In part two of his analysis of a driver-s key performance indicators OptimumG president Claude Rouelle looks at how the steering integral can help identify understeer and oversteer in a racecar.
In a brand new series of technical insights OptimumG president Claude Rouelle focuses on a race driver’s key performance indicators – kicking off with steering wheel smoothness
A seven-post rig is all well and good, but when it comes to lateral and longitudinal tire loads, OptimumG engineer Claude Rouelle believes there’s a need for a fresh approach.
In Part 2 of OptimumG’s explanation of track asymmetry Claude Rouelle looks at the impact of individual corners on lap time.
OptimumG’s Claude Rouelle explains why, and where, you might want to make use of an asymmetric set-up on your racecar. Having difficulties convincing someone to use more camber on the right-hand side than on the left for a counter-clockwise circuit; running higher tyre pressure on one side than the other; using different damper settings?
Building a Formula Student car? Then you need to read OptimumG engineer Claude Rouelle’s 101 top tips for teams chasing FS glory. In Part 1 of this new mini-series he runs through his first 25 points.
After examining damping in roll last month, we will now look at springs and damping in pitch of the car. As explained last time with roll damping acting in a polar coordinate system, pitch is very similar- except the sprung mass is rotating about the pitch axis instead of the roll axis. Roll damping is a usually overlooked aspect in a suspension system, and pitch damping is overlooked even more so.
Roll Damping: Often an overlooked aspect on racecars is the damping in roll. Most of the time, cars have a damper for each single-wheel spring, but not a damper for the anti-roll bars. The goal of this tech tip is to explain the benefits of using a roll damper. Where this setup is not allowed in the rules, the knowledge will help in understanding the setup and compromises in the lack of a roll damper.
From driving street cars, we all know that if you hit a speed bump going very slow the body of the car (sprung mass) moves vertically almost as much as the wheels. Hitting the same bump going fast (you know you have done it, especially in a rental car) the body of the car does not move nearly as much. The size of the bump was the same, but the body motions were different depending on the speed at which you hit it. The cause of this is that response of the system (the car sitting on the suspension) is dictated by the frequency and amplitude of the input. Hitting the speed bump faster increases the frequency of the disturbance, producing a
different response. To quantify this reality we use the concept of transmissibility.
After understanding the first two tech tips in the Spring & Damper series, you know how to choose ride frequencies for your racecar, calculate the spring rate needed for the chosen frequencies, choose a roll gradient, and calculate the stiffness required from the anti-roll bars to produce your desired roll gradient. Now, what is the deal with these “third” springs people and using, and how in the world do I know where to start when it comes to damping on the racecar? Pitch springs will be skipped for now, as damping baselines will be much more useful.
