Innehållsförteckning för August 2022 från Racecar Engineering

Technical directives (TDs) are publications used for directing the action and recording of modifications, re-positioning, operational improvement or an alteration in the characteristics of the equipment to which it applies. TD changes are typically implemented outside of regular procedural review intervals within the industry in question and act as an update to them as a function of data collected during operation. Motorsport sanctioning bodies reserve the right to implement TDs when they deem it appropriate to do so on reasonable grounds, such as safety. However, because the foundations around which a governing body can implement a TD affect the scope for performance in the concerned areas, there are often winners and losers after its delivery, shortly followed by leveraging of the new policy under the circumstances in which a Technical…

Let’s start with a little story. A few years ago, I was invited to attend a demonstration of a high-end simulator, and asked a driver, a multiple winner of the Spa 24 Hours, to accompany me. The simulator engineers asked me if I could sit in the car and give my impressions. I told them that I thought I was a decent driver on public roads, but did not think of myself as a good racing driver. Nevertheless, they insisted, and I went so I sat in the car. The car was in the virtual pit lane, and an idea crossed my mind. I asked the engineers if all systems were recording. When they said yes, I turned the steering wheel 90 degrees to the left, and then 180 degrees…

When we talk about rigs in motor racing, we hear an awful lot of mention of four, seven and eight-post shaker rigs, and even more discussion on the benefits of wind tunnels. However, the great forgotten test measurement device in motor racing – and I’m just as guilty of this as anybody else – is the kinematics and compliance rig, K&C for short. Over the last couple of years, I’ve had a few customers use the MIRA rig in the UK and the Morse Measurements rig in the US. To say both of these rigs have made my life infinitely easier when it comes to vehicle modelling is a massive understatement, and what we’ll be discussing in this article is what such rigs offer and why, if you are running…

There is no denying the 2022 edition of the Le Mans 24 hours was hardly a classic. On the 90th running of the great race, it was again a contest of pure reliability in the top class. If the Toyotas ran well, they would finish first and second. They did. If Glickenhaus ran well, its cars would come third and fourth. They did. If Alpine ran well, it would be fifth in class. It was. That’s pretty much what happened, except that one driving mistake lost Glickenhaus time, while the Alpine crashed, and had an engine coil and a clutch control unit fail too. It was therefore easy to be disappointed in the race. I personally found it challenging to find the motivation to continue watching, but then I am…

RE: During your time in F1, you’ve worked with virtually every power unit supplier, and almost every configuration: V10, V8, with and without hybrid units, Ferrari, Renault, Ford, Cosworth, Mercedes… JK: You can add Toyota to that list. RE: What are the major differences in approach and modus operandi? JK: They were all very different. Not only do they have different architectures and so on, but their facilities, the approach, that sort of thing. There wasn’t a set formula. It was all done differently, depending on the supplier you’re working with. The way the data is formatted and presented is different, so are the details, the electrical installations and systems and voltages, their cooling systems… Everything is totally different. When it came to installing another power unit in the car…

Battery-powered electric vehicles (BEVs) may be the enfant gâté as the world transitions to low-carbon propulsion, but talk to most experts with a realistic view on decarbonisation and they will assert that BEVs are far from a catch-all solution. The raft of issues surrounding everything from sourcing materials such as lithium and cobalt, through the sticky subject of what to do with batteries at end of life – not to mention the sheer size of packs needed to extract reasonable range from vehicles – mean that adding batteries to everything from scooters to boats and ’planes is simply not a sustainable option. The reality is that (notwithstanding simpleton politicians being unable to understand more than one solution) BEVs will be part of a wider range of low-carbon solutions, incorporating both…

RE: You seem to have really enjoyed your time at Nottingham University, so much so that you’ve founded a scholarship for engineering students whose annual household income is under £35,000 (approx. $43,000) JK: Yes, I had a brilliant time at university. It was a really special time in my life, although maybe it should have been weighted a bit more toward the academic side, rather than the 50 / 50 studies and enjoying myself it was! I’ve since set up a scholarship there to help engineers from disadvantaged backgrounds to go through it, because it was a great place to be and I wanted to give something back. I want to encourage people who want to go into engineering so, as well as the scholarship there, I’ve also provided support…

The two previous articles in this mini series (see RE V31N11 and V32N1) have provided an overview of the most common tyre testing and modelling methods. They have highlighted how dominant factors like temperature, pressure and wear have, historically, been challenging to incorporate into a formulation that would work in real-time, and how both could be used as an input and an output. In this third and final article, a new approach to tyre testing and modelling will be introduced, one whose main innovation is the ability to consider the aforementioned thermodynamic parameters during the testing and modelling phase. The goal of the model is to describe tyre thermal behaviour, including the interaction with the external environment and internal wheel chamber Using outdoor testing performed with a car used as…

The FIA has announced Tanya Kutsenko as its first ever equality, diversity and inclusion advisor dedicated to motorsport. She will be responsible for developing a new EDI strategy in line with the FIA’s new course of promoting greater diversity, inclusion and doubling motorsport participation. The ACO became the first motorsport event to encourage spectators to use low-carbon forms of transport to get to the race by offering 20 per cent off eco-friendly products in the museum, a donation to a low-carbon project near the track and a free eco cup. The organisation also reduced the number of vehicles in the circuit and aims to reduce that further by 2023, encouraging more bicycles be used. Ligier Automotive and Parella Motorsport Holdings have extended their contract to support the Formula Regional Americas…