggest selling point is in fact fuel economy. Relative to their income, people in India spend six times as much on petrol as they do in western Europe (and something like 15 times as much as in the US), so every drop is sacred. Unfortunately there’s a certain amount of misinformation about how to make best use of this precious resource, and the standard Indian method is to change gear as early as possible in the belief it will save fuel. In reality, of course, this leads to a lot of vehicles chugging along on the point of stall, their engines barely functioning and their ECUs chucking in vast

ABOVE The Active Torque Dynamics system helped Subaru rule the rally kingdom but is seen here in a sixwheeler application in the ‘real world’

quantities of fuel to keep them going. Of course, all of this would be solved by an automatic gearbox, but the infrastructure isn’t really ready for the cost and maintenance requirements of conventional automatic gearboxes. Applying automatic control to an existing manual design, however, can be done relatively easily and cheaply. It also neatly sidesteps the additional driveline losses of a torque converter and allows customers to program the control unit with their own calibration.

The average motorsport company ploughs 30% of its turnover back into R&D”

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October 2010

At the same time that one part of Prodrive was perfecting the original AMT, another began looking into the idea of torque vectoring. The resulting Active Torque Dynamics (ATD) system has gone on to prove a huge success in rallying and helped Subaru to scoop no less than three consecutive World Rally Constructors’ Championships in the late nineties. However, it too had other applications, and perhaps even more unlikely than the AMT’s. At its heart, the ATD system is effectively a

BELOW The glory days of the Subaru world rally programme have had an impact far beyond the seemingly insular world of motorsport

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COVER STORY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

ABOVE & BELOW BMW’s Megacity, set to become the world’s first volumeproduced vehicle with a passenger cell made from carbon fibre reinforced plastic, offers a glimpse of a future in which motorsport’s expertise with carbon fibre could play a key role in the wider automotive sphere control algorithm for locking differentials and, while these have become an essential ingredient for rally cars, their most widespread use remains in off-highway vehicles. Here the task of controlling the differentials has traditionally been left to the driver; they need to be locked to maximise traction and braking, but this greatly compromises the steering and places the driveline components and tyres under added stress so they must be disengaged during cornering. It takes a considerable amount of skill and concentration to juggle the controls for up to five differentials (in the case of a sixwheeler) and even the best human operators can struggle. A computer, however, can vary all of them instantaneously across an almost infinite range, which not only improves the vehicle’s off-road capabilities, but greatly reduces the skill level required to drive it. MILITARY MARKET As well as numerous civilian applications, the current political climate has once again opened up a wide military market for the ATD system. “The weight of military vehicles is going up dramatically because of the payloads they’re being asked to carry and this, combined with the harsh terrain they need to cross in Iraq and Afghanistan, has led to a lot of drivetrain failures,” explains Butcher. “What’s more, they often need to be driven by young soldiers who’ve often only had minimal driving experience. So there are considerable benefits to an ATD system, which can reduce drivetrain loads and simplify the task of driving.” While torque vectoring and automated manual gearboxes have both enjoyed successful stints in competitive motorsport, one of the biggest areas of innovation to come out of racing recently has a slightly more chequered history. Companies across

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October 2010

the world raced to produce kinetic energy recovery systems after the FIA announced they would be coming to Formula One. Some made it to the track, albeit with rather mixed results, but many didn’t even get that far before teams abandoned the idea, which left the manufacturers with something of a dilemma: what to do with

from electrical-grid substations to elevators. However its main applications are likely to be found in mass transport. “We believe one of the main uses will be in trains,” continues Morrison. “You have to shed a huge amount of energy to bring an express train to a halt when it comes into a station, and we reckon you could save

the technology they’d developed? One man who had to address just this problem was Ricardo Motorsport’s business operations manager David Morrison. “A lot of companies had invested considerable amounts of money into it and they needed to find other ways to recoup their investment,” he recounts. “The fact the KERS market in F1 suddenly vanished probably actually drove its transfer into other sectors quicker than it would have done otherwise.” For Ricardo this meant looking at applying the principles of its Kinergy mechanical flywheel system to everything

around 0.9 gigajoules – which is equivalent to about 90 litres of diesel – every time the train decelerates. Similarly, with buses you have a large (heavy) vehicle performing a lot of stop-start manoeuvres.” These mass-transport applications have two main attributes which make them ideal for energy storage systems. First and foremost is of course the sheer level of kinetic energy involved in stopping something that large, but also there’s a matter of packaging. Big vehicles usually have more space to accommodate additional energy storage systems and

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COVER STORY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

THE MAGNETIC ATTRACTION OF RICARDO’S KINERGY SYSTEM RICARDO looked at many different options, including ultra capacitors, hydraulics and electric flywheels, before settling on a mechanical flywheel for its energy storage system. And, while this may sound simple, the technology inside the box is extremely clever. The flywheel itself is around 5 kg of carbon fibre (for a typical passenger car application) spinning at anything up to 60,000 rpm inside a hermitically-sealed box. At those speeds its outer tips are reaching tangential velocities of around Mach 2, which means the carbon fibre would rapidly overheat and de-laminate if exposed to air resistance. The solution, of course, is to house it in a vacuum, but this traditionally requires the use of rotating seals and an external vacuum pump, both of which add cost, complexity and weight. In the Kinergy system, however, a magnetic coupling is used to transfer drive to and from the flywheel with no physical connection to the outside world. It uses an array of permanent magnets embedded into the output shaft of the flywheel, which rotates inside a cylindrical rotor on the power take off shaft, also bearing a set of magnets. The attraction between the two sets transmits torque, despite the gap between. The only problem is that the magnets alone have a peak field distance of around a millimetre, meaning you’d need an impossibly thin casing for the system to work. Yet, by installing ferrous pins in the casing, Ricardo was able to increase the field distance to the point where it became practical to engineer. Transmitting considerable amounts of torque across a stationary gap is impressive enough, but the magnetic gearbox has another trick up its sleeve. The fields of the individual magnets remain distinct from each other, which means you can ‘mesh’ those on the flywheel with corresponding points on the output shaft. Consequently, if you place more on one shaft than the other, you can effectively generate a gear ratio between the two, which is exactly what Ricardo has done. With a ratio of 10 magnets on the power take off shaft to each on the flywheel shaft, for example, you can take the flywheel’s 60,000 rpm rotation down to a far more manageable 6,000 rpm, with a corresponding step up in torque. What’s more, the assembly operates at upwards of 99.9 per cent efficiency and, because there’s no physical connection, it’s impossible to shear gear teeth; you simply see a momentary slip between the two shafts before drive is restored. The Kinergy magnetic gear and coupling Stationary pole pieces embedded in flywheel casing Permanent magnets Outer rotor attached to external CVT system

Inner rotor attached to flywheel – can be configured to rotate at up to 10x the speed of the outer rotor Direction of rotation

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suffer less from the added weight. And in the case of power generation it’s the flywheel system’s ability to quickly and smoothly absorb large amounts of energy that makes it so promising. You could, for example, feed the regenerative braking power of trains or trams straight back into the electrical grid via conductor rails or overhead lines and then redistribute it as required. The first practical demonstration of this technology is going to be the FLYBUS project co-developed with Torotrak, Optare and Allison Transmissions. It uses a 400 kilojoule capacity Ricardo Kinergy flywheel supplying up to 60 kilowatts straight into the bus’ automatic transmission via a Torotrak CVT. Even with this relatively modest spec simulations have shown it would result in a 20 per cent fuel saving over the standard UK bus cycle, and this should increase significantly with a fully optimised 110 kilowatt system capable of storing up to 1 megajoule. It’s an impressive step forward from what is essentially an aborted Formula One project, and one which could have far more wide-reaching impact in the real world. Plus, although companies like Ricardo obviously have a vested interest in recycling such technology, it’s only thanks to their skills and capabilities that they’re able to make it happen. SNOWBALL EFFECT Ultimately the rise of technology transfer may start having a knock-on effect on the very culture of motorsport. It’s estimated that 60 per cent of UK motorsport firms now participate in other industries. With this realisation comes a vested interest in strengthening the links with other sectors and encouraging the development of new technology. The emergence of hybrid powertrains in endurance racing and the rumours of a radical new set of Formula One engine regulations for 2013 appear to substantiate this. Free from the road car irritations of emissions compliance, fuel consumption targets and (to a certain extent) cost, there’s really no reason why the 20 or so cars on the grid couldn’t continue to run naturally aspirated eight-cylinder engines screaming up to 18,000 rpm. Instead, what’s prompting all this talk of turbocharged 1.6-litre fours is essentially the desire to regain touch with the road market. And, while the vastly different operating conditions encountered in racing will still tend to restrict direct transfer to road, there’s every chance that the advances it spawns will be applicable to some other application. “The might of F1 with its marketing power and budgets can provide a tremendously effective platform for technology transfer,” comments Morrison. “If you look hard enough, the synergy with road transport is there and I think it’s growing stronger. If, as we suspect, the new engine regulations come with various energy recovery devices – not just KERS – then that’ll almost certainly spawn more research relevant to the road, such as better use of turbocharging, better understanding of the combustion system and perhaps things like heat recovery.” Similarly, if the environmental pressure continues to ramp up, it may force road car technology closer to the racetrack. Ultimately, for all the good of clever emissions control systems and energy recovery, Newton’s Second Law doesn’t lie: sooner or later the only way to reduce the amount of force (and hence fuel) required to accelerate something forward will be to reduce its weight and, in order to do that without compromising on the safety and creature comforts to which we’ve become accustomed, we’ll need to turn to more exotic materials. This means that substances like carbon fibre will no longer

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COVER STORY 27 BELOW Exposure to the motorsport culture has helped transform the notoriously slow gestation periods of British military vehicles. The Mastiff 2 Armoured Personnel Carrier was designed, built and delivered in just 23 weeks and is credited with saving the lives of soldiers caught in explosions in both Iraq and Afghanistan (Photo: Andrew Linnett/Crown Copyright/MOD)

Image from www.photos.mod.uk be the preserve of dedicated competition cars and high-end exotica. And, with that, the skills to engineer and develop them will move into the mainstream too. In fact, it’s already happening. BMW’s Megacity may officially be a concept car, but it’s thought to hint very strongly at a production model due in just three years’ time. Its central passenger cell is constructed of carbon fibre reinforced plastic (or CFRP) mouldings, formed in special heated moulds using a sophisticated resin injection system and then glued together. This sits on top of a separate chassis formed by two aluminium extrusions, which even on its own would be somewhat novel in a world of steel monocoques. BELOW The patented magnetic gearing and coupling mechanism of Ricardo’s Kinergy high-speed energy storage system concept

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Overall, it’s said to be as strong as a steel structure and yet just half the weight of an aluminium one. The really significant thing about the Megacity, however, is that it’s not destined to be a millionaire’s plaything or a competition car: it’s pitched as an every day urban runaround. And it’s not alone. Although the Megacity is perhaps closest to production, BMW is far from the only big-name road car manufacturer turning to the world of carbon fibre, and in order to pull it off they will all need engineers and suppliers with expertise in the field. It’s yet another example of how the current upheavals could play very nicely into the hands of motorsport companies. That’s not to say the racing industry isn’t giving back. The FIA Foundation, for example, was set up as an independent charity to research road safety, environmental protection and sustainable mobility using a grant of no less than $300 million from the FIA. That money came directly from motorsport and has gone on to assist projects such as the development of the NCAP passenger car safety tests and the 50by50 global fuel economy initiative. Similarly, the McLaren and Ferrari Formula One teams have both famously helped London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children improve its operating theatre-to-recovery room times using philosophies developed by their pit crews. Although it’s easy to dismiss these as PR exercises, the hospital claims a measurable reduction in morbidity (that is to say instances in which the patient contracts illnesses that they did not come in with) as a result and it may well have gone on to save lives. So there can be no real argument. Motorsport is making society better – safer, healthier and more profitable. Whatever people might argue about the rights and wrongs of the 600 million or so road cars on the planet, the handful which occupy a track at any one time never owed society much in the first place. With that in mind, it’s pretty spectacular how much this little pocket of industry has given back and it seems diversification and technology transfer are set to play an increasingly important role as time goes on. RT

October 2010

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PAT SYMONDS CARBON/CARBON BRAKES

BRAKING NEWS! The refuelling ban has refocused attention on Formula One brakes. Here Pat Symonds reveals the latest thinking on cooling and re-examines some of the basics of carbon/carbon brakes

ARBON. At first sight an innocuous element. With an atomic number of 6 it is the 15th most abundant substance on earth. It is also one of the most schizophrenic of elements, with allotropes existing in such diverse forms as the soft charcoal smeared over an artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s canvas, to the diamond cutting tool that slices through hardened steel. In terms of tribology it exists in the form of graphite, the basis of many lubricants, and as carbon/carbon which provides the friction material for braking systems on

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high performance cars and aircraft. The structure of some of these allotropes is shown in Figure 1. Carbon/carbon technology has been with us in motorsport for some time now and it may seem that development has been limited. In fact, after a long period of stability with just minor changes to formulation, there have been significant developments of late. Much of this was initially driven by a desire to improve cooling efficiency in order to run smaller brake ducts, which in turn improved aerodynamic performance. More recently the advent of 160 kg fuel loads and the

increased energy to be dissipated in braking has spurred further development. Above all, the rapid improvement in CFD has been an enabling technology to understand better the cooling flow and heat transfer in an area that is difficult to physically model even at the 60% scale used in Formula One. MANUFACTURE While the process involved in manufacturing carbon brakes is reasonably well known, it is worthwhile repeating some of it here and in particular focusing on the difference between the 2D and 3D materials that are favoured by different manufacturers. Racing brakes are of course just a spin-off from the

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PAT SYMONDS 29 BELOW The brakes of Robert Kubica’s Renault glow cherry red through the gloom at Hockenheim. This year’s rules have been the catalyst for significant advances in carbon brake technology (Photo: Andrew Ferraro/LAT Photographic)

manufacturers’ core business which is the production of aircraft brakes and the technologies employed will reflect this. The 2D material is favoured by Hitco and, being an American company, full details of the manufacturing are covered by ITAR (International Trafficking in Arms

FIGURE 1 CARBON ALLOTROPES

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Regulations) as the material is considered of strategic interest. Nevertheless, with the assistance of Kevin Boike, global motorsports director of Hitco, it has been possible to discuss some features of its processes. A 2D disc starts by making a traditional pre-preg compression moulded doughnut. The resin system is a phenolic and the

compression moulding is done under heat. Other manufacturers, notably Brembo and Carbon Industrie, produce a 3D preform. To do this carbon fibre chopped strands are layered in a mould in essentially a 2D orientation. As the strands are relatively short, they can lie in many directions on a flat plane and for this reason the finished article may be referred to as a multidimensional form. The essential difference between this and a 2D material is that some of the fibres are aligned at 90 degrees, in other words aligned with the Z-axis. This is done by pushing a barbed “comb” into the preform which, as it is withdrawn, pulls a number of the fibres into the Z-axis. In order to allow the mobility of the fibres so that they align, the process has to be done on a dry fibre with no resin present. Once the disc has been moulded it is then put into a carburisation furnace where it is heated to around 1,500 degrees centigrade

