ELECTRONICS

Electronic control systems are the lifeblood of modern F1 cars, and without these systems the cars simply could not function in their current form. The use of electronics systems, and software used to control them, is strictly policed by the FIA.

One way telemetry is permitted, from the car to the pits. No pits-to-car telemetry is permitted, which means that no adjustment to the cars systems car set-up can be carried out remotely. Once the car is running, all its electrical energy is supplied by the Energy Store (ed) or battery (p196-197) via an on-board power distribution box that lowers the voltage supplied to the level required for relevant electrical systems.

WIRING & CONNECTORS

Wiring looms have to survive in an extreme hostile environment, must withstand high vibrations levels and very high heat levels

CAN Bus System

Modern F1 cars, like most top-line competition cars use a CAN (Controller Area Network) bus systems to connect the many on-boards electronic systems.

A CAN bus system is particularly suited to use in harsh environments. It parallels the nervous systems in the human body in that it enables signals to be transmitted back and forth between various components and sub-systems to shore information via an electric network.

The CAN bus network wiring comprises just two wires CAN High and CAN low, that connects all the items in the network.

Essentially the CAAN bus system enables the various ECU's , SENSORS, ACTUATORS AND DATA ,OGGING SYSTEMS ON THE CAR TO COMMUNICATE WOTH EACH OTHER VIA A COMMON CORE WIRING LOOM.

Signals on the CAN are formatted as 'data frames'. Each data frame comprises and number of fields, including an identifier to identify the source of the signal and the network while enabling the signal and data to be processed by the various components.

Umbilical system: When the car is in the pits garage, pitlane or on the grid an umbilical cord is plugged into a connector on the car. This cable provide remote power for all the cars systems, avoiding the need to draw energy from the battery and is the means by which data is downloaded and the cars systems are monitors.

Battery and alternator: Although proper to 2014 the pre-hybrid v8 engines featured conventional batteries and alternators, the 1.6L V6 engine that form part of the current hybrid power unit do not need and alternator and separate battery as the Energy Stores(ES) fulfils the role of a conventional battery and in effect acts as a reservoir of electrical energy( page 196-197). An alternator is not required because the ES is charged by the Energy Recovery System(ERS). The electrical requirements of the car can monitored and manage by the ERS electronic control system, which is integrated with the ES.

ICE(Integrated Combustion Engineer) starting system:

In order to save weight, F1 cars have no on board engine start systems, avoiding the need for a substantial starter motor that would provide significant drain in the cars electrical system.

The engine must be started using an external electrical starter motor powered by an external battery. A compact high-torque motor, coupled with a reduced gearbox, droved a long driveshaft that passes through the rear of the transmitter, transferring drive to the crankshaft in order to run the engine.

FIA standard Electronic control Unit( ECU)

• As explained the ECU ,must be used to control the most significant systems on the car. Since 2007, the standard ECU has been supplied to all teams by Mclaren Applied. All the teams must be exactly the same ECU and the supplied software to run the cars systems but they free to tune the software using data as they choose. The software has built-in protection to prevent the teams software engineers from using hidden codes to run illegal systems such as traction control,. All of a teams data-logging information for the car is stored in the ECU in a standard format, and accessible to the FIA for Inspection.

• The ECU is powered by a regulated power box, which takes an electrical feed from the ES and supplies all the electrical systems on the car. The power box and ECU are shielded against electrical interference and are fixed on the flexible mountings to reduce the effect of vibration. The ECU has three substantial multi-plug wiring connectors. Typically 300 sensors of various types are fitted to an F1 car enabling monitoring of the cars performance from the pit walls in real time.

SENSORS

The vast numbers of sensors fitted to an F1 car provide a huge range of data. Many of these sensors are essential for car reliable operation.

The ability to measure events taking place over fractions of a second allows the analysis of parameters such as the pressure change during engine fuel/air combustion, or the peak deceleration in the event of an accident, and get engineers to spot the likely signs of a problem before any critical failure takes place aiding safety and potentially reducing the level of damage to systems such as engines and gearboxes.

The sensors can be divided into two brad categories, control sensors and monitoring sensors. Control sensors are used as part of the cars operating systems: ex: throttle-pedal position sensors, engine intake-air temperature sensors, braking pressure sensors, etc.

Monitoring sensors allow the teams to monitor the health of the car and also to learn about the cars performance as well as to ensure that regulations are observed.

The sensors operate in an extremeely harsh enviromentm and must be robust and reliable to withsatnd vibrations, heat, moisture... While some somensirs are standard components fir all teams, and are provided by FIA- approved suppliersm others are built to meet the bespoke requirements of inidvidual teams.

