Analysis Techniques for Racecar Data Acquisition

Description

Contents Preface to the Second Edition Preface to the First Edition Acknowledgments Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 What Is This Book All About? 1.2 What Is Data Acquisition? 1.2.1 Data Acquisition Categories 1.2.2 Data Categories 1.2.3 Basic Data Acquisition Signals 1.2.4 Supplemental Data Acquisition Signals 1.2.5 Example of Parameters 1.3 Hardware 1.4 Recent Hardware Trends Chapter 2 Data Analysis Software Requirements 2.1 General Requirements for Data Acquisition Software 2.1.1 Software Features 2.2 Different Ways of Displaying Data 2.2.1 Time and Distance Plots 2.2.2 Track Maps 2.2.3 X-Y Graphs 2.2.4 Histograms 2.2.5 Run Charts 2.3 Keeping Notes with Data Files 2.4 Mathematical Channels 2.5 Data Overlays 2.6 Filtering 2.7 Exporting Data to Other Software Packages 2.8 Getting Organized 2.8.1 Channel Grouping 2.8.2 Channel Colors 2.8.3 Sensor Prep 2.8.4 Example Checklist 2.8.5 Pit Box Setup 2.8.6 Basic Tips Chapter 3 The Basics 3.1 Check the Car’s Vital Signs 3.2 Lap Markers and Segment Times 3.3 Comparing Laps 3.4 Track Mapping 3.5 The Beginner’s Data Logging Kit 3.5.1 Logging Engine RPM 3.5.2 Logging Vehicle Speed 3.5.3 Logging Throttle Position 3.5.4 Logging Steering Angle 3.5.5 Logging Lateral Acceleration 3.5.6 Logging Longitudinal Acceleration 3.5.7 Logging Suspension Travel 3.6 A Possible Approach to the Testing of Sensor Readings Chapter 4 Straight-Line Acceleration 4.1 Torque and Horsepower 4.1.1 Aerodynamic Drag 4.1.2 Calculating Torque and Power at the Wheels 4.2 Traction and Longitudinal Slip 4.3 TCS and Slip Ratios 4.4 Time versus Distance 4.5 The Importance of Corner Exiting Speed 4.6 Drag Racing Specifics 4.6.1 ET Bracket Racing Chapter 5 Braking 5.1 Braking Quickness 5.2 Braking Effort 5.3 Braking Points 5.4 Lock-up 5.5 Brake Balance 5.6 Pedal Travel 5.7 ABS 5.8 Brake Temperature Measurement Chapter 6 Gearing 6.1 Up-shifting 6.1.1 Shifting Point 6.1.2 Shift Duration 6.2 Down-shifting 6.3 The Gear Chart 6.4 Total Gear Ratio Channel 6.5 Determining Correct Gear Ratios 6.6 Determining in Which Gear to Take a Corner Chapter 7 Cornering 7.1 The Cornering Sequence 7.2 The Traction Circle 7.3 Effects of Speed 7.4 Driver Activities That Indicate Vehicle Balance 7.4.1 Oversteer 7.4.2 Understeer 7.5 The Understeer Angle 7.6 Vehicle Balance with a Yaw Rate Sensor 7.7 Front and Rear Lateral Acceleration Chapter 8 Understanding Tire Performance 8.1 Estimating Grip Levels 8.2 Working with Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems 8.3 Working with Infrared Tire Temperature Sensors 8.4 Where Does Tire Temperature Come From? 8.5 Working Temperature Range of the Tires 8.6 Lateral Load Transfer and Tire Temperature 8.7 Tire Workload Distribution 8.8 Camber Evaluation with Tire Temperature Sensors 8.9 Tire Pressure Evaluation with Tire Temperature Sensors Chapter 9 Quantifying Roll Stiffness Distribution 9.1 Measuring Suspension Roll Angle 9.2 The Roll Gradient 9.3 Using Roll Gradients as a Setup Tool 9.4 Front to Rear Roll Angle Ratio 9.5 Using the Roll Ratio as a Setup Tool 9.6 Suspension Troubleshooting 9.7 Pitch Gradient Chapter 10 Wheel Loads and Weight Transfer 10.1 Lateral Weight Transfer 10.2 Longitudinal Weight Transfer 10.3 Banking and Grade Effects 10.4 Total Wheel Loads 10.5 Determining Wheel Loads with Modal Analysis 10.6 Measuring Wheel Loads with Suspension Load Cells 10.7 Tire Spring Rates 10.8 Chassis Torsion Chapter 11 Shock Absorbers 11.1 Shock Absorber Velocity Analysis 11.2 Determining in Which Range to Tune the Shock Absorbers 11.3 Shock Speed Ranges 11.4 The Shock Speed Histogram 11.4.1 Shock