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PAT SYMONDS CARBON/CARBON BRAKES

in an inert atmosphere such as Argon. This burns off anything that is not carbon, a process taking around 10 days. The 2D preform is slightly cheaper to manufacture as the phenolic resin breaks down under pyrolosis to help to densify the component. At this point the once good-looking preform resembles burnt toast! It is somewhat fragile

starts by means of a process known as chemical vapour deposition (CVD). This is done under low pressure in a furnace which is held at around 3,000 degrees Centigrade. Methane (CH4) is introduced and at that temperature the gas cracks so that reactive carbon atoms are present. These reactive carbon atoms will then diffuse into the

All was well until the furnaces were opened and air introduced, at which point the filters burst into flames” but has the necessary porosity required for the next process. The choice of graphitisation temperature will affect the toughness of the composite. The tensile and flexural properties of the carbon/carbon composites are fibre dominated whereas the compression behaviour is mainly affected by density and matrix morphologies. Once pyrolised, the densification process

BELOW For many years an arrangement of bobbins and bolts was used to mount the carbon discs

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component being made and in so doing the gas increases the density of the solid. This is why it is such a slow process, taking around three and a half weeks for each densification cycle. There are typically two densification cycles for 2D material as the diffusion of the gas naturally occurs more prolifically at the surface. This means that the microscopic voids eventually fill and further densification

of the core becomes impossible. At this stage the component is removed and the surface roughly machined to allow a second densification cycle to take place which allows further diffusion through to the core. With a 2D material the additional densification which occurred as a result of pyrolisation of the phenolic will allow the process to be completed in two cycles. With a 3D preform all densification is done by means of CVD and at least three and possibly four cycles will be required. There are densification processes based on liquid deposition rather than gas. Although these have been used by Mitsubishi, in general they have not provided the robustness of CVD. The secret of a good densification process is to control the pressures and the gas composition so that the component does not get “plated” with carbon; instead, the carbon atoms must have the maximum opportunity to penetrate the component and give a good depth of densification through accessible porosity which allows the carbon radicals to infuse.

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PAT SYMONDS 31

BELOW Heikki Kovalainen locks the brakes of his Lotus T127 at Istanbul. One of the teams is said to have recorded an instantaneous deceleration of 6.5 g this season (Photo: Charles Coates/LAT Photographic)

Once the correct density (around 1.8) has been achieved, the component can be removed from the furnace and machined. The machining will define the disc rubbing surface and diameter as well as the mounting system and, depending on design, the cooling vents. The final process is to coat the disc with an anti-oxidant paint. Many different coatings have been used but most common is a cocktail of ceramic materials. Oxidisation is the greatest enemy of racecar carbon brakes and we will discuss this further later in the article. MOUNTING SYSTEMS The mounting systems employed for carbon discs have become somewhat complex recently. Carbon has an extremely low coefficient of expansion and so care must be taken when mounting the carbon disc onto a metallic axle to ensure that the differential expansion does not place additional stress on the mountings. They are already highly loaded as they transfer the braking torque from the friction surfaces to the vehicle. For many years this was achieved by means of bobbins inserted through mounting holes in the disc. These carried through bolts that attached the assembly to a disc bell, which in turn was fastened to the axle. The bobbins and bolts had sufficient axial and radial clearance to take up any thermal expansion differences without preloading the components. Typically there would be eight or ten bobbins mounting the disc but, as brake performance increased over the

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years, they became susceptible to failure. This, together with a desire to reduce mass, led to the general adoption of the so-called “spline drive” arrangement which is now universal in Formula One. The spline drive is, as its name suggests, a drive system whereby a serration machined into the disc engages in a serration machined into the axle. The system is both stronger and lighter than the traditional bobbin fixing but much more complex to machine. COOLING VENTS Early brakes had very crude radial holes drilled through the disc to allow air, which was fed through the brake duct and axle to the eye of the disc, to pass through the disc

itself. This cooled the bulk of the disc from the inside while further air was fed over the friction surface of the disc to provide additional cooling. The crude drillings were very ineffective and gradually, through experimentation, they evolved into angled vents, sometimes with additional machined detail near the minor diameter. As CFD matured it became a useful tool to look at brake cooling in general. The whole of the upright, brake duct, axle and disc assembly had always been difficult to model for wind tunnel testing and, although work was done in this area, it was never very satisfactory. Once CFD allowed experimentation with more complex disc vents it became obvious that there was much to be gained. The trouble was that CFD was suggesting geometries that were impossible to machine (Figure 2). This led to investigations as to how vents may be moulded into the preform at the initial stages. This of course is a technique that lends itself to the 2D manufacturing process in that, if an item is to be moulded, it requires a resin matrix in order to adopt the moulded shape. Hitco therefore was in a good position to develop this technology and did so. It is now able to mould extremely complex shapes. Not only does its manufacturing technique lend itself to this process but it has also protected itself under patent law. The basic technique of moulding the vents requires a sacrificial tool to be introduced as the preform is laid up. This is generally a polymeric component produced by BELOW The ‘spline drive’ arrangement is now universal in F1. Lighter and stronger than the traditional bobbin fixing, it is more complex to machine

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PAT SYMONDS CARBON/CARBON BRAKES

FIGURE 2 Some of the geometries suggested by CFD cannot be machined, instead demanding rapid prototyping techniques

stereolithography. Early attempts were somewhat fraught as the tool, which melts out during the carburisation process, gave off vapours which condensed in the furnace filters. All was well until the furnaces were opened and air introduced, at which point the filters burst into flames. Needless to say new materials were rapidly developed. Today a team can develop a vent shape in CFD. It then only needs to send an STL file (the standard format for driving rapid prototyping machines) via e-mail to Hitco and the new design can be produced. Unfortunately, while the vent tool may be made by rapid prototyping, the manufacturing of the disc itself is anything but rapid. If moulded vents are not an option the geometry will always be limited by what can be machined and, to a degree, the cost of machining complex multi-axis paths. Some of the most complex machined vent patterns have been known to take up to 36 hours per disc to machine.

case of carbon the differences are made by both process and material. The pre-preg from which the preform is made can originate from different types of fibre and weave, all of which will have a subtle impact on the final product. The high temperature processing also has a

The rapid improvement in CFD has enabled a better understanding of cooling flow and heat transfer” fundamental effect on the product, which may be altered by the number of hours the component is in the furnace. Also important is the exact composition of the carbon bearing gas used. Although basically methane gas, it is doped with higher carbon bearing species such as propane. Alterations to the mix will produce different properties in the final product.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF CARBON/CARBON While it may seem that a material composed of graphitic carbon must be the same as any other material composed of the same thing, there are differences in much the same way that the characteristics of a metal may be tailored by the addition of trace elements. In the

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empiricism. There are many theories as to how the friction is produced, ranging from the attraction of covalent bonds through to micro-welding, but no singularity gives the overall picture. The friction coefficient produced from the brakes under normal working conditions is around 0.4 – a figure that these days can be approached by organic pad material on steel – and this is enough to see braking decelerations that average 5.5 g. I am told 6.5 g has been recorded instantaneously this season. There are a number of mechanisms of wear and those of interest to aircraft operators are somewhat different to those involved in racing. The first type occurs at low energy conditions such as an aircraft taxiing. In this condition extremely hard powdery particulate wear debris is formed from the carbon matrix. This acts as an agent for accelerated wear. When carbon brakes were introduced to commercial aircraft, the wear was much higher than expected as projections had been made from field experience with military aircraft. Of course military aircraft do not taxi much and hence this component of wear was low. A heavily laden 747 that has to navigate its way across Heathrow will suffer greatly from this and pilots have had to learn to

FRICTION AND WEAR: CHEMISTRY OR ALCHEMY? The manufacturers of carbon brakes have reached a reasonable understanding of the mechanisms of wear. The generation of friction is an altogether different thing and still to this day prediction relies on

brake harder but less often rather than holding the speed on the brakes to mitigate this wear. Fortunately it is not very relevant to racing cars. The second type of wear occurs at high energy conditions. In the case of aircraft this is during landing, but for racing cars it is throughout most braking events. In this case a smooth friction film is formed which, unfortunately, acts as a self-lubricant. It is generally accepted that on the swept surface, the graphite from the pad and the disc form this barrier at a nano-layer level which facilitates the development of the frictional force, albeit at a lower level than is present under lower interface pressures. The film not only reduces the friction but also reduces the abrasive wear. The mechanism

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RACE TECH magazine is the only independent technology led motorsport magazine that focuses on every aspect of racing car engineering. Totally international in its outlook, it covers everything that can be found competing on the track from Formula One to the Clubman's single seaters, from NASCAR to the Silver Crown cars and from sports racing cars to the weekend hillclimb specials. IN EVERY ISSUE: • The very latest industry news hot off the press • Pat Symonds, the former Renault F1 Executive Director of Engineering, uses his wealth of technical motorsport knowledge and impressive engineering background, to write exclusively about the latest issues and topics in F1 • A Special Report focuses on specific technology areas • The very latest new and innovative engineering products available in the motorsport sector is explored • The Practical Racer series follows two engineers as they build their own low cost racing car • Plus many more in depth, high brow and technical articles, debriefs, features and analyses on the latest engineering stories in motorsport

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PAT SYMONDS CARBON/CARBON BRAKES BELOW & RIGHT AP Racing’s sophisticated brake dynamometer replicates Formula One braking events under controlled conditions

THE ARRHENIUS EQUATION THE OXIDISATION of a brake disc is a chemical reaction. The free oxygen in the air that is cooling the disc combines with the carbon to form CO at low temperatures and reacts with further oxygen to form CO2 at higher temperatures. As with many chemical reactions, temperature plays a significant part in the speed of reaction and this relationship is governed by a general equation of chemical thermodynamics known as the Arrhenius equation. At higher temperatures, the probability that two molecules will collide is higher. This higher collision rate results in a higher kinetic energy, which has an effect on the activation energy of the reaction. The activation energy is the amount of energy required to ensure that a reaction happens. The Arrhenius equation takes the form

Where: k is the rate coefficient A is a constant Ea is the activation energy R is the universal gas constant T is the temperature (°K) Suggested values for A and Ea taken from reference literature [1] are A = 1.1x104 Ea = -179 kJ mol-1 This reference also suggests that there is a significant transition point at around 650°C at which more CO2 than CO is produced, hence drastically increasing oxidisation. My experience suggests that the activation energy for carbon brakes is closer to -100 kJ mol-1. This suggests that brake wear can increase by an order of magnitude between 650°C and 850°C under similar braking conditions.

ABOVE The carbon ceramic brakes used by supercars such as Ferrari’s 955XX occupy a middle ground between the racing carbon/carbon solution and traditional steel brakes (Photo: Ferrari)

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Bews, Hayhurst, Richardson & Taylor; The Order, Arrhenius Parameters and Mechanism of the

Reaction between Gaseous Oxygen and Solid Carbon; COMBUSTION AND FLAME 124:231–245 (2001)

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PAT SYMONDS 35

of formation of this film is still not completely understood but it is generally thought that under high pressure and temperature the wear particles deform to form the layer. If the temperature and braking energy rise even higher, the friction film tends to break down due to the high shear stress and consequentially wear rate once again increases. More significantly, as the temperature reaches around 650°C, oxidisation becomes the main wear mechanism. By around 800°C, the rate of oxidation is limited only by the diffusion rate of oxygen through the surrounding gas to the carbon surface. This mechanism should really be thought of as a loss of mass and not just wear as any part of the friction material which attains this temperature will start oxidising rapidly – not just the rubbing components. It is for this reason that the anti-oxidising paint is so important – it inhibits oxidisation from the bulk material of the disc and pad. To understand this, the most important aspect of wear, better, we need to delve into some chemical thermodynamics. The carbon species which is deposited has a certain activation energy which will govern the Arrhenius equation (see sidebar) and the loss of mass in this respect, given the constants of the Arrhenius equation, is down to true surface area. The denser the material, the less accessible porosity is to hand and hence the less true surface area is present for the oxygen to attack. With temperature such a sensitive issue, it is worth considering a further difference between 2D and 3D materials. Carbon fibre

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is highly anisotropic. One manifestation of this is thermal conductivity which is around 100 Jm-1s-1K-1 in a direction parallel to the fibre but only 30 Jm-1s-1K-1 in a direction perpendicular to the fibre. This means that the Z-axis fibres in a 3D material are much more effective at conducting heat away from the friction surface. This can make the brakes much more difficult to warm up but does help in transferring heat to the bulk of the disc and hence can increase the temperature of the surface of the cooling vents with a subsequent improvement in cooling. RIG TESTING Both AP and Brembo have sophisticated brake dynamometers capable of replicating repeated Formula One braking events under controlled conditions, including total track replay. This includes a controlled flow of cooling air to the brake ducts. Some teams have also obtained similar rigs for system development. While basic material research can be done on sub-scale dynamometers, these full-size rigs are needed for both performance and reliability testing. As a carbon brake wears it becomes susceptible to catastrophic failure and it is important to establish at what thickness this is likely to occur. The brake dyno is the only safe way of doing this. THE FUTURE With the ever-present desire to bring costs down in Formula One, while not giving up one iota of performance, carbon brakes

have a role to play in this dichotomous area. Of course a simple solution is standardisation but the economies of scale are not particularly large when it comes to producing carbon brakes. The high cost comes from the time needed for the material to be sitting in a £3m furnace during the pyrolosis and CVD stages. Nano-technology may help in this quest. A small company in the UK, Freno Huntercombe, is claiming a breakthrough in the densification process. Its solution involves the carbon fibre preform being infiltrated by carbon nanoparticles in a water-based suspension. This is followed by ceramic particles that are then reacted to produce a phosphate ceramic. It is claimed that the entire process takes 20 to 30 minutes, which would suggest that the brakes would approach the price of high performance steel components. Unfortunately most “low cost” processes produce carbon rather than the very hard form of graphite needed for a successful braking material. While these may have adequate frictional properties, they are unlikely to have the wear properties required. The answer to this problem in supercars has been the advent of carbon ceramic brakes. Carbon ceramic brakes are essentially carbon fibre, densified with a silicon oxide matrix that is deposited by various means. They occupy a middle ground between the racing carbon/carbon solution and the traditional steel brake. Their specific heat capacity approaches that of carbon (1350 against 1400 for carbon) and is over double that of steel. They are, however, heavier than carbon/carbon discs, having a density of 2.35 against 1.8 for carbon. This is of course much lighter than cast iron at around 7.25. And so, what may have seemed a static technology for so long is making further progress due to peripheral enabling technologies themselves developing. The Holy Grail of a low cost carbon/carbon disc may be some way off but as our knowledge of the materials science of composites improves, it should not be discounted. We must not, however, underestimate the enormous duty that a Formula One brake undergoes. To quote Kevin Boike of Hitco, “There is more energy absorbed per cc of carbon in an F1 brake during a normal stop than there is in the brakes of a fully laden Boeing 747 during a rejected take off.” RT

