New sensors improve racecar performance
Staff -- Test & Measurement World, 2/1/2004
Working in conjunction with Pi Research, Delphi Corp. (Troy, MI) has unveiled new sensor technology that should help the company understand how racecars perform. The products—a three-axis angular-rate sensor, a single-axis angular-rate sensor, a three-axis accelerometer, and a single-axis accelerometer—feature built-in temperature compensation.
The temperature compensation inhibits the effect changing temperatures can have on data output, making the information more accurate. Engineers and crew members can use the more accurate data, along with input from the driver, to modify the racecar for better performance.
Delphi's three-axis angular-rate sensor measures information on the car's roll, pitch, and yaw. The sensor is usually mounted in the center of the vehicle to determine rotation in the x-, y-, and z-axes. The single-axis angular-rate sensor provides rotational rate data for just one axis.
Delphi's three-axis accelerometer measures acceleration in g's in the x-, y-, and z-axes, while the single-axis accelerometer does the same for only one of the axes. The three-axis accelerometer is usually mounted in the center of the vehicle to show the forces on the car in all three axes, and the single-axis accelerometer is typically attached to a suspension component to show that component's movement during race conditions.
The Kelley Racing Team and its driver, Scott Sharp, who is sponsored by Delphi, have been testing the new sensors since the Motegi race held in Japan in early 2003. "The output from Delphi's new sensors seem to be really helping us make better, and ultimately fewer, changes to the car in order to get maximum performance," said Tom Kelley, owner of Kelley Racing and president of Kelley Automotive Group.
The new sensors and associated circuitry design will help Delphi reduce the size and weight, as well as improve the accuracy and reliability, of its ADR3 accident data recorder that it plans to release in 2005. Delphi currently provides its ADR2 to Formula 1, Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), and the Indy Racing League (IRL). www.delphi.com.
