Validation through Instrumentation Formula SAE Performance Enhancement Validation through Instrumentation Walter Thorn – 12/7/2007

What is Formula SAE? Collegiate design competition Small formula-style racing cars 1 year project time span FSAE Design Competition: Students design, fabricate, test, race cars. Fairly loose regulations, designed to challenge knowledge, creativity and innovation of students Open wheel = similar to Indy or F1, except smaller Relatively short project, rules released in October, competition season from May through July 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

FSAE Car Requirements 610 cc max engine displacement 20 mm air intake Independent 4 wheel suspension Structural safety req’mts 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

The Formula SAE Competition 120 International teams 10 international competitions sponsored by Society of Automotive Engineers 1000 total points Static events Dynamic events Main events held in Michigan, California, England, Japan and Australia Competition designed to evaluate design, cost and manufacturing, business viability, and car performance in various areas Performance weighted much higher 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Static Events – 325 points Main events held in Michigan, California, England, Japan and Australia Competition designed to evaluate design, cost and manufacturing, business viability, and car performance in various areas Performance weighted much higher 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Dynamic Events – 675 points Main events held in Michigan, California, England, Japan and Australia Competition designed to evaluate design, cost and manufacturing, business viability, and car performance in various areas Performance weighted much higher 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Quantitative Performance Tuning Currently, performance tuning requirements developed from driver feedback No quantitative performance measurements As production limited year, testing/improving/development = 6 weeks Traditional testing through driving and basic tuning No data collected to verify designed performance parameters 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Commercial Off-the-Shelf Solution 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Project Approach National Instruments CompactRIO LabVIEW FPGA software Commercial Sensors Steering Suspension Engine Acceleration 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Acceleration Measurement Example 2-Axis accelerometer mounted on car Measure lateral and longitudinal acceleration Generate lateral vs longitudinal (g-g) diagram Braking Right Turn Left Turn Accelerating 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Theoretical Vehicle Performance Theoretical performance envelope generated using: -Tire grip -Vehicle weight -Engine power -Brake force Source: Race Car Vehicle Dynamics 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Actual Vehicle Performance Look at how well we can fill the theoretical performance envelope on-track 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Driver Performance Comparison Driver A Driver B Side by side comparison of two driver’s abilities to exploit total vehicle performance 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation

Summary of Benefits Maximal vehicle performance Enhanced driver training/evaluation Validation of vehicle design Improved competition results 12/7/2007 Walter Thorn - National Instruments On-Site Presentation