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FORMULA ONE RETURN OF KERS

THE GREAT

Taking the three-tenths offered by KERS is more cost-effective than trying to find it aerodynamically” – Giorgio Ascanelli

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KERS returns to F1 in 2011 and it’s likely to receive a better reception than it did in 2009. But, as Matt Youson reports, not everyone is going to use it, and some question whether it’s useful at all…

HE NAME of Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin isn’t one often associated with motorsport. The post-revolutionary politician and radical is remembered for one exclamation: on seeing a mob marching through the streets of 19th Century Paris he is reputed to have said, “There go my people, I must find out where they’re going so I can lead them!” Today, in the Place de la Concorde, the FIA may not consider the commuters flashing by in quite the same light, but it does seem to follow the sentiments of Ledru-Rollin’s (probably apocryphal) quotation. In an effort to make Formula One more relevant to the automotive industry, motorsport’s governing body

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FORMULA ONE 37

DIVIDE The money we would spend on KERS is better spent on aero” – Tony Fernandes

2011 REGULATIONS ABOVE KERS has been absent from F1 since Lewis Hamilton’s McLaren led the field from pole position in the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Photo: Glenn Dunbar/LAT Photographic)

has expended much effort in trying to divine the directions in which road cars will evolve. And with that technology map in hand it has redrawn the technical regulations of F1 to make sure sport, rather than the automotive industry itself, is able to point the way forward. From this philosophy springs fully-formed the Kinematic Energy Recovery System. KERS’ 2009 introduction was calamitous. BMW used it on one car but not the other; Renault and Ferrari had it on and off. McLaren kept the faith but Toyota – the indisputable leader in hybrid technology for the road – dismissed KERS as an irrelevancy. Brawn GP and Red Bull Racing, both KERS-free, won 14 of the 17 races. Score one for conventional technology. After a year of voluntary moratorium, KERS is back for 2011. The rules governing the technology have not fundamentally changed, but a year of racing experience plus much-altered general regulations make it a much more viable prospect. Or, as Williams technical director Sam Michael bluntly puts it, “There’s no way a car without KERS is going to win the championship in 2011.” Even if that is a given, KERS will not be used by every team, and not everyone believes it has the capacity to make F1 a valued automotive partner. Once again KERS has the potential to be divisive.

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The last time a KERS car raced was the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. McLaren’s MP4-24 took pole position and led the race until retiring with brake problems. It confirmed the growing sense that after initial struggles KERS could be a performance differentiator. That alone may not have been sufficient to guarantee its continuation, however two other factors are. The first is the increase in minimum weight. The 605 kg limit of 2009 was thought to be unduly discriminating against taller drivers given the 30 kg added by KERS. The limit was increased to 620 kg for 2010 to counter this (and stayed there despite a FOTA agreement to run hybrid-free) and will increase to 640 kg for 2011. Despite the addition of extra wheel tethers and a few other weight-adding details, it should ensure a sufficient margin of ballast to accommodate even the +75 kg drivers. While the minimum weight increase has been designed specifically to facilitate KERS, the agreement of a fixed weight distribution was motivated by uncertainty over the Pirelli tyre deal – its advantages for KERS are more of a happy coincidence. Pirelli is the great unknown and with testing severely restricted teams agreed to a fixed 46:54 weight distribution to allow their 2011 package development to begin on time without facing a performance lottery when the tyres arrive. But it does greatly simplify the adoption of KERS “Weight distribution was the only negative to KERS last year,” says Michael. “In 2009 we had a much stronger front tyre which encouraged us to get a lot of weight forward. The optimum

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FORMULA ONE RETURN OF KERS

distribution was about two per cent further forward than what we could get with KERS. Fitting KERS therefore cost you lap time. In fact what it cost was pretty close to the three-tenths gained with KERS – which meant KERS really became a device only helpful on starts and when overtaking, but not really worth anything on lap time. But with the distribution fixed, and assuming you’re on the weight limit, KERS is going to be three-tenths quicker so I can’t see how you would choose to not run it – basically it’s a no-brainer.”

FUEL TANKS Another difference for KERS second time around is the refuelling ban instigated this year. How, or if, this will affect KERS is a matter of some debate. The ultimate lap time from KERS comes, says Michael, from increasing top speed, however other voices suggest there might be better gains to be made from using it to save fuel. John Manchester, operations director of Zytek Motorsport, says, “With refuelling it really didn’t matter how much fuel you used,

BELOW The introduction of KERS in 2009 was at times embarrassing, with the KERS-free duo of Red Bull and Brawn winning 14 of the 17 races (Photo: Charles Coates/LAT Photographic)

as everyone was doing fuel stops. The hybrid system became an additional power source used purely to make the car go quicker but the concept changes for next year: there will also be an element of fuel conservation.” Zytek is widely reported as the contractor behind the 2009 Mercedes KERS as used by McLaren and Manchester admits the company is talking to several teams about a KERS offering, though at this time has no hard plans for 2011. A firmer indication comes from Giorgio Ascanelli, technical director of Scuderia Toro Rosso. Toro Rosso will use the Ferrari KERS in 2011 and Ascanelli believes the proposition will be slightly different to 2009. “Some engineers say that KERS will not save fuel, it will just make the cars go faster; Ferrari’s experience on the other hand tells you that you will save fuel with KERS. So, will my fuel tank be smaller next year? Yes it will, because that’s what Ferrari are telling me.” FINANCIAL SENSE OR SUICIDE?

ABOVE BMW was desperate to promote the hybrid technology in its road cars, but struggled to make KERS pay off in its race cars (Photo: BMW AG)

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October 2010

Toro Rosso’s decision to use KERS is interesting. In terms of budget, facilities and personnel, it operates closer to F1’s three newcomer teams than to the teams ahead of them. But while Toro is adamant KERS makes financial and sporting sense, those behind it have been equally quick to say that they won’t use the system. “I think the three new teams have taken the view that, given the performance deficit between them and the front of the grid, KERS is not going to close that gap under the current regulations,” says Mark Gallagher, general manager of Cosworth’s F1 business unit. “If they have money to be spent on a technology step there are other areas where it will be better spent. I think it’s a pretty simple decision for them not to opt for KERS for next year – but there is close interest from all of them in KERS for 2012.” Since Race Tech spoke with Gallagher, Lotus has announced a parting of the ways with Cosworth (based around a desire to gain a Renault gearbox rather than any particular dissatisfaction with the Cosworth engine). Despite the fact that the squad’s likely new partner will offer a KERS package, team principal Tony Fernandes remains opposed to using it next year. “There is no avoiding the fact we are still new and there are a lot of things that our team needs to have built up in terms of reliability and structure,” he says.

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FORMULA ONE RETURN OF KERS

“Dumping KERS onto [technical director] Mike [Gascoyne] and the team wouldn’t be the right thing to do – as much as I would like to. It wouldn’t be the right time. We are not going to be world champions next year, so a few tenths of a second isn’t going to matter to us in that sense, so I’d rather build a solid structure. “For the moment I think the money we would spend on KERS is better spent on aero and better spent on building the technology and facilities of the company. Whether that will change for 2012, I’m not sure. It’s too early to say right now, but maybe… and only if we’re ready. We will

wind tunnel time and CFD teraflops] we would have to spend much more than we will on acquiring a KERS which, in our opinion, brings a relatively inexpensive lap time advantage.” COMPETITION So KERS is coming back. It’s going to improve performance and be cost-effective for those that can afford it. But there doesn’t seem to be any collective enthusiasm for the system in the way there was a few years ago. One reason is a perceived lack of competition. In most instances of 2009, the

BELOW The uncertainty over Pirelli’s 2011 tyre specification, tested here on a 2009-spec Toyota, led to the agreement of a fixed weight distribution – a major boost for teams considering running KERS (Photo: Pirelli)

certainly be looking at it for 2013, though I think by then everyone will have it.” Ascanelli and Toro Rosso have a similar level of resource, but the crucial advantage of a properly developed platform; their R&D spend is geared towards performance rather than the reliability issues which continue to plague the newcomers. They are, however, limited on budget and simply don’t have the funding to compete with the front of the grid on both aerodynamic development and engine power. According to Ascanelli, taking the three-tenths offered by KERS is more cost effective than trying to find it aerodynamically. “If we were to choose aerodynamics over KERS, I think it would cost us more money,” he suggests. “To acquire the resources to run at the FOTA limits [i.e. the maximum allowed

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October 2010

interesting battles were those between KERS and non-KERS cars. The performance differentials (which went both ways) made for intriguing racing. With the front-runners all employing KERS, and with the system restricted in the amount and duration of power it can provide, the margins of performance differentiation are likely to be miniscule. Williams might find an advantage from its revolutionary flywheel system, but it expects to at least begin the season using conventional storage technology instead. Combined with a fixed weight distribution, it’s unlikely KERS is going to be a deciding factor and the consensus seems to be on this being merely a proof-of-concept exercise geared towards a performanceoriented hybrid system arriving with a new engine specification for 2013.

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER If KERS is restricted to providing similar benefit to everyone using it, the only advantage to using it in the medium and short term is external to the competition. It can reposition F1 as an environmentally-responsible sport, while also potentially developing the sorts of intellectual property that might be useful to the road car industry. Neither of these is universally accepted as fact. “It might have been so 20 or 30 years ago, but today I do not believe you can equate what happens in racing to anything that happens on the road,” says Ascanelli. “Maybe our engine partners can think of a way to put KERS onto a road car, or at least learn something useful from Formula One – but Ferrari is special: it isn’t building everyday cars.” The counter-point is put by Manchester. “When the FIA introduced KERS, I don’t think they had a fundamental understanding of how hybrids work – but that doesn’t mean the technology can’t be useful. I’m often asked if racing systems ever transfer down to road cars: in most cases they really don’t, simply because of the costs involved; however hybrid systems are, I think, a different animal. “We’re running hybrids for the first time in racing and the product development in that is immense compared to what you see in road cars. The packaging, the battery management, the electronics and the hardware are all being developed at an amazing rate. At Zytek we’ve designed hybrid racing systems for over a decade and there has always been technology transfer back into our work on electric and hybrid vehicles for motor manufacturers. I have no doubt we will see more of that in the future.” That just leaves the image of Formula One and the potential of KERS to place the sport in a more favourable light. To do that it has to overcome several considerable hurdles, foremost of which is the fact that the return of KERS sees cars get heavier and potentially less fuel-efficient. It also creates more difficult-to-recycle heavy metals. If F1 switches in 2013 to its proposed 1.6litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine with a more powerful KERS and restricted fuel flow, then that problem potentially goes away. Until then the value of KERS as a green technology is purely in its ability to promote hybrid power as an exciting and potentially powerful technology. But that argument is one for the politicians. RT

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ENGINE TECHNOLOGY NEW LMP2 PROJECTS

IF THE CAP FITS… A cost cap and switch to production engines has turned LMP2 sportscar racing upside down for 2011. William Kimberley looks behind the scenes at the deals bringing new engine badges into the category

H E N T H E Automobile Club de l’Ouest announced that its LMP2 class for Le Mans would have to use production-based engines from 2011, it really set the cat amongst the pigeons of the independent engine manufacturers. John Judd, managing director of Engine Developments, was the most vociferous. “I have said before that the new LMP2 is a crazy way to go. I don’t want to make production-based engines on principle as it’s not what we do. Our current engine could easily have been supplied with a cost cap with less power while these P2 teams, which

$12,400), which we then still have to machine and modify, instead of paying around £1,500 (€1,800/$2,300) for our own DB engine from the foundry. “The manufacturers are rightly protecting their brands and want to have them under their control but they can’t stop us buying parts as they are all freely available; we haven’t requested and haven’t received any assistance from a manufacturer from either a technical or financial point of view. We have no drawings except those we made ourselves and have done this entirely on our own.” Notwithstanding such concerns, the ACO stuck to its guns with the result that we are now beginning to see some new engine programmes being announced to meet the criteria. First off the block was HPD, which showed an engine at Le Mans in June, while Roush Yates Engines announced that it will be offering up a race-prepared version of Ford's 3.5-litre EcoBoost V6 for the American Le Mans Series. This was followed in September by announcements from Engine Developments – much to Judd’s general unhappiness – and Zytek Motorsport. That shown by Engine Developments, the HK – named after the late engine designer Hiro Kaneda – is based on the BMW M3 that came into production in 2007. In standard production form, the BMW version with a bore and stroke of 92 x 75 mm

It will be a matter of pressing the start button and off you go – it’s like Hertz racing” are the poorest in the paddock, are being forced to negotiate new engine deals. They are spending a great deal of money on the car to convert it for a new engine and for what purpose? Meanwhile the P1 teams, which generally have a bit more money, are being allowed to grandfather stuff next year. It doesn’t make sense. “Two years ago, before the start of the recession, all this may have looked like a good idea but there’s no money washing around now and to me what’s happening is completely wrong. So as things stand, we buy the production block, head and lower crankcase for around £8,000 (€9,550/

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October 2010

develops 309 kW/420 ps and has a maximum torque of 400 Newton metres (295 lb/ft) at 3,900 rpm. Weighing 202 kg/445 lb it is one of the lightest eightcylinders in the world in production form, a saving of some 15 kg/33 lb over the sixcylinder power unit in the previous model. The engine block comes straight from BMW’s light-alloy foundry in Landshut near Munich, where BMW also built its Formula One blocks. The cylinder crankcase is made of a special aluminium silicon alloy, conventional cylinder liners being replaced by hard silicon crystals. The iron-coated pistons run directly in the uncoated, honed cylinder bore. The crankcase is compact in its dimensions and comes in a torsionally resistant bedplate design ensuring very precise crankshaft bearing and running conditions. The relatively short, forged crankshaft is likewise very stiff in terms of its flexural and torsional qualities, but weighs only 20 kg/44 lb. Other features include the M doubleVanos (variable camshaft control system) with low-pressure camshaft management that perfects the cylinder charge cycle, reducing charge losses and improving engine output torque and response, as well as fuel economy and emission management. Consistent and reliable oil supply with longitudinal and lateral acceleration up to 1.4 g is ensured by two oil pumps and wet sump oil lubrication optimised for supreme dynamic behaviour. There are eight individual throttle butterflies, four on each row of cylinders, operated by separate actuators with those

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ENGINE TECHNOLOGY 43 BELOW The ‘HK’ engine offered by Engine Developments for the new LMP2 regulations is based on BMW’s four-litre V8

in the intake manifolds positioned very close to the intake valves. The specific length and diameter of the intake funnels also benefit the oscillating pipe charge principle. To minimise weight, both the intake funnels and air collector are made of a light composite material with a 30 per cent share of glassfibre. Another feature of the production engine is the flow technology in which a spark plug serves as an actuator for the ignition and as a sensor observing the combustion process, distinguishing in this way between miscombustion and misfiring by measurement of ion flow in

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the combustion chambers. “We did look at other engines but have no doubt that this is the best engine choice we could have made for LMP2,” says Judd. “It’s also the smallest V8 and already tuned to quite a level as a standard road car engine, making it easier for us to develop. It’s light with many clever design features for which the manufacturer must be congratulated, and with our extensive endurance racing experience we believe it can be developed into a very successful engine. Basically, for the customer, it will be a matter of pressing the start button and off you go – it’s like Hertz racing.”