Various types of sensors used include temperature sensors, linear and angular displacement sesnors (ex: to measure brake master cylinder pushrod displacement and suspension rocker displacement), strain gauges (ex: to measure suspesnion components loads), accelerometers( exL to measure conering loads) and many others, including FIA standard ultrasonic fuel low sensors. In some ases, sensors are duplicated to add redundancy should a sensor fail.

TEAM DATA LOGGING SENSORS:

The team is free to fit any sesnors it chooses for data logging purposes, and they can be located anywhere on teh car, but all sensors must be cheked and approved by the FIA before they can be uused during a race weekend.

Typical examples of sata-logging sensors are given in the Data colletion and anysis panel on the previous spread. When the car is on track, all these sensors transmit information continuasly back tot he team in the pits. A limited bandwidth is aailable to transmit 'real time' data during a race weekend, and this effectively limits the amount of data that the team can monitor accurately in real time.

Compared with some other sensors , a suspension transducer, for example needs a significant bandwidth to be able to transmit a useful level of data. If it transmits at a low frequency to leave bandwidth available for other sensors, the data trace produced in the pits is likely to be more of a ;sawtooth; trace than a smooth curce, whoich limits its usefulness. The choise is really between a lot of sensors transmitting information at a low frequency, which is oly of limited use, and a few selected sensors transmitting at a high frequency which is far more useful. The team can also recording data in the FIA ECU for later downloads in the pits. This data is accessible to the FIA at anytime

RADIO Communications: The cars radio communication systems allows the driver to communicate it his team personnel when on track. Two-way verbal communication are allowed under the regulations, but all other communication between the car and pits must be one-way - from car to pit,

The drivers radio system has a push-to-talk button on the steering wheel. and the voice communication when on-track are via an open channel that enables the FIA and broadcasters to listen in. This has not always been the case, an in the past teams have been able to encrypted radio communication to prevent other teams from listening in, although the FIA had access to encrypted transmissions. In recent seasons radio communication between the teams and FIA officials were also available to broadcaster, but after the controversy at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the final round of that yeas World Championship, all communications between teams and race officials have been made private. Restrictions were also introduced concerning which members of a team have a direct line of communication to race officials.

A standard voice radio communications systems is manufactured by an FIA designated supplier for use by all temas. Radio communication are transmitted from the car via a transmitter unit located in the camera housing in top of the airbox, to a serie of receivers located around the circuit ensuring that there are no radio blind spots.

Once the car is in the garage, the radio communication can be carried out via the the umbilical cable, which ensured that any communication between drivers and teams are them private 

DATA COLLECTIONS AND ANAYSIS

Data is transmitted via antenna, usually mounted in the cars nose. Sensors are typically modern F1 car is fitted around 300 individual data sensors.

• Around 40-59 engine/ERS sensors, analysing temperature, pressure vibration frequencies and other engine parameters

• Two independant fuel flow sensors

• Fuel temperature and fuel pressure sensors

• Exhaust temperature sensors

• A sensor for power unit output shaft torque

• Sensors for speed of gearbox input and output shaft

• Driveshaft- torque sensors

• Air-speed(pitot tube and air pressure sensors

• Brake temperature and breaje wear sensors

• Sensors for speed of wheel rotation

• Tyre temperature and tyre wear sensors

• Ride height sensors(measured in front and ride hight

• Pedal position sensors

• Sterring position and steering toqrque sensors

• Suspension movement densors ans pd strain gauges

• car-speed sensors

• Acceleration sensors sensing G-force under cinrvering acceleraaton and deceleration

• Briver biometri-data sensors.

DATA

The produced by the various sensors is analysed and processed by the FIA standard ECU fitted to each car, and  a huge amount of data is processed by the unit:

-The FIA standard ECU processes more than 1000 different input parameters and during a typical grand prix race transmits over 1.5GB of data in real time.

- During a typical race, the FIA standard ECU receives and transmits more than 750 millions datapoints.

- Over a typical grand prix weekend 300-400GB of data is logged from each individual car, which combined with the other data logged by the teams adds up to a total around 45TB of data per week

SO WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE DATA USED AND ANAYSED

The dta collected by each cars ECU is transmitted in real time and sent to:

-The teams track engineers usually 15-20 engineers on the pit wall and in the garage

- The teams engineers back at the factory-oftern 30-40 engineers who constantly anayse data and perfoormance and advise the team in real time.

Circuit Race Control

• Selected data is also provided to media channels and Press Office for use in live TV coverage.

• Additionaly the data is extensively analysed by the teams and engine suppliers between races in order to detect any reliable issues and to provide information that can be used to improve performance in the future.