Speed Histogram Shape—A Mathematical Approach 11.4.2 Shock Speed Histogram Shape—What Do We Want? 11.4.3 Statistical Analysis 11.4.3.1 Histogram Peak or Height of the Zero Bin 11.4.3.2 Average Shock Speed 11.4.3.3 Median 11.4.3.4 Variance and Standard Deviation 11.4.3.5 Skewness 11.4.3.6 Kurtosis 11.5 The Shock Speed Box Plot 11.6 Shock Speed Run Charts Chapter 12 Suspension Analysis in the Frequency Domain 12.1 Introducing Frequency Analysis 12.2 Frequency Analysis versus Time-Space Analysis 12.3 Theoretical Analysis 12.4 Suspension Optimization Using Frequency Analysis 12.5 Modal Analysis 12.6 Modal Frequency Issues 12.7 Nonlinear Considerations 12.8 Frequency Analysis from Sensor Data Chapter 13 Aerodynamics 13.1 Aerodynamic Measurements 13.2 Air Density 13.3 Dynamic Pressure 13.4 Ride Height Measurement 13.4.1 Ride Height Calculation from Suspension Movement 13.4.2 Ride Height Measurement with Laser Sensors 13.5 Estimating Drag and Downforce from Logged Data 13.6 The Coast-down Test 13.7 The Constant Velocity Test 13.8 A Worked out Example of a Straight-Line Test 13.9 Airbox Efficiency Chapter 14 Analyzing the Driver 14.1 Improving Driver Performance 14.2 Driving Style Evaluation 14.3 Throttle Application 14.3.1 The Throttle Histogram 14.3.2 Full Throttle Time 14.3.3 Throttle Acceptance 14.3.4 Throttle Speed 14.3.5 Coasting 14.4 Braking 14.4.1 Braking Effort 14.4.2 Braking Point and Length 14.4.3 Braking Speed 14.4.4 Braking Aggressiveness 14.4.5 Brake Release Smoothness 14.5 Shifting Gears 14.6 Steering 14.7 The Driving Line 14.7.1 The Driving Line—Mathematical Definition 14.7.2 How to Determine the Correct Driving Line 14.7.3 Driving Line Analysis Using GPS 14.7.4 Driving Line Analysis Using Video Feed 14.8 Driver Consistency over Multiple Laps Chapter 15 Simulation Tools 15.1 Introduction 15.2 Suspension Kinematics Simulation 15.3 Lap Time Simulation 15.3.1 Levels of Lap Time Simulation 15.3.2 A Simple Point Mass Vehicle Model 15.3.3 Obtaining the Input Parameters for the Vehicle Model 15.3.4 The Tire Model 15.3.4.1 The Pacejka Longitudinal Tire Force Model 15.3.4.2 The Pacejka Lateral Tire Force Model 15.3.5 The Track Model 15.4 A Worked out Example 15.5 How to Integrate Lap Time Simulation in Daily Data Acquisition Tasks 15.5.1 Before the Meeting 15.5.2 During the Meeting 15.5.3 After the Meeting 15.6 Putting the Driver in the Simulation 15.6.1 Sim Racing 15.6.2 Motion-Based Driver-in-the-Loop Simulation Chapter 16 Using the Data Acquisition System for Race Strategy 16.1 Fuel Consumption 16.2 Lap Time Variation During a Race 16.2.1 Fuel Load Variation 16.2.2 Tire Wear 16.2.3 Driver Consistency Chapter 17 Data Analysis Using Metrics 17.1 What Are Metrics? 17.2 Why Use Metrics? 17.3 How to Create Metrics Chapter 18 Track Data 18.1 What Can Be Learned from the Data about the Racetrack? 18.2 Racetrack Metrics 18.3 Speed and Gear Histograms 18.4 The Friction Circle 18.5 How Bumpy Is the Track Surface? Chapter 19 Introduction to Measurement 19.1 Introduction 19.2 Analog-Digital Conversion: Accuracy Implications 19.3 Sensor Selection and Application 19.4 Measurement Uncertainty 19.5 Temperature Sensors 19.5.1 Thermocouple Temperature Sensors 19.5.2 Thermistors 19.5.3 Resistive Temperature Detectors 19.5.4 Infrared Temperature Measurement 19.6 Pressure Sensors 19.7 Displacement Sensors 19.8 Acceleration Sensors 19.8.1 Capacitive Accelerometers 19.8.2 Piezoelectric Accelerometers 19.9 Speed Sensors 19.10 Strain Gages 19.11 Torque Sensors 19.12 The Pitot Tube 19.13 Oxygen Sensors 19.14 GPS 19.15 Laser Distance Sensors 19.16 Surface Acoustic Wave Technology List of Symbols References Bibliography Index About the Author