The regulations state that only the production engine block, crankcase centreline and the cylinder heads are required to be used, meaning that all other items such as the crank, rods, camshafts, valve springs and sizes and pistons can be changed. “It’s full of clever features, some of which we cannot even see,” says Judd. “The lower crankcase has some big steel bearing caps cast into it which are quite nice. The valve gear is also sort of interesting, although I’m not divulging what we are and are not keeping, but the standard engine has hydraulic piston-type

October 2010

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ENGINE TECHNOLOGY NEW LMP2 PROJECTS

LMP2’S NEW WORLD ALL THE engines in LMP2 from 2011 must be production. In the case of at least 1,000 units being produced in 12 months, the capacity is restricted to 4,000 cc. However, the capacity size can be increased to 4,500 cc if the production run exceeds 10,000 units per year. Single-stage turbocharging and supercharging is permissible for petrol engines with a maximum displacement of 2,000 cc and a maximum of six cylinders. With a maximum displacement of 4,400 cc, diesels, of which a minimum of 10,000 are produced a year, are allowed

to have two-stage turbo/supercharging. All engines in this category will be restricted to 420 ps (308 kW). There are also detailed cost limitations. Rebuilt, the engines must cost no more than €35,000 (with all available options), and the space between rebuilds must be 30 hours in 2011, 40 in 2012 and 50 in 2013. If an engine is leased, the maximum costs must be €1,650 per hour but for 2013 the maximum hourly operating cost must not exceed €1,150. Technical support must be included in the prices.

tappets with radius tops with a key element to stop them turning and tapered ovate wire valve springs. “We have designed many new parts for it, focusing on performance and ease of chassis installation with the minimum amount of change from our current LMP2 engine. To that end, for example, the new engine can use the same gearbox bellhousing and has the same lower front engine mountings as our current LMP2 engine. It can also easily be adapted to suit chassis that have previously had other engines installed. We strongly believe that in order to be attractive to potential customers the engine

ABOVE HPD has gone the turbo route with its 2.8litre twin-turbo, based on Honda’s global V6 engine

installation and car conversion costs must be kept to a minimum.” While Judd was reticent to discuss the engine internals too deeply, he did say that the iron-coated standard pistons will be replaced by those manufactured in-house at Engine Developments. The rods, though, will be outsourced. “We buy them from Carrillo, which is an excellent supplier that always keeps to its delivery dates,” he says. “While we don’t make the valves or springs, we do make the camshafts and make all the tooling. As we’ve done a great deal of cam development for restrictor engines over

many years, I don’t see any reason to make anything different from what we’ve already made. I hesitate to say that we’ve got as far as it’s going to go but we must be pretty near optimum. However, we will be using the chains, bearings and some of the standard valve gear parts from the production engine. The internal parts are now pretty much all done in terms of design while dyno testing will commence in the near future.” Turbocharging was ruled out at an early stage. “We didn’t really fancy the turbo route because all the private teams, which tend to be restricted on resources anyway,

BELOW The new Le Mans rules were meant to represent a light in the darkness for cash-strapped LMP2 privateer teams serviced by independent engine manufacturers. Not everyone greets the changes with enthusiasm

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ENGINE TECHNOLOGY 45

BELOW NISMO has partnered with Zytek to produce a 4.5-litre naturally aspirated V8 that will be an evolution of the unit originally developed for GT500 cars in the Japanese Super GT series

would have to deal with things like intercoolers, heat management, boost control and wastegates, thereby adding quite a workload on them. “I might add that because we are not a car manufacturer we can choose our engines freely and it’s interesting to note that when Honda and Porsche did LMP2 engines a few years ago they chose the 3.4 normally aspirated route as opposed to the 2.0-litre turbo. They know far more about turbos than I do and I respect their judgement.” Engines will be available to customers from January 2011 on a lease-only basis within the prescribed ACO cost cap regulations. ZYTEK OPTS FOR NISSAN Meanwhile, Zytek Motorsport has also announced its LMP2 engine programme – the British company has entered into partnership with Nissan Motorsports International (NISMO) to use the 4.5-litre VK45DE engine as used by the Nissan GT-R in Japanese Super GT. “We’ve had a relationship with NISMO for some time because all the Super GT cars use the Zytek EGS (Electrically-assisted Gearshift System) and consequently approached them some time ago about doing an engine for

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LMP2,” says John Manchester, Zytek Motorsport’s operations director. “This led to various meetings and a visit by them to our facilities which so impressed them that we were asked if we could manufacture some of the engine parts. We are also going to look after the servicing and engine build for all the engines for Europe. There will also be opportunities in the future to branch out into other areas within the Zytek group.” The engine, which was introduced in 2002, with a 93 mm x 82.7 mm bore and stroke, in race-restricted trim produces 365 kW (496 ps) and 510 Nm (376 ft/lb) of torque. Without such restrictions, the engine is reputedly capable of producing nearly 588 kW (800 ps). With an aluminium engine block and aluminium DOHC cylinder heads, the engine features SFI fuel injection and has four valves per cylinder with variable valve timing. It also has forged steel connecting rods, four one-piece cast camshafts, an unusual variable-flow induction system that optimises airflow for low- and high-speed operation and low-friction molybdenumcoated pistons and microfinished crankshaft. “It is based on the production block and cylinder head of the standard engine,” says Manchester. “NISMO is redoing the engine

for LMP2 but it’s going to be different in terms of specification and components to the Super GT engine. Essentially it’s a V8 that could have been a packaging issue but we’ve been able to get over that quite easily; there was still a great deal of design work to do, although only of the type you would expect with an engine change.” NISMO will be building the initial test engines, some of which will be sent to Zytek Motorsport so that the engine programmes in Japan and the UK will be running in parallel. According to Manchester, a Zytek car customer has already been signed up. “We’ve virtually finished all the installation work to convert the car from a Zytek engine to a NISMO one; with some of the parts now in manufacture, completion will be early next year. “We’re quite optimistic. I think that with this engine having already been proven in motorsport, we will be offering a very strong package. We firmly believe that this collaboration is going to produce competitive and reliable products. It is an honour to work with a manufacturer of the standing and reputation of NISMO and we look forward to a long and RT successful partnership.”

October 2010

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NEW CARS VW RACE TOUAREG 3

DESIGNED TO CONQUER

ABOVE The Race Touareg 3 features completely reviewed aerodynamics, building on the proven chassis of its predecessor (Photos: VW)

VW believes it has found the ideal mix of evolution and revolution in the design of its new Race Touareg 3. By Chris Pickering

HINK OF endurance motorsport and it may well be Le Mans which springs to mind. The French classic famously covers the distance of an entire Formula One season, after all, but compared to the event that Volkswagen’s Race Touareg 3 was built to contest, it’s child’s play. The Dakar Rally also has its organisational roots in France (suggesting they may have some sort of masochistic streak over there), but last year’s route spanned over 9,000 km including road sections – not far off twice the distance of a Le Mans race. Admittedly, the average speed is somewhat slower at 100 kph or so compared to 220 kph for an LMP1 car, and the teams have 16 days to complete it, but factor in sand dunes the size of office blocks and altitudes of over 4,000 metres and you can see why the Dakar retains its hardcore crown. The comparison to LMP racing is far from redundant, however. Both place a huge emphasis on reliability (for obvious reasons) and, more specifically, both have witnessed

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October 2010

the rise of turbo diesel engines in motorsport. In fact Volkswagen actually brought diesel to the Dakar in 2004 with the original Race Touareg, two years before sister company Audi took its R15 TDI to Le Mans. And the car’s second iteration came tantalisingly close to victory in 2007 before going on to scoop the honours in both 2009 and 2010. Now, however, there’s a new version. Named, predictably enough, the Race Touareg 3, the new car is in fact more a subtle re-working of its predecessor than a completely new design. The name change was prompted by the overtly obvious bodywork modifications, despite the fact the underpinnings remain largely unchanged (coincidentally following the same logic as Audi’s R15 Plus!). Underneath its carbon fibre skin the latest Race Touareg uses a relatively traditional tubular steel spaceframe, the origins of which go back to the very start of the project, as Volkswagen Motorsport technical director Eduard Weidl recounts: “Back in 2003 when

we began designing the Race Touareg it was my first attempt at designing a Dakar chassis, and as far as I was concerned a spaceframe was the only option. A Dakar vehicle is very complex; there are a huge number of things you need to accommodate – not just the components themselves, but also support equipment, spare parts and so on – all of which make the packaging very tricky [and liable to change as the design evolves]. Now we’ve built up some experience, we know very well what needs to be carried on the car, but to start with I was very much aware that a spaceframe would give more flexibility. With a monocoque you’re committed to everything from the start and it’s far harder to evolve the design.” After six years and two outright wins on the world’s toughest rally, Weidl is understandably confident in the design. True to his prediction, there were initial tweaks to be carried out on things like the suspension mounting points, but, since then, the design has remained pretty much fixed. Were it

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ENGINE TECHNOLOGY 47

possible to revert to a monocoque at this stage he admits he might be tempted to do so, but the technical regulations now prevent this. There are no complaints about the present design, though. “It’s got to the stage now where the car is very reliable,” he notes, “the drivers can really go flat out over much of the terrain.” BOULDER FIELDS The job of soaking up that terrain – which ranges from desert sands to boulder fields – falls to the double wishbones and twin ZF Sachs coil over damper units on each wheel. You might expect the Touareg to come with

distances where fatigue can be an issue,” he explains. The task of designing the suspension kinematics, meanwhile, came down to a process of evolution. Weidl looked back at previous projects to set initial targets for parameters such as roll centre location, before refining them during testing. The main aim, he explains, is consistency in the kinematics. If you allow too much change in the camber angle or track width, the car tends to get deflected, making it feel nervous in a straight line – not something the drivers would welcome with 800 km of rough terrain to concentrate on. To compound matters, the car originally had to be designed to carry all its spare

A refreshingly simple basic design, but don’t be fooled: there is some very clever technology at work too” monster wheel travel to help it scale the worst of the South American contours, but in fact it’s relatively modest at 250 mm. This level, set by the event’s technical regulations, is actually no more than that of a normal gravel rally car, which left Weidl and his colleagues with something of a challenge when it came to suspension design. “You want to make complete use of the wheel travel, and we run the springs quite soft for that reason, but it’s also good for the drivers, because they’re driving for very long ABOVE The RT3: revolution to the exterior, evolution under the bonnet BELOW The new car won its first competitive outing, the Silk Way Rally through Russia providing the ideal dress-rehearsal for Dakar

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parts. As a result Weidl and the team were under pressure to keep the suspension components interchangeable wherever possible. Wishbones, dampers, even uprights had to be the same front and rear. Now the design has evolved, and now it’s been possible to confirm the durability of key components, some differences have been introduced into the kinematics, but the two ends still remain largely similar. “This is one of the reasons why we never really considered rigid axles,” notes Weidl. “Not only would the parts take up more space, but it would have been more difficult to play with roll centres and things like that.” Motive power comes from a purpose-built race engine derived from the old ‘Long Block’ five-cylinder inline diesel engine. Although now phased out, the road car engine once formed the mainstay of VAG’s diesel range and was used in a variety of Volkswagen and Audi cars in both naturally aspirated and turbocharged forms. It lends its basic layout and dimensions to the race engine, but changes have been extensive. The cast steel cylinder block of the production engine is replaced by an aluminium unit based on the same design, while the crankshaft and cylinder head are also made from aluminium. Inside the valvetrain, a single overhead camshaft drives two valves per cylinder via hydraulic bucket tappets. It’s a refreshingly simple basic design, but don’t be fooled: there is some

October 2010

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NEW CARS VW RACE TOUAREG 3

ABOVE Increased power for driving at high altitudes was one of the design briefs demanded of VWâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s proven 2.5-litre TDI BELOW Driver comfort is crucial over such long distances very clever technology at work too. Faced with the task of combining competitive power outputs with pin sharp throttle response, Volkswagen turned to two-stage turbocharging. The basic outline of the system is, again, quite straightforward, with a valve used to progressively distribute air between the high pressure turbo (which has quicker response) and its low pressure counterpart (which produces more power). Crucially, both stages have their own intercooling. At idle and under low speed conditions the exhaust valve is closed, so the whole of the exhaust flow must go to the high pressure turbine and then subsequently through to the low pressure stage. Correspondingly, on the induction side, the air is first channelled through the low pressure compressor and its intercooler before going on to the high pressure compressor and another heat exchanger. However, as the gas velocities go up this begins to change. As the speed and load increase, a bottleneck tends to form at the high pressure turbine. To combat this, the engine management system then partially opens the exhaust valve, which causes some of the gas to flow directly to the low pressure turbine, while some of it continues to flow

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October 2010

sequentially through the two. By progressively altering the amount sent to two turbines, you can essentially vary the boost characteristics from those of a high pressure turbo to those of a low pressure unit, along with any combination of the two. Perhaps the most obvious advantage of this two-stage layout is to improve the throttle response of a relatively highly turbocharged engine, but it actually yields another, more fundamental, benefit. By compressing the air in two stages, and using an additional

intercooler between the two, you can achieve lower charge temperatures than you would in a single turbo (and hence single intercooler) application. Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more, compressing it in two stages is actually more efficient than doing so in one go, so less energy is required to drive the turbines. Unlike most modern production diesels, and indeed the diesel LMPs, Dakar vehicles arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t allowed to use particulate filters (DPFs). This presents a challenge in so much that the combustion has to be carefully

