McLaren 720S - 2014 to 2017

In this project, as module owner for the Chassis Control Unit, Chris worked for 3 years on the software development, systems calibration and implementation of the damper and hydraulic suspension control system for the new car that replaced 12C and 650S. The software was initially rapid-prototyped and deployed to TAG400i controllers and later productionised in Simulink and deployed to Motorola 5554 target.

Subjective/objective damper calibration was carried out by the in-house dynamics team. Chris followed the project from its inception in 2014 until production in early 2017 and then switched to work on Project 15 (Senna).

The 720S was the first car to implement a novel way of carrying out semi-active suspension control. The system employs additional sensors to calculate the input energy from the road into the system and with a "sensor data fusion" algorithm, then determines what is the precise "state" of the chassis and each wheel: pitch, roll, heave, single-bump. The control algorithm then adjusts damper stiffness in a way that maximises the vehicle composure but also has the minimal overall compromise on comfort.

Where conventional adaptive damping systems are very much "pre-configured" and reach their limits on a highly dynamic manoeuvre that is affected by bumps, the 720S system is able to separate the control of the vehicle on multiple axes, giving the car much better grip and chassis composure. A mathematical algorithm computes the best compromise between all system requirements and delivers a solution that is optimal for the particular driver mode.