What ARE Renault F1 doing here then??

[Nick Goodall]

Any guesses????

Any of the F1 Guru's (Cree, Rich Ralph, Lloyd Storey) care to explain?

It reminds me of those old cheap "have a go" put the money in the slot car things you saw on Holiday as a kid

[millzy]

its to keep Peeking on the track when he has a bash?

[MattADH]

I am sure that they are sensors...

[ashleyb4]

Yea proberly sensors to check if the wheels are going round.

A

[MHeadling]

Could be something to do with the KERS system for next season? (kinetic energy recovery system)

[glypo]

I am sure they are sensors or something like that also. Certainly not something I think will be on the race car anyway.

[Alfonzo]

Sensors sounds plausible - but what are they sensing? Interesting. In a nerdy sort of way.

[warped]

Am pretty sure that they will be to monitor tyre temperature variation across the face of the tyre as the cars running.

A number of teams used to test regularly with similar devices in the past before the single tyre supplier rule came in.

[Alfonzo]

Ok, I can buy that. So there's a linear heat sensing thingy measuring the temps from one side of the tyre to the other? Yeah, that sounds the answer.

[Garry Spice]

nov-bmw3.jpg

[Southwell]

Originally Posted by ashleyb4

Yea proberly sensors to check if the wheels are going round.

A

I think they could see if the wheels are going round.

[SlowOne]

Originally Posted by Garry Spice

Attachment 4528

They are doing what everyone else is doing - welcome the the shape of F1 cars in 2009! :eek:

[losixxx]

think he was more on about using the grooved tyres rather than the odd shaped wing!

[xjr14]

...it`s just as "warped" explained, they need to understand the slicks...therefore all sorts of sensors. ...and they run the 2008 monza rear-wing to simulate 2009 downforce levels....

[rich_cree]

Tyre shape sensors

[ashleyb4]

I could save them alot of money i can tell them what shape the tyres are there............ round.

A

[Northy]

Skillz Cree - are they looking at how they deform then in use I guess?

G

[DCM]

I guess it is a way then, of being able to tell what the tyre is doing, so they know what to do about tyre pressue and suspension geometry to get the tyre working correctly.....

[MK999]

Tyres move in all kinds of crazy directions you wouldn't even think of ! Cars operate at an angle of yaw in non slip conditions because of the way the tyre rolls and the contact patch deforms, gets pretty intense for the purposes of F1 i'm sure

[SlowOne]

Silly tyre angles...

Remember the Indianapolis GP where all the Michelin runners couldn't start? Here's a high-speed photograph of what was happening to the tyres around the banking at full chat. Note the excessive deformation of the Michelin tyre - that's why they blew out. Enjoy...