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NEW CARS VW RACE TOUAREG 3

controlled to avoid falling foul of the ‘visible smoke’ regulations, but it also creates its own benefits. Without the added obstruction in the exhaust, the turbine sides of turbochargers run at significantly higher efficiency than they would do with the extra backpressure. This makes the high boost levels enabled by two-stage turbocharging a very attractive proposition – particularly given the air on the 4,700 m Andean passes is only half as dense as it is at sea-level. Ultimately, however, the limiting factor is turbo speed as Weidl recounts: “We’ve done a lot of calibration development in our high-

The biggest changes to the Race Touareg’s design are to be found in its cooling system. The job of cooling a highly turbocharged racing diesel isn’t easy at the best of times, but factor in temperatures of 50 degrees C in the Atacama Desert and it becomes a mammoth task. Unusually, Volkswagen elected to develop its own cooling elements for the Race Touareg rather than turn to a supplier. The result was a new intercooler design, which is said to considerably reduce pressure loss along the air path while delivering the same cooling effect. At the same time, the high-mounted radiator at the

requirements of off-road rallying led the team to develop some slightly unusual test criteria. “Typically we used relatively low wind speeds, but somewhat faster road speeds, in say second gear, in order to simulate the tyre slip going up the dunes,” Weidl comments. “It’s something we’ve been doing since the start of the project and we’ve had a lot of success. We’ve validated the wind tunnel tests with backto-back testing on the track and the correlation has been extremely good. In aerodynamics terms the speeds are quite low – typically around 100 to 110 kph,

ABOVE & BELOW The roof area (above) is the most obvious change over the car’s predecessor

ABOVE The RT3, developed in CFD and Volkswagen’s full-scale climatic wind tunnel, represents a big aerodynamic step forward altitude dyno, but it comes down to the turbochargers themselves. If you rev them too high the bearings can seize up, so it’s a case of making the best use of them in a given speed range.” DRIVETRAIN DURABILITY Similarly, durability is the key factor in the design of the drivetrain. Initially the car used a six-speed gearbox, but a rule change has since seen this drop to five ratios. And while the idea of having one less set of gears to worry about may sound like a good thing, Weidl warns it can introduce problems. “Having one less gear means the jump between the ratios usually gets bigger, and if the difference between one ratio and another is too large, it tends to wear the dog rings,” he explains. Meanwhile, further down the drivetrain, a viscous centre differential apportions torque between the two axles, while plate-type units control the distribution front and rear. All three are passive, thanks to a clause in the rules that prohibits the use of electronic torque biasing.

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October 2010

rear of the car has been replaced by a new larger unit, but clever design means the weight (and hence the car’s centre of gravity) remain unchanged. What has changed quite noticeably is the bodywork. “The air flow towards the radiator, the damper cooling and the diesel fuel cooling systems has been radically changed,” explains Weidl. “The objective was to improve the chimney effect that removes the heat under the carbon fibrereinforced cladding while optimising air supply in the process.” To this end the roof area now consists of two large inlets. The front inlet supplies fresh air to the intercoolers, while an enlarged duct located towards the rear serves the water cooling system as well as the rear suspension. The new configuration also reduces the height of the roof line, leading to more efficient airflow around the body. The development work behind this was carried out using a combination of CFD and Volkswagen’s full-scale climatic wind tunnel. This routine may now be par for the course in professional motorsport, but the unique

peaking at around 190 kph – so lift and drag aren’t as crucial as they would be on a circuit racing car, but cooling is vital.” On the long desert stages it’s also important to cool the crew. “The aim is to take as much stress out of the drivers as possible,” comments Weidl. “You try to make life as comfortable for them as possible: you cool them with air conditioning, you minimise kick-backs in the steering and you make sure the spring and damper rates are all set on the comfortable side. While you can be a bit more aggressive in the suspension setup for short special stages, the longer stages have a much greater variety of terrain, so you never know quite what to expect.” And that perhaps sums up the Dakar rather nicely. With its terrain, its altitude, its extremes of temperature and its sheer length you really don’t know what to expect from this event. Having watched the Race Touareg project come to fruition over the last two years, Volkswagen Motorsport is very clear on one point, however: it intends to make it a hat-trick. RT

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DRAG RACING ALLARD CHRYSLER DRAGSTER

ABOVE Sydney Allard’s 1961 Allard Chrysler was Britain’s (and indeed Europe's) first dragster (Photo: Crazy Horses/National Motor Museum, Beaulieu)

RESTORATION OF A LEGEND With the restoration of Britain’s first dragster nearing completion, Brian Taylor reports on a machine that changed the course of European motorsport 52

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October 2010

ODERN Top Fuel dragsters are awesome vehicles. Powered by nitro-burning blown and injected specialist-built 500 cubic inch V8 engines that develop over 7,000 bhp, they can reach 330 mph over the standing start quarter mile in around 4.5 seconds. Two racing each other is one of the automotive spectacles that every petrolhead should experience at least once in their lifetime. The sport has come a long way since its beginnings in the USA during the late

1940s but it wasn’t until late in 1960 that the first dragster in Europe was born. British sports car manufacturer Sydney Allard stormed into the office, slammed a copy of a Hot Rod publication featuring Chris Karamesines’ Chizler dragster onto the table and announced, “We’re going to build one of these.” There were no drag racing regulations in the existing RAC Blue Book and building regulations for cars used for sprinting and hill-climbing (sports at which Sydney Allard

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DRAG RACING 53

BELOW The Allard Chrysler at Brands Hatch in 1961 (Photo: Crazy Horses/LAT/Autocar)

ABOVE Sydney Allard, the father of British drag racing (Photo: Crazy Horses/Gavin Allard collection) excelled) had to be pretty general to cover a range of competitive disciplines. Yet these were the regulations the first European dragsters had to live with and they would severely limit the potential of Sydney’s first attempt. The new Allard Chrysler dragster had to have front brakes, covered moving parts plus front suspension. Work on a 354 cubic inch Chrysler Hemi engine commenced in his workshop and

speed equipment was ordered from Dean Moon in the USA. He decided on a frontmounted blower rather than top-mounted as on the Chizler because with covered moving parts it enabled better streamlining. And in truth, initially the car was seen as a way of putting a bit of ‘jazz’ into sprinting (which was suffering a bit of a decline at the time) rather than bringing the American sport of drag racing to the UK.

The car was first shown at Brands Hatch in the spring of 1961. It was without its bodywork and although the car was not run on the track the blown and injected Chrysler Hemi V8 engine was fired up. Britain heard its first American-styled dragster. He held a ‘live’ press demonstration of the car on the old Club Straight at Silverstone, but the first appearance of the dragster in front of the public was at the Brighton Speed

ABOVE The Allard Chrysler being built. Sydney Allard watches from the cockpit as designer David Hooper (left) checks the plans and John Hume (right) adjusts the steering (Photo: Crazy Horses/National Motor Museum, Beaulieu)

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DRAG RACING ALLARD CHRYSLER DRAGSTER

ABOVE Sydney Allard (right) in the Allard Chrysler lines up alongside Dante Duce in Mooneyes. Dean Moon does the flags (Photo: Crazy Horses/National Motor Museum, Beaulieu)

5,000 people blagged their way past astonished RAF Debden police and lined the strip”

BOTTOM The then-president of SEMA, Ed Iskenderian, stands beside the 1963 SEMA Trophy. The cup was recently rediscovered and is on display at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu (Photo: Crazy Horses/Gavin Allard collection) Trials in 1961. During the rest of the year and through 1962 its ‘art-deco’-styled body could be seen at sprint meetings and shows throughout the UK, putting down mid 10second standing start quarter mile times with estimated terminal speeds of around 150 mph. The fuel used was methanol with a small percentage of acetone. SHOOTING FOR THE MOON In July 1963 he received a telephone call from a speed shop operator and drag racer in Las Vegas called Dante Van Dusen. Duce, as he preferred to be called, issued a challenge that he could beat the Allard Chrysler and Sydney accepted. Duce mentioned the project to one of his speed shop suppliers Dean Moon and Dean offered to provide his 600 bhp 350 cubic inch Chevrolet V8-engined Mooneyes gas (petrol) dragster for the trip. Moon mentioned this at a meeting of the then recently formed Speed Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA) and it put up a trophy for the winner – the SEMA Trophy. Mickey Thompson was at that SEMA meeting and he immediately made plans to join the party as an uninvited guest. Allard and Duce first appeared together on the Club Straight at Silverstone on September 10 that year. Then at the 58th Brighton Speed Trials, the second event of

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October 2010

the Challenge, Sydney and Duce were joined by Thompson with his blown and injected V8 Ford-powered nitro burner, the Harvey Aluminum Special. The dragster demonstrations were saved until the end of the day and the 30,000 crowd was shocked into disbelief. The next event in the Challenge series was held at RAF Church Lawford, followed by RAF Debden the next day. Even though it was not promoted as a spectator event, around 5,000 people blagged their way past astonished RAF Debden police and lined the strip. Allard and Duce called their Challenge Series a draw and the SEMA Trophy was left with Sydney Allard’s name on it. The

spectacles fired the imagination of hundreds of budding UK hot rodders and drag racers. Duce and Moon returned to the USA very enthusiastic about the UK trip. Moon offered to be a spokesman for the idea of getting a team of American racers across the following year and within a month Allard and Wally Parks of the National Hot Rod Association were in discussions. The 1964 International Drag Festival series of six meetings was held over three consecutive weekends in different parts of the country: Blackbushe, RAF Chelveston, RAF Woodvale, RAF Church Fenton and RAF Kemble. The American team was selected in match-race pairs of the most popular drag racing classes at that time (dragsters, gassers, factory experimentals and drag bikes) and consisted of Don Garlits, Tommy Ivo, Bob Keith, Tony Nancy, George Montgomery, Keith Pittman, Ronnie Sox and Buddy Martin, Dave Strickler and Grumpy Jenkins, Dante Duce, Doug Church, Bill Woods and Don Hyland. Sydney’s son Alan Allard took the Allard Chrysler to a best time of 10.28 seconds at 150 mph. By this time it had become clear that the 1961 Allard Chrysler dragster was now well past its sell-by date. It had become obsolete with no chance of development to modern standards due to the RAC regulations in place when it was built. So they commenced building a new dragster, this

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DRAG RACING ALLARD CHRYSLER DRAGSTER

time one designed solely for drag racing rather than a hybrid for sprinting, and they used the engine and front-mounted blower from the original Allard Chrysler. STORED IN A BARN Sydney Allard died in 1966. The old 1961 Allard Chrysler rolling chassis had been kept at the Clapham workshops but after Sydney died it was moved around southern England when the company was split up, ending up in Alan Allard’s barn for many years. He handed it over in 1979 to Allard Owners Club member Brian Golder, who carried out a part restoration of the rolling chassis and body before loaning it to the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu. After Brian’s death it was bequeathed to the museum. There it has remained on display for many years with most visitors not really recognising its historic importance until recently. It was 2008 before the latest chapter of the Allard Chrysler dragster’s story was opened. During research for my book for Haynes Publishing called Crazy Horses – the history of British drag racing, I became very aware of the excellent condition of the car and its importance in the sport’s history as Europe’s first dragster. I judged that it wouldn’t take too much work or funds to get it back into a condition where it could be fired up (‘cackled’) and paraded. I contacted Lord Montagu of Beaulieu and after a series of meetings the Museum Trust gave the thumbs-up, so I decided to form a

group of enthusiasts who could start raising the funds and provide the expertise to take the project forward – hence the Allard Chrysler Action Group (ACAG). I acted as chairman of the ACAG, liaising with Doug Hill, chief engineer and museum manager. Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason agreed to be the group’s patron. He is chairman of the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu Trustees Advisory Council and a trustee. The

BELOW Thrilling the crowd at the 1964 Drag Festival (Photo: Crazy Horses/Gavin Allard collection)

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October 2010

The band of supporters gradually grew and along with cash donations, the sales of items like special ACAG T-shirts, polo shirts and limited edition prints helped swell the

The crank snout had to be shortened before it could be mated with the blower adapter”

ABOVE ACAG members and National Motor Museum, Beaulieu staff inspect the car (Photo: ACAG/Alan Currans)

first job was to thoroughly inspect the car to see what was needed and establish some kind of budget and task list. Fortunately one of the group was David Hooper, who designed the car for Sydney in 1960, so his input was invaluable.

funds. By the end of 2009 they had raised enough money to place an order for a replacement 354 Chrysler Hemi V8. However, they don’t make 354 cubic inch Chrysler Hemis any more and it was obvious that the USA was the place to source the parts and the expertise. Getting American suppliers and fans on board was an important aspect of keeping costs under control – much easier to do with a direct American involvement in the project. ACAG American support was strengthened when Project 1320 chairman Traci Hrudka agreed to be ACAG copatron. Project 1320 is a trust supported by the top names of American drag racing, formed to plot the history of drag racing in film. At the same time legendary drag racing personality Linda Vaughn became an honorary member of the ACAG. HIGH NITRO LOADS After some research the ACAG chose Michigan-based engine builders and nostalgia specialists Booth-Arons. A complete and accurate replication was not possible due to some parts manufacturers not being around anymore and other original details missing from the available information. Booth-Arons recommended that the new engine be built to take high nitro loads (90%) for the best ‘cackling’ performance – i.e. lots of noise and flames. This would also toughen up the engine, making it less likely to fail. But aesthetically it would be exactly the same as that built back in 1960/61. It located a 1956 354 Chrysler Hemi engine with original paint and decals on the valve covers – a truly unmolested and

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DRAG RACING ALLARD CHRYSLER DRAGSTER

LEFT The 354 Chrysler Hemi heart of the car at Booth-Arons in Michigan before work commenced (Photos: Sam Eidy) BELOW Custom-made Racetec pistons BOTTOM The short block ready for heads

perfect starting point having originally been an industrial engine. This was completely disassembled and, thankfully, it was discovered that it had a standard bore and crank. The thick walls and webs on these older, untouched, blocks don’t require a torque plate. It was baked and blasted prior to honing. The head surfaces were then decked and made parallel so that everything was equalled out and the bore honed to a perfectly round 4.060 inches diameter with a 3.625-inch stroke taking it out to 375 cubic inches. This unshrouds the valves (normal practice for race engines) and facilitates a louder more fiery sound when the engine is fired up plus more flames from the exhaust headers – providing the right cam is used of course. Taking it out to 375 cubic inches also enables the use of Big Block Chevrolet rods, pins and journals: often easier (and cheaper) to obtain than Chrysler. Racetec Pistons designed and donated the pistons – 10 billet slugs to provide spares. The main bearings are standard Chrysler Hemi size. Beaulieu had a blower, blower manifold and Potvin adapter, from a part-restoration carried out in the 1980s by Brian Golder. These were sent to Booth-Arons and the blower forwarded to Littlefield Blowers in California which re-tuned it for the front-mounted Potvin setup that characterises the car. Meanwhile, back at Booth-Arons, the bright work was tumbled and polished – including a rare set of valve covers that were sent to the chrome shop after some metal work had been carried out by Al Bergler. Because the engine was so pristine, with little run time, the crank was simply checked that it was straight, then polished and nitrided for surface hardening. Other parts were machined and made ready for assembly. Everything was weighed and balanced on an individual component basis before the piston/crankshaft assembly was balanced. HEADWORK Steve Sanchez of Total Flow Products, Michigan, did all the headwork. New Manley valves, valve guides and seats were fitted – the exact same exhaust valve blanks as used for Top Fuel and Funny Car competitors. Crower donated custom-ground cams and springs. Trend Performance supplied the pushrods (and piston pins). The block and heads were registered and receiver

