Quasi-Steady-State Lap-Time Simulation (2020-2021)

Context & Relevance: Developed a Quasi-Steady-State Lap-Time Simulation Tool for a leading Swedish Touring Car team, Brink Motorsport, to help them understand and maximise the performance of their Audi RS3 LMS TRCR race car.

My Role: Sole developer, implementer, and owner of the tool.

Technical Approach: Employed a 7-DOF double-track vehicle model, extended with suspension kinematics and a limited-slip differential. Adapted the Pacejka Magic Formula for tyre modelling, customising it to align closely with flat-track tyre data. Implemented a nonlinear constrained optimisation solver to determine the maximum vehicle acceleration within given constraints. The solver accounts for critical parameters such as tyre slip angles, ensuring realistic and viable driver inputs and vehicle states. Validated the simulation results against real-world data, ensuring accuracy and reliability.

Results & Impact: Enabled the team to achieve multiple pole positions and race wins in the Swedish Touring Car Championship, demonstrating a significant improvement in vehicle performance. The tool was especially useful in identifying the most efficient methods of improving car balance and stability, as well as understanding the effect of “balance of performance” penalties. Despite the relative simplicity of the model, excellent correlation was achieved, as shown in the above plot.

Challenges & Problem-Solving: Addressed challenges in accurately modelling tyre and suspension behaviour, achieving a balance between simulation robustness and computational efficiency. There were numerous difficulties in achieving robustness, a notable example being the problem of “three-wheeling” (a very common situation in FWD touring cars) and its effects on continuous optimisation solvers.

Future Applications: The tool has potential applications in Formula 1 for optimising vehicle performance and handling, providing insights into vehicle setup.

Reflection & Learning: This project deepened my understanding of lap-time simulation and its practical applications in racing. While quasi-steady-state methods are useful in their robustness and computational efficiency, the lack of dynamic states hinder deeper understanding of the car.  

Formula Student: Suspension Design & Simulation Tool Development (2015-2019)

Context & Relevance: This project provided a comprehensive experience in vehicle dynamics and simulation. It involved hands-on suspension design and the development of simulation tools.

My Role: Led the suspension kinematics development, and developed MATLAB scripts for handling simulations and tyre data analysis. Responsible for creating 3D models and technical drawings of suspension components.

Technical Approach: Utilised SolidWorks for suspension component design, deriving requirements from full-vehicle simulations. Developed tools for complex vehicle analysis, including tyre modeling and handling simulations, focusing on achieving a wide setup range and tuneability.

Results & Impact: The innovative suspension designs contributed to the team's success in Formula Student competitions and were recognised by Racecar-Engineering magazine. The simulation tools provided foundational insights for vehicle development, enabling global targets such as weight distribution to be correctly defined.

Challenges & Problem-Solving: Faced challenges in designing reliable suspension components within budget constraints and enhancing the accuracy of simulations. Addressed these by optimising design parameters and improving model fidelity.

Development of a Quasi-Transient Lap Time Simulation Tool (2019)

Context & Relevance: For my thesis at Lund University, I developed a quasi-transient lap time simulation tool to analyse the impact of torque vectoring in motorsports. The objective was to move beyond traditional quasi-static lap time simulation methods, which lacked insights into the vehicle’s driveability, particularly in terms of yaw dynamics. The vehicle was modelled as a limit acceleration surface with three degrees of freedom, providing a more nuanced understanding of vehicle performance under various conditions.

My Role: As the primary researcher and developer, I was responsible for conceptualising and implementing the simulation tool. This involved extensive work in MATLAB, from modelling the vehicle's fundamental components to simulating lap times.

Technical Approach: The simulation tool utilised a refined vehicle model characterised by non-linear tyres, aerodynamic forces, torque vectoring, and several other critical parameters. I adopted a method that expanded the “GG-diagram” to include yaw dynamics, inspired by Milliken Moment Diagrams, thus enabling a more comprehensive analysis of vehicle behaviour.

Results & Impact:

• Demonstrated the significant role of torque vectoring in optimising vehicle performance, especially in cornering and handling dynamics.

• The tool provided insights into yaw dynamics and their relative effect on lap time, which was not possible with traditional simulation methods.

• The comparison between vehicles with active and open differentials showed a 0.93% reduction in lap time with active differentials, underscoring the effectiveness of torque vectoring.

Challenges & Problem-Solving: The main challenge was incorporating the complexity of real-world vehicle dynamics into the simulation while maintaining computational efficiency. This was achieved through meticulous modelling and iterative testing, ensuring both accuracy and practical usability of the tool.

Future Applications: The developed tool's advanced approach to incorporating yaw dynamics and torque vectoring has potential applications in Formula 1 and other racing formats, particularly for optimising vehicle performance through advanced torque vectoring strategies.

Reflection & Learning: The project was instrumental in deepening my understanding of vehicle dynamics, particularly in the context of motorsports. It highlighted the significance of yaw dynamics in vehicle performance and the potential of torque vectoring in enhancing lap times. The experience also honed my skills in simulation tool development and problem-solving in complex engineering scenarios.