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DRAG RACING 59

ABOVE Heads now on and blower manifold in position for measuring spacers. The crank had been taken out for shortening (Photo: Sam Eidy) BELOW LEFT Three legends: custom car designer George Barris & drag racing personality and honorary ACAG member Linda Vaughn beside the blown and injected 354 Chrysler Hemi being readied for the Allard Chrysler. The rocker covers are slaves (Photo: Sam Eidy) BELOW Glory days: prints of a painting by Paul Whitehouse helped raise funds (Courtesy of ACAG)

grooves machined when the heads were returned to Booth-Arons and assembly of the short-block commenced. Hilborn supplied a two-port injection system and fuel pump. But prior to mounting the blower it was discovered that the crank snout had to be shortened before it could be mated with the blower adapter. And there have been other problems along the way such as the length of pushrods and the need for spacers between the heads and the blower adapter (both probably the result of decking the head). Availability of parts (difficult enough with an engine of this vintage) has gradually become more of an issue as the economic recession has forced suppliers to reduce their stock holdings. A brand new Taylor Vertex magneto has

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The car was seen as a way of putting a bit of ‘jazz’ into sprinting” been located in the USA – exactly the same as the Scintilla unit fitted to the original engine back in 1961. And at the time of going to press the engine was getting very close to final assembly ready for dyno testing before dispatch to the UK in November. Stuart Bradbury of US Automotive of Bedford has been handling the USA-UK logistics and technical liaison and will organise the completed engine’s return to Beaulieu. Work can then start on finishing the restoration of the rolling

chassis and components. 2011 marks the car’s 50th birthday and plans are being made for it to visit the USA. The Project 1320 team in the USA is working with the ACAG to achieve this with the possibility that the Mooneyes dragster will appear in the UK at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu during the same period. At the beginning and end of the swap period there will be opportunities for these two iconic cars to appear side-by-side for the first time since 1963. RT

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SPECIAL REPORT ELECTRONICS

CHIPS WITH EVERYTHING! The rapid evolution of motorsport electronics has led to a vibrant marketplace. Chris Pickering reports on some of the latest offerings

ABOVE Racelogic offers a powerful range of analysis tools

HAT WE’RE looking at here is a hugely broad topic. Electricity is everywhere in motorsport, in fact so much so that it’s virtually impossible to avoid. Even if something’s not directly controlled or actuated by electronic devices, there’s still a very good chance it’s monitored or recorded by them. Suspension components, tyres… even aerodynamic devices on the bodywork are sprouting electronic appendages at an ever-increasing rate. In this month’s special report we look at some of the latest developments from companies in this rapidly advancing field.

RACELOGIC We begin with Racelogic, and the concept of lap time prediction. The basic idea itself is not a new thing, but traditionally lap time prediction systems have worked by taking the rolling distance around the lap as a reference and then comparing two laps to show where improvements could be made. In some cases this can work well, but it’s not without its drawbacks. It relies on the car taking a similar line around the circuit each lap, for example, which works adequately under ideal conditions, but falters when the

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driver decides to try a different line or needs to move off-line to overtake another car. With the advent of high frequency GPS data loggers came an alternative, and it was one that the company was quick to capitalise on. Using the GPS system to align the two laps opens up the possibility of far more accurate logging. While the position data itself may only be accurate to a few metres, an average race speed is well in excess of 30 ms-1, which means the errors are typically minimised to around a tenth of a second, and often far less. To demonstrate how this can help in the analysis software, Racelogic’s managing director Julian Thomas shows us two laps of the 2.6 km Silverstone National circuit recorded by a professional driver during a race. “The rolling distance variation was 11.6 m even though the lap time difference was only 0.06s,” he observes. “This equates to an analysis alignment error of 0.3s, and this is around a very short track, with a very good driver. On a longer track with a less consistent driver, this error can easily grow to over a second. Using GPS position, however, the timing error between these laps is virtually eliminated.” A recent extension of this has been to take

this GPS positional alignment and use it inside the car, in real time. Racelogic calls it ‘LineSnap’. “As processors have become faster, and the routines have been optimised, GPS has become a more accurate method of achieving alignment in real time, updated 10 times a second,” continues Thomas. “Recently we have made this ‘LineSnap’ functionality available free of charge with our OLED Display, which, when combined with the [Racelogic] Video VBOX, will stay accurate to within a tenth of a second, no matter how long the lap or what lines the driver takes.” It is, Thomas believes, a sign of things to come. “For instant feedback on driving technique and line, this kind of predictive display cannot be beaten,” he says. “And as prices for the hardware fall, displays like these will become an essential tool for any driver keen on improving lap times.” BOSCH MOTORSPORT Bosch Motorsport requires little introduction. Its parent company spans everything from communications to washing machines and the motorsport division’s reach is almost as comprehensive

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SPECIAL REPORT 61

ABOVE & BELOW Combining the OLED display and the Video VBOX enables lap time prediction accurate to within a tenth of a second, no matter how long the lap

within its field. From fuel injectors and spark plugs to data logging systems and ECUs, it covers just about every electronic application in professional-level motorsport over a huge number of disciplines. So what’s new at this automotive giant? Well, lately the company’s engineers have been working on a new software development process for its MS 5 family of BELOW Inside Bosch’s MS 5 ECU

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ECUs, intended to significantly speed up algorithm development with a new environment based on Matlab and Simulink. The increasing complexity of such control units and their growing functionality (up to 100 functions in the case of the MS 5) has, the company tells us, meant that the demand for documentation to illustrate these functions has also gone up.

“Until now if you wanted to show what was happening inside the ECU you needed to generate text documents manually,” explains Klaus Böttcher, director of Bosch Motorsport. “This was done as part of the function programming phase and proved very time-consuming. Changes to the programming had to be completed manually every time in order to track them in the documentation.” Now, however, the company has developed a new function that allows this documentation to be automatically generated and updated, and it’s all thanks to the model-based approach of Matlab. In the new environment, software functions are programmed visually as flowcharts. These functions can then be tested in the program directly as models. This means the developer can verify their functionality without creating a complete software version and without the need to test it within an ECU, both of which save valuable development time. Once the modelling and simulation phases are complete, the program software is created using automatic code generation, ready to be downloaded into the ECU. Much like the program itself, the documentation is based on this software function model. “When it comes to the function models that are transferred into the documentation as flowcharts, the function developer simply creates additional text boxes for each function during the programming phase,” explains Böttcher. “These text boxes contain function descriptions and application hints that are automatically transferred into the documentation as text components.” When creating the documentation, the current program status is always referred to, meaning the documentation is up-todate at all times. The documentation can then be exported directly into PDF format, which means it can be read by just about anyone with a PC, without the need for any specialist software. The process automatically generates cross-references which track the progression of signals and their associated functions, as well as the parameters contained within them. This, Böttcher argues, makes the documentation far clearer, but for those worried about prying eyes it is also possible to limit the visibility of certain functions and transfer only the required parts to the documentation.

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SPECIAL REPORT ELECTRONICS

DC ELECTRONICS It’s been a busy year for DC Electronics. The company has no less than four new products due for launch in the run up to the 2011 season, spanning four very different areas of motorsport electronics. First up is an electro luminescent lighting kit for illuminating race number panels. While the basic concept is not a new thing, 2010 has been the first year that some championships have demanded three illuminated panels rather than the standard two. In response to this, DC Electronics has developed a single inverter that will power all three 450 mm x 300 mm illuminated panels (supplied as part of ABOVE The DC Electronics electro luminescent lighting kit illustrated both off (top) and on

ABOVE The rear view camera is one of four new releases from DC Electronics

RLC RACING

the kit) meaning, it points out, that wiring is simplified and the weight is reduced. For other series the kit can still be supplied as a conventional two-panel kit with the same inverter. Moving inside the car, the next new release is a rear vision camera system,

to things like roll cages and rear wings. The small, compact monitor simply bonds to the windscreen as a direct replacement for a conventional mirror, while the camera can be mounted high on the rear of the vehicle to give a better perspective of what is going on behind with its 180° viewing angle. The monitor has controls to adjust its contrast, brightness and saturation, which should make it easy to achieve the desired picture, and the total current draw of the system is less than 240 Ma at 13.8 volts DC. Next up is an entry into the growing market for power control modules, with a 4-channel unit aimed at the formula car

Wiring is simplified and the weight is reduced” complete with camera, monitor, connecting cables and a double-sided adhesive pad to bond the monitor to the windscreen via an integral ball-and-socket arm. This system is intended for closed cockpit cars with little or no rear view due

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market. Each channel is a high side FET device and the software is designed to be controlled all from one page. The user can assign each channel a name (for example, ‘fuel pump’) from the drop down menu and then has options to set the current limit at which a warning LED will illuminate, and a further limit at which the channel will switch off. In addition to this, it allows you to set a time delay before applying the current limits when the channel is first turned on, which allows time for things like radiator fans to spool up without tripping the system. Each channel is switched on by grounding its corresponding input pin, making it compatible with all engine management systems, and the device comprises of three 20 Amp channels for general use and one 30 Amp channel for use with paddleshift compressors (subject to a high in-rush current). Finally, the company is looking to build on its existing range of electronic power steering products with a new powered steering rack, complete with a built-in electric motor. The rack is at the prototype stage currently, but it’s designed for vehicles where space is limited and a column mount system is not an option. Once released it should be compatible with DC Electronics’ existing range of EPAS products such as the Ultra ECU and the Steering Column Torque Sensor.

October 2010

GPS data logging specialist RLC Racing burst onto the scene with its Exact Track Mapping technology back when many racers were still struggling with maps inferred mathematically from accelerometer readings. The key to the success of its GPS loggers has, in part, been the use of what’s known as differential GPS (which is often abbreviated to DGPS). This uses a network of ground-based transmitters to provide fixed reference points. Armed with the true locations of these, the GPS device can compare them with its observed readings and then correct for any discrepancies – the upshot of which is greatly improved accuracy. “Even standard GPS modules without any kind of land station-based correction provide an accuracy of 3-5 metres,” explains RLC Racing’s Eric Coomer.

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BELOW A typical RLC Racing software overlay

“However, the United States and the EU countries (along with others) have installed land stations across their territories, which means that differential GPS is now the standard. With this free differential correction, precision is to the inch and accuracy is commonly on the same scale. Granted that a car travels on a straight line (when measured at a rate of one fifth of a second or faster), slight averaging provides exact location on a track.” Using 5 Hz-10 Hz GPS modules, the RLC Racing systems chart the edges of the tracks to produce a map of not just the racing line, but the whole road surface. “Given the existing technology, knowing your exact position on the track, even exact position within the edges of the actual pavement, may seem too good to be true. But it isn’t, and it should be part of any basic racing system,” Coomer argues. This does pose an interesting question: given the technology has been around for decades, why aren’t differential GPS systems found more commonly in racing? Part of the answer may be cost, but Coomer believes much of it lies with limited computing power. “Many systems lack the number-crunching power to analyse GPS data on the fly,” he says. “Imagine your handheld calculator trying to analyse world coordinates at high rates… even the least computer-literate user can see this is impossible. Our systems, however, are operating with components found in today’s cutting edge products, and operating at speeds similar

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to your home computer.” This means even budget-conscious racers now have access to the tools required for useful racing analysis without the need for trackside transmitters or beacons; namely standard, predictive, and split timing based on GPS. RLC Racing’s engineers claim that interpolating the positioning readings allows them to produce precise times accurate to around a thousandth of a second. “It takes some serious number-

crunching power to do this,” adds Coomer, “especially while monitoring and logging a racecar’s sensors, but we manage to pack all this power into very small units.” Post-analysis of logged GPS data can be incredibly useful. “Once you have a full outline of the track surface it’s possible to deduce which lines are working, lap in, lap out,” Coomer continues. “Combined with braking, steering, and throttle sensor data, you can figure out which driving patterns work best on a turn-by-turn basis. With enough post-analysis numbercrunching, the possibilities for summarised data seem incredibly high. Imagine being told by your analysis software that you need to take this turn deeper, accelerate out later, or anything of the sort. Not only is this possible, but it will be available in the near future; GPS has made its splash and it’s here to stay.” GEMS General Engine Management Systems, better known as GEMS, has been around for over a quarter of a century. These days the company has diversified far beyond its engine control namesake, with a range that now features

LEFT The GEMS DA1 data recorder benefits from a clever circuit board layering system BELOW The PM1 power management system

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BINDERS Race Tech is an invaluable reference work: keep your issues to hand in our stylish binders. These are both smart and strong and will ensure that each and every copy of the magazine stays exactly as when you first received it. Each binder holds 12 issues, providing a secure and efficient way of storing the magazine as a collectors item and as the best source of information upon racing technology. Prices: (Incl p&p) Uk only: £7.50 Europe: £9.50 Rest of the World £11.00

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SPECIAL REPORT ELECTRONICS

everything from differential control systems to data acquisition. One area in which GEMS has recently taken something of a leap forward is display technology. Its AM-OLED dashboard is a landmark product, not just in motorsport, but in general electronics, argues GEMS’ manager Henry Skinner. “We were among the first companies in the world to have the AM-OLED display on a saleable product,” he recounts. The brightness, contrast and low weight of the AM-OLED allow a computer-style colour screen to be taken into the world of opentop racing for the first time, which Skinner believes could replace the need for traditional LED and LCD technology altogether. In its place you get a fully configurable display that can be used to represent just about anything, plus the software required to configure it. Next on our run through of GEMS’ recent releases is the DA1 data recorder. Despite being the size of a USB stick, it’s claimed to provide all the functionality of a professional specification CAN and serial data recorder – it’s a very neat piece of packaging, which GEMS attributes to the continuing reduction in the size of electronic components and a clever circuit board layering system. Once done, the DA1 can be removed from the vehicle using a quick release connector and

ABOVE The SDL3 boasts a whole new generation of functionality

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October 2010

plugged into a PC with minimal effort. Moving on to power management systems, the company’s PM1 and PM2 units provide what Skinner promises to be “a new way of controlling the power systems in a motorsport vehicle”. The system is comprised of multiple PM1 units with eight outputs (each of up to 20 amps) and a single PM2 controller unit with a back-lit membrane keypad. Combined, they work as a distributed CAN-controlled network with remote power modules in each corner of the car and direct control of some items from the central control unit. “The idea behind distributed control is that it results in a super lightweight wiring loom giving significant weight saving and greater control possibilities over conventional systems,” Skinner notes. “As well as providing switching, the PM2s are able to report faults and consumption to a dash or unit data logger.” Finally, we have the EMDI72 engine control unit. Designed specifically for diesel motorsport, this fully programmable ECU has dual processors and provision for up to eight common rail injectors. It has been specifically optimised for diesel use, with particular attention paid to injector control. The drivers can each supply up to 25 amps and 100 volts, and can be configured for pilot-, pre- and postinjection as well as the main supply.

MoTeC MoTeC is another familiar name with a raft of recent releases in motorsport electronics. Most recently we’ve seen the emergence of a new CAN-based Shift Light Module (SLM) designed to work with the company’s existing ECUs, display units and data loggers. Small enough to mount on the steering wheel, it features eight full-colour LEDs that can each emit eight different colours. They can be used for shift lights and warning lights as well as other indicators, as programmed by the user. Urgent warnings, for example, might trigger a full red display, while activation of the pit lane speed limiter could be indicated by several centre lights flashing blue, and wheel lock up might be shown as two or three left or right lights only. The Australian firm has also been busy on the data logging side during the past few months. The SDL3, an evolution of the original Sport Dash Logger, hit the shelves earlier this year and, like its predecessor, the new model manages to cram a fully programmable display, controller and data logger into one package. While it is outwardly similar to the previous model, MoTeC claims the SDL3 boasts a whole new generation of functionality, with numerous features inherited from MoTeC’s top of the line Dash Logger, the ADL3. “These enhancements make the new Sport Dash powerfully versatile for a diverse range of applications, whether employed as a stand-alone device or incorporated into a complete engine management and data acquisition solution,” comments MoTeC Europe’s general manager Peter Jackson. “Flexible logging options also mean that the system has room to grow; those with considerable data requirements can opt for maximum memory from the outset, while customers with no immediate need for data logging can purchase the dash as a display-only unit then enable logging later if desired.”

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spring/damper unit to very complex instruments, adjustable in more than four ways. The ride and handling of a racecar is very sensitive to a well tuned damping system which can make the difference between success and failure

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RACEPAK

BELOW Stack’s TPMS system implants a sensor inside each wheel

STACK Not even the tyres escape the march of electronics in the modern racecar. Stack’s TPMS system implants a sensor inside each wheel that uses the principle of surface acoustic waves (SAW) to infer the tyre’s temperature and pressure based

The potential to prevent thousands of pounds of damage due to a blowout is a major incentive” from its oscillatory characteristics. The SAW device acts as a transducer, taking the mechanical oscillations of the tyre and transmitting them back as a radio frequency signal. What’s more, because the SAW is excited by a pulse of energy from an external chassis-mounted interrogator module, there’s no need for any batteries or wires. If this all sounds strangely familiar, there may be a reason for that. We previewed the original TPMS system in Race Tech 102. At the time its potential to help optimise tyre operating conditions and provide early warning of punctures caught our eye largely for its performance and safety benefits. Now the TPMS is in the marketplace, however, the company says it’s also noticing demand for another reason. “In these cost-conscious times the

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October 2010

potential to prevent hundreds or even thousands of pounds of damage cost due to a tyre blowout is another major incentive,” reckons Stack marketing manager Michael Lutak. And that’s not all. “Because our battery-less system has such a long sensor life it doesn’t require replacement at the end of each season, which means total-life system running costs are slashed,” he continues. “Plus, the sensor’s ability to operate at higher temperatures and produce sample data at higher rates without shortening sensor life again reduces costs to teams.”

Racepak has long been recognised as one of the main data acquisition suppliers in the world of nitro methane-powered drag racing. Its reputation has been built on producing systems robust enough to survive the extreme conditions imposed upon them by these vehicles, but recently the company has begun diversifying. It now produces a selection of CAN bus-based, flash memory data loggers, for use in a variety of other motorsport disciplines. The company’s latest product, however, takes Racepak back to its drag racing roots. The Pro III is a professional-level drag racing data logger that combines the rugged design of the previous Pro series, with the company’s new CAN bus and flash memory technology. The end result is a data logger with a substantially increased number of sensor inputs, able to record at higher sampling rates, and capable of saving all the data to a large capacity removable SD memory card. Designed for use in both nitro methane and alcohol-powered drag racing vehicles, and with on-track testing currently in progress throughout the 2010 season, the Pro III will be available in time for the 2011 season. RT

ABOVE Racepak’s Pro III Professional Series Drag Race Data Logger is currently being trialled prior to its 2011 release

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PRACTICAL RACER 750FORMULA BUILD PROJECT PART 7

BELOW A 3D model of the chassis. This was the basis for a Finite Element Analysis of the T5 plans

GRAPE FEA ANALYSIS BEARS FRUIT Graham Templeman and Rod Hill enlist the 750Formula champion’s help with a 3D FEA program, then make a start on their new T5 chassis

N LAST month's piece I made reference to the possibility of doing finite element analysis (FEA) and decided that it just wasn't suitable for the amateur. I was discussing this with Dave Robson (current 750Formula champion) and the conversation got round to the freely available Grape3D FEA computer program, which I had dismissed as being too much trouble for someone who had just built a balsa model. By trade, Dave is an engineer and has spent much of his working life throwing railway trains into blocks of concrete and seeing whether his crash structures worked, so when he offered to do the analysis for me, you can imagine the response.

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October 2010

He had previously used Grape to analyse the beam axle (well, wishbones would be too conventional) on the front of his car and was quite interested in the feasibility of using it for a larger structure. All that I had to do was provide the data and he was happy to give it a go. I felt that this was above and beyond the call, especially since he had work to do on his car to manufacture a new splitter and nose box after a grassy indiscretion during the previous Pembrey race. Carrying out an FEA study is easier to say than to do. There is the small matter of having to identify every single tube (element) in the frame in order to provide the program with the correct physical characteristics as

regards stiffness and second moments of inertia of the material. Then there was the task of providing the coordinates of every joint. And it is more complex than you might imagine, because a tube that we identify as the right cockpit top rail is considered by Grape to be two tubes, one from the dashboard to the triangulation member and the other from there to the roll-over bar. So that's not one element but two and not two coordinates but three. This doubled our tube count to about 130 and we now know that there are at least 70 nodes. Once the frame has been ‘built’ in Grape, decisions have to be made about what you want to test. For us, torsional stiffness was

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PRACTICAL RACER 71

the principal point of interest, but the program will also cope with the effect of loads fed into the structure. To measure torsional stiffness accurately the loads have to be fed into the frame correctly and the frame constrained in a suitable manner. For our purposes Dave simply applied the load downwards on the top front corner of the chassis and upwards on the opposite bottom front corner. The chassis has to be restricted from movement in all six degrees of freedom, without overkill. If you restrain all four corners of the rear bulkhead in all three directions, it is the equivalent of bolting the back of the frame to a large concrete block. The chassis would be restrained, but it would also be borrowing strength from the block. So Dave constrained the bottom lefthand corner of the rear bulkhead on the X, Y and Z axes, one corner in the Y and Z modes and a third on the Z axis. Think of it as the software equivalent of restraining the chassis with hooks or cables rather than

coordinates and the materials to be used for each element. I was careful to do this in a way that meant that the tables could be updated so that if we decided for example to shorten the engine bay, entering the new length of the bay would automatically

did not really work. That then meant that I had to review the original spreadsheet. The common error was forgetting to change the signs so that we had two nodes on the one side of the car and none on the other. Grape3D does not like this!

The chassis has to be restricted from movement in all six degrees of freedom, without overkillâ&#x20AC;? update all of the affected coordinates. In fact, while I was at it, I saved this model so that it could form the basis for a generic fivebay spaceframe for future use. Key to this was locating each bulkhead in relation to the one in front of it, so adding 50 mm to the footwell would move the dashboard and all subsequent bulkheads rearwards. We also defined the overall width of the bulkhead in BELOW The completed roll-over bar and chassis rail. The bottom piece is a temporary strut to keep the shape

The result of our labours was a rotation of 0.85 mm of the front bulkhead on a load of 1,000 N, which translates into a torsional rigidity of just over 2,500 Nm/deg. Bang on target and it means that instead of borrowing stiffness by riveting and gluing aluminium panels, we can use aluminium bulkheads to satisfy the fireproof bulkhead rules, provide the driver with an aluminium floorplate to protect his most valuable assets and the rest of the chassis can be panelled with bonded lightweight plastic sheet. We always find the rule-makersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; insistence on fireproof bulkheads an odd thing with an open spaceframe car. Fireproof bulkheads are going to do very little to protect a driver in the event of an accident because flames and spilt fluids will not have read the rule book and will go where nature takes them. CHASSIS UNDERWAY

angle iron structures. We used the SAE axis system and put the origin in the middle of the bottom front chassis rail so that X denotes lateral dimensions, Y is height and Z, fore and aft. This axis system ties in with one that we use for Susprog (the suspension analysis program) and provided a basis for drawing the solid model shown in the illustration. The time taken was useful because it forced us to face up to some placement decisions that had just been slightly grey areas. Particularly, our view of the final bay of the chassis changed somewhat. I prepared a spreadsheet listing all the

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actual units and constructed the spreadsheet to calculate the node points by reference to the tube dimensions used. So a change from 22 mm tube to 25 mm tube whilst keeping the outer dimensions the same would automatically update the coordinates. In the event, it was not such a difficult job. Our suspension program needed coordinates, the racing rules dictate certain dimensions and we know others by measuring the old car. It was an iterative process. It took me a couple of days to provide Dave with the spreadsheet and it took Dave a similar amount of time to enter the figures into Grape and to come up with a model that

So now it was getting close to the time when building the chassis could not be put off any longer. We were lucky enough to have the flat table that Rod used to use for straightening Formula Fords in the good old days when these were run by individuals rather than teams and it has also served in the building of Mystics Types 1 to 4. It consists of six legs, to bring things to a nice working height, and a 3 ft by 8 ft platform constructed of 4 x 2-inch channel. It has cross-members made from the same material that are bolted in where the bulkheads need to be. Luckily most drivers are human, so the footwell and cockpit lengths are pretty well standard so only the rear of the engine bay and the final cross-members need to change. This substantial table is not strictly necessary and there are plenty of examples of home-built chassis being constructed on simple wooden platforms. Most builders take the extra trouble of constructing a frame to

October 2010

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PRACTICAL RACER 750FORMULA BUILD PROJECT PART 7

bring the platform up to a convenient working height and to enable them to create a truly level working surface. A wooden base is not without its advantages. You can draw the frame on to the wood as a guide and woodscrews or lengths of threaded bar and shelving-type slotted angle provide a simple method of locating the tubes in space. There is an obvious fire risk but generally a bottle of water seems to be enough to deal with the minor flare ups. A professionally-built frame would be constructed on a jig rather than a table, with substantial vertical supports to allow pieces to be located precisely for welding. The best version of this that I have seen was at the Juno works, where the original computer model had been used as a basis for substantial laser cut frames that slotted together like a 3D jigsaw puzzle. Another interesting variant was the single-seater jig that looked like a cross between a spit roaster and a Christmas tree with a substantial central tube and steel branches sticking out to define the hard points on the chassis. We don't have a chassis jig, but Rod did make himself a small construction aid. It is

ABOVE A small jig to help with getting right-angles right simply a triangle of tubes joined with a carefully constructed 90-degree angle with tabs to locate tubes for welding. It doesn't take a mighty leap of intellect to work out that this will be invaluable in creating the square frames on which the chassis is based and in setting the vertical members at true right-angles. Without a jig, work has to proceed carefully and slowly. The main problem is avoiding distortion as the build progresses. We inevitably add heat and this introduces stresses as the components cool. The photo shows the right side of an engine bay stiffened with three triangulating members. The wrong way to assemble these would be to do a complete weld at one end of the first strut and then weld the other end. If this

were done, the strut would expand as it was heated and might temporarily be 1 to 2 mm longer than it was when it was cut. This would mean that the second weld would have to take place a small but significant distance further down the bottom rail. Our three struts, which fitted nicely when cold, wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go in when hot. When the first strut cooled, it would try to return to its normal length, but cannot because it is firmly welded in place. This puts the strut into an impossible situation. It wants to shrink back to its original size but it is fastened at both ends. So we have put it under a tension that will try to pull the welds closer together. It is likely that the unsupported bottom rail would bend upwards to stay connected to the now cooler and shorter strut. Add two more struts in this manner and the main chassis rails would take on a wave-like appearance in a desperate attempt to stay together. Or the welds might break. Or a chassis rail might split. Or the top rail, having more support than the bottom, might pull the bottom rail out of shape. Or the sum of all the stresses and their mirror image on the other side, might distort the

BELOW Care is needed to avoid introducing distortion

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PRACTICAL RACER 750FORMULA BUILD PROJECT PART 7

ABOVE Make friends with someone who owns one of these BELOW Quality control in action

whole of the back of the chassis. There are ways round the problem. Without a jig to boss the tubes into place, we will have to tack things together temporarily to minimise the expansion/contraction issue and to ensure that everything is held in the right relationship before finalising the welds. Minimising the heat input helps and we will be using tig welding and taking our time. Once the chassis is started, there is always another place that needs work. So the idea is to tack a tube into place and complete a single weld if it is not going to lead to distortion. This will heat the tube and expand it, so we will move to another, remote part of the chassis and do some work there. With patience and a bit of common sense it is possible to build an adequately straight chassis in this way. Having spent what seemed like an age

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October 2010

getting ready to build the chassis, it was now time to get started. The roll-over bars were the sensible starting point. If they were not exactly to size, the chassis could be built round them. Bending them to fit precisely into a pre-determined gap in the chassis seemed more difficult. We worked on the assumption that everyone knows someone who has a pipe bender that they can borrow, so we thought that we ought to try to bend the roll-over bars for ourselves. We have a friend who owns a beautiful old Hilmor double-ram hydraulic machine, so it seemed silly not to have a go. The precise size of the hoop was worked out with Rod sitting in the existing car, complete with crash helmet to be absolutely certain that we had the necessary clearance between the top of the hat and the rear roll-over bar and to be sure that it passed the straight line test

between the rear bar and the dashboard hoop. Then we added a couple of inches to be sure that a taller driver would be protected. The next step was to create a template of the shape that we would use to test the finished product. We provided for a fairly large radius for the main bend to make sure that we could fit forwardfacing support stays to protect the driver without getting in his way whilst driving. The actual bending operation turned out to be fairly tense: if we failed to bend it to the right size and shape, or if we did not meet the MSA specification for flattening the tube, we would have wasted a journey and a morning and junked about £40 worth of tube. Not too bad in itself, but bearing in mind that it is possible to have the tube bent to your specification for between £60 and £100, we began to wonder whether we had balanced risk and return properly. We could have ended up with a couple of pieces of scrap tube and feeling rather silly. In the end, the bars turned out perfectly and the pleasure taken in a job well done far outweighed any doubts that we had during our morning’s exertions. If you decide to forgo the pleasures of rolling your own, there are a number of specialists that can help. A good sign of the right company is that they know what tube

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PRACTICAL RACER 75

is acceptable for motorsport applications and are prepared to supply it as part of the deal. Contracting the job out means that they have the worry of making sure that it is to your required dimensions and that it meets the MSA requirements about size and strength of materials. The starting point for the chassis build was the front bulkhead. This is a complex component that fulfils several purposes. It provides the datum for the whole car and is fixed at the centre line of the chassis, at the bottom of the bottom rail and on its front face. It has to locate the top and bottom front wishbone pickups, and provide a mounting for the three hydraulic master cylinders and the steering rack. If we built it again, it would not look like the present one. Anxious to get started, and knowing that it was just a copy of the existing one, we decided that the drawings would be done after it was completed. A classic case of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Ready, Fire, Aim!â&#x20AC;&#x2122; The T4 bulkhead was built round the old rules that required a two-inch square bottom chassis rail. This one used 22 mm (7/8 in.) and nothing fitted where it was needed. The master cylinders cannot be mounted direct to the bottom rail because they need to be at a fixed height to provide the necessary pedal leverage. This led to the three extra lugs welded to the bottom rail shown in the picture.

BELOW The front bulkhead nears completion

BELOW This feels like the first steps in building the chassis

COMPROMISES The next stage was a horizontal bar for the upper master cylinder mounts. This did not fall conveniently for the bottom front wishbone mountings, but these were still judged to be stiff enough. Once the work was done, it became obvious that the second horizontal rail could have been a centimetre higher and the master cylinder holes drilled off-centre. This would also have improved the bottom wishbone mountings. Bearing in mind our need to make progress with the build and not wishing to scrap the work that had already been done, we decided that the T6 would be more elegant but that this would have to do for the T5. We have dispensed with the top rail completely. In its previous form, having to get the steering column to the rack meant a curved top rail and cut-outs in a chassis member at the top of the footwell. The new approach avoided both of these problems. The rack mounts are not shown on the

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photo because the second-hand steering rack that we are using still has to be shortened to match the top wishbones and the mounting blocks have yet to be made. The rack will mount on plates between the triangulating pieces and the third horizontal. The intention had been to continue the triangulation down to the second horizontal, but by this stage the bulkhead is beginning to feel quite substantial and looks like it will need huge forces to make it lozenge. So as not to offend the purists (as if we havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t done enough of that already), we will tweak the FEA model to see the effectiveness of completing the triangulation. Bear in mind, though, that we achieved our target of 2,500 Nm/deg with a model based on a simple unsupported square frame at the front. Anything beyond that is overkill. The upper wishbone mountings are slightly

set back to make room for the steering rack and are constructed from two pieces of 22 mm tube. The mounting bushes were fitted by filing half-moon shapes in each tube since the original plan of welding the tubes together and drilling down the centre proved to be nigh-on impossible. In a perfect world, we would have had a piece of the correct-sized rectangular tube and drilled the hole. The next stage was to start on the rear cockpit bulkhead. This involved adding a couple of chassis rails to the back of the rollover bar and adding headrest supports. This forms the back of the cockpit and can be set up on the build table and connected to the front bulkhead by putting in place the bottom chassis rails. After this it is simply a matter of joining the dots, so that's what we will be doing for the next few weeks. RT

October 2010

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RACE TECH magazine is the only independent, technology led motorsport magazine that focuses on every aspect of racing car engineering. Totally international in its outlook, it covers everything that can be found competing on the track from Formula One to the Clubman’s single-seaters, from NASCAR to the Silver Crown cars and from sports racing cars to the weekend hillclimb specials. Topics covered include Engine Components, Aerodynamics, Brake Technology, CADCAM, CFD and simulation software, Coatings, Composites, Connectors, Cooling Systems, Control Systems, Data Acquisition, Drivetrain, Chassis and Transmission Dynos, Electronics, Fabrication, Fluid Systems, Gauges and Instrument Panels, Ignition Systems, Lubricants, Machine Tools, Materials, Powertrain, Radiators, Safety Equipment, Simulation, Suspension Systems, Testing, Track equipment, Transmissions, Tyres, Water Pumps and Wind Tunnels. If you want to reach those parts of the industry that no other publication can, then look no further than RACE TECH.

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FORMULA STUDENT

KNOWING NO BOUNDARIES How two universities from two continents have proved to be a winning collaboration. By Anthony Casson

I M I L A R T O amateur and professional racing series, student formula programmes are delving deeper into available technology and resources, creating a microcosm of complex designs and manufacturing techniques at competitions worldwide. For Global Formula Racing (GFR), though, it is not just about the technical evolution but about changing management and taking enormous steps in organisation to better prepare university students for their future. GFR is the first international collaboration within the Formula Student (FS) and SAE communities. For five years,

first-place trophies for the coveted Design award – the sixth event, Italy, handed the team second place. If not for freak malfunctions during endurance races, GFR could have finished the season as one of the most dominant teams of all time. This success, though, did not come easy or in a timely manner. After early interaction with OSU’s racing team in 2005, Ravensburg sought to begin a programme of its own. The following season, the schools began working with one another informally. “They got a lot of help from us for the first car,” says OSU Formula faculty advisor Robert Paasch. “We had just kind

Ravensburg faculty advisor. “All of them said, ‘of course you can start’ but they were all very sceptical and said, ‘Wow! That’s going to be difficult. We’re not sure if you will be successful’. “Organising the team and building the car is kind of a challenge in the first place. To do that with an international team, with regularly scheduled phone conferences, all the interaction and interchanging that has to go on there, is an even bigger challenge.” While the officials remained sceptical of the undertaking, affiliates of both teams embraced the plans to merge. It just became a matter of how and when the

ABOVE Ravensburg vehicle before dynamic events at FS Germany (Daniel Schlueter)

ABOVE Former team captain and current grad student Bill Murray in the OSU vehicle at Michigan (Oregon State FSAE) Oregon State University (OSU) in the US and Duale Hochschule BadenWurttemberg Ravensburg in Germany have worked towards this season, racing together for victory at six different venues – FSAE Michigan, FSAE California, FS UK, FS Germany, FS Austria and FS Italy. Results in GFR’s 2010 debut include wins at Michigan, Austria and Italy, and five

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October 2010

of naturally started collaborating.” The casual team-to-team communication in 2006 quickly led to ideas of merging the programmes. OSU and Ravensburg sought approval from officiating groups, receiving the green light immediately. “We had to ask for special permission to find out if we could start with this combined team,” says Thomas Nickel, the

plans would transform into reality. “We knew all along it was going to take many years to get this done and were talking about a five-year plan, even back in 2006 and 2007,” says Paasch. “Actually in 2008 we recommitted to five years from that point of working together and said, ‘Okay, it’s going to take longer than we thought’.”

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Two-wheel techniques and technology

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Fax: e-mail: Racecar Graphic are leading publishers of motor racing books and periodicals, and organisers of specialist workshops for the industry. Racecar Graphic publish the monthly Race Tech magazine. For further information please contact Racecar Graphic Limited e-mail: info@racetechmag.com 841 High Road, London, N12 8PT, UK, Tel +44 (0) 208 446 2100 Fax +44 (0) 208 446 2191 E-mail: info@racetechmag.com. Website: www.racetechmag.com

RACE TECH

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FORMULA STUDENT

OSU initiated the first steps, proposing a radical idea. In one season, it wished to combine the teams and drift away from its base vehicle design – a steel chassis with a Kawasaki ZX-6R four-cylinder engine. The new 2009 vehicle would incorporate a new Honda 450cc single-cylinder engine into a full carbon monocoque. Under pressure from team sponsors in 2008, Ravensburg could not afford to take the risks involved both with merging and completely redesigning a car. Instead, it proposed to use the 2008-2009 season as the beginning of the formal collaboration, but with a smaller step. The schools would design separate cars and still maintain daily interaction.

the team major headaches. “The biggest challenge of the whole thing really is supply-chain management,” says Paasch. “The design part was hard, but in the fall (autumn) term everyone was working together on the design – there was lots of communication back and forth.” Some parts were made in Germany, many in the US and Paasch admits that student-supplier relations weren’t always perfect. The result was low quality parts manufacturing and a lackadaisical approach to parts completion. “We had firm ship dates where we had parts shipping to Germany and from Germany to the US, and those dates had to be maintained in order to stay on

Programmes manager, does not understand why more teams do not take this route, even if for the sole purpose of bettering chances of winning at the competitions. “We have at various times attempted to try and encourage universities, especially those that are in a geographically-similar area, to form joint teams, because one university may not have enough money, or expertise or resources to completely design and fabricate a vehicle,” he says. "It's a little bit surprising that we don’t have more of that taking place. I think collaboration is a real good thing, and hopefully it will initiate a trend.

BELOW Students finalising monocoque production at OSU composites lab (Oregon State FSAE)

ABOVE Piecing together the OSU monocoque, the Ravensburg monocoque unpainted in the background, at the FSAE shop at OSU (Oregon State FSAE) Ravensburg allocated a group of its members to help OSU experiment with communications and design platforms overseas. The plan allowed the German university to develop further its 2008 design, increasing its chances of success in the 2009 competitions while OSU could begin transitioning into a new era of design. The plan worked. OSU finished second at FSAE California and won the inaugural FS Austria competition; Ravensburg placed 10th at FS Germany and third at FS Austria. The stage was set for a complete merge, culminating in the debut of GFR last February with two identical vehicles – one for US competitions and one for European. WEEDING OUT THE ISSUES GFR students and faculty advisors found the task challenging for obvious reasons, but it was the manufacturing that gave

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October 2010

schedule; and yet parts weren’t done, or parts were done wrong. So that turned out to be a really big challenge and definitely, to me, was the biggest problem we faced.” If building one car was not difficult enough, building two added plenty of stress. “The two senior project teams that were involved with chassis manufacturing worked their butts off,” says Paasch. “Those guys put in hundreds, and hundreds, and hundreds of hours in making those two chassis. I really got to hand it to those guys, because they’re the ones that allowed us to be successful.” AN ENCOURAGED ROUTE Large engineering companies operate internationally, and that was the primary reason to merge the programme – to give students a more realistic glimpse of their future. Steve Daum, the FSAE Collegiate

“It’s always better if a job-seeking graduate can go into job interviews and say as a GFR team member can that ‘We worked on this joint international team and we were able to be successful and finish fairly high and build two cars in two different countries’. In the world of 2010, that’s much more desirable to companies.” Robert Paasch agrees that these types of collaborations will help engineering students in their future. “These students are learning so much about how to work with another culture and how to do collaborative design over the internet with a team that’s located in another country. It’s so like real life and so like what they’re going to see when they graduate,” he says. “Students that are involved with this project are going out with a tool in their toolbox that nobody else has. That’s going to place them in a much better situation with regard to the job market. This is something that every industry is RT looking for.”

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Racecar Graphic are leading publishers of motor racing books and periodicals, and organisers of specialist workshops for the industry. Racecar Graphic publish the monthly Race Tech magazine. For further information please contact Racecar Graphic Limited e-mail: info@racetechmag.com 841 High Road, London, N12 8PT, UK, Tel +44 (0) 208 446 2100 Fax +44 (0) 208 446 2191 E-mail: info@racetechmag.com. Website: www.racetechmag.com

RACE TECH

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RED RACE EQUIPMENT DIGEST

Edited by Chris Pickering

REDUCING THE COST OF COMPOSITES Autoclave and Industrial Controls, better known as AIC, has released what it describes as ‘a new generation autoclave control system’, designed to reduce the energy requirements of composite manufacturers by providing precise digital control of the complex autoclave and oven processes they use. The Autoclave Management and Control System (AMCS) system was developed in conjunction with US giant Honeywell. Primarily aimed at the aerospace and motorsport industries, its hardware platform features fully integrated logic, control and data acquisition components. Meanwhile its SCADA-based software has been designed to provide ease of use, despite incorporating a raft of innovative new features and fully digital data management for compliance with NADCAP standards. Its claimed that the new software can cut

energy costs significantly, for example by slowing the control fan when full power is not required, as AIC's managing director Tony Toll explains: "Many control systems run the fan constantly flat out, even after all parts are up to temperature, and this wastes a lot of energy. With AMCS you have continuous control over all the process variables; the system offers multi-zone control of the highly critical processes that make up the cure cycle, offering unlimited

LIGHTWEIGHT WHEEL NUTS FROM KEI Wheel-specialist Kei Racing isn’t perhaps usual Race Tech territory. Born out of the Japanese street racing scene and putting a strong emphasis on aesthetics, its main area of business is aftermarket modification. The company’s new range of lightweight wheels nuts, however, is said to have the technical credentials to back up its looks. Using T-6 heat treatment and a unique cold-forged construction the aircraft alloy open-ended racing nuts are said to be 70% stronger than their steel equivalents.

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October 2010

Crucially they also represent a 30 percent weight saving over the equivalent steel design, reducing inertia and unsprung mass. And what’s more, Kei Racing reports that the nuts surpassed torque settings of over 270 ft/lbs in independent testing, which greatly exceeds the industry standard. There’s still a nod to style with a choice of silver, black and red anodised finishes available though, and there’s a range of different fitments available to suit most common motorsport applications. RT

cure profiles of up to 20 segments each.” The company believes that the AMCS will be of particular interest to operators of autoclaves controlled by FGH Controls instruments; production of which has now been discontinued. “As spares for this control system become harder to obtain, AMCS offers a route to improved performance but with a gentle learning curve,” Toll adds. “To simplify the upgrade process further, existing libraries of programmes in FGH's Autoclave Manager software are fully compatible with AMCS and can be simply uploaded without modification.” Full event logging of user and process actions is also provided in the software. The current status can be monitored from networked PCs, the controller can email events and alarms, and it can even issue SMS alerts. RT

TURNING UP THE TEMPERATURE

Nimbus Motorsport has been producing its Microtemp infrared thermometers for some time now, but the latest version is claimed to take the concept to new levels. Now small enough to be carried on a key ring, the MT-100 offers ‘point and shoot’ temperature readings to an accuracy of ±2°F (approximately ±1°C). It also comes with a range of -27°F (-33°C) to 230°F (110°C), making it ideal for measuring tyre, track surface and brake temperatures. RT

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