NEW TELEMETRY PARTNER FOR MCLAREN APPLIED – JOINT RELEASE

McLaren Applied today announced a new global collaboration agreement with Control – Race Winning Telemetry, the leading motorsport cellular telemetry solution provider, to integrate Control’s modems with McLaren Applied’s world-leading motorsport Electronic Control Units (ECU).

Initially targeting teams in motor series’ such as Formula E, the new McLaren Applied VCU-500, complete with Control’s TLM-P1 modems, will allow teams to use cellular connectivity to gather telemetry data from their vehicles without the need for complex and expensive trackside infrastructure. The first application will be to support a Formula E team with Gen 3 car testing throughout 2022.

The Control – Race Winning Telemetry device will transmit data from the McLaren Applied ECU via cellular mobile networks and through its secure private networks to ATLAS data viewer. As well as providing a primary Telemetry option for series and teams, Control’s TLM-P1 also provides users with a solution for occasions where a full series-provided telemetry infrastructure is not possible or available.

The TLM-P1 features three separate simultaneous LTE cellular connections ensuring the delivery of live data from the vehicle to the garage, using the best network available at any given point on the track.

Commenting on the new agreement, Matthias Dank, Director of Motorsport at McLaren Applied, said, “This is a great partnership for both sides. In bringing together two proven innovators we’ve created a compelling new offering for the motorsport industry.”

Technical Director and Founder of Control – Race Winning Telemetry, Nathan Sanders, added, “This is an important next step in our development. The two companies share a common desire to innovate and provide the motorsport industry with cutting edge technical solutions. This is going to be good for both companies and the development of our sport.”

It is envisaged that by the end of Q1 2022 all McLaren Applied ECUs will support Control telemetry solutions.

This is a joint press release issued by McLaren Applied, follow this link to see original. 

About McLaren Applied:

McLaren Applied’s vision is to pioneer a better future by uniquely applying data science, design and engineering to deliver breakthroughs in performance. It has built upon on a 30-year heritage in electronics and data systems derived from motorsport to successfully move into new sectors including automotive and public transport. The company’s focus is on electronic systems, electric drive, telemetry, software, sensor technology and predictive analytics. Latest products include innovative 800v Silicon Carbide inverters for electric powertrains, robust connectivity solutions with 5G for public transport and market leading telemetry, control and analytics products for motorsport. Learn more at https://www.mclaren.com/applied/

TAOGLAS DRIVES ENDURING RELIABILITY FOR CONTROL WITH FLEXIBLE WIDEBAND ANTENNA – CASE STUDY

About Control Telemetry Systems

Control is the leading cellular telemetry solution provider in Motorsport. They are used by leading private and manufacturer teams across some of the world’s biggest Motorsport championships including FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA, European Le Mans Series, GT World Challenge Endurance Series and the Nurburgring Langstrecken Series. Control combines cutting edge hardware devices with advanced connectivity services and application-specific software to deliver the world’s leading cellular motorsport telemetry solution. Control’s customers include Bentley, Rowe Racing and Manthey Racing to name just a few. They regularly support customers to overall and class wins in major 24-hour events including the 2020 and 2021 24-hour races at Daytona, Le Mans, Nurburgring-Nordschleife and Spa-Francorchamps

Covering everything from the evolution of Motorsport telemetry, to handling coverage challenges at some of the toughest racetracks around the world, this is one to read for anyone who wants to understand how improving their telemetry can improve their race strategy.

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The Challenge

In Motorsport, accuracy is everything. The margins are impossibly slim and the difference between winning and losing can come down to a few thousandths of a second. The harsh environment of racing vehicles also presents unique challenges such as heat and vibration, so when developing a telemetry solution, you’re straddling the boundaries of what is both technically and physically possible. The TLM-P1 is Control’s flagship solution and is the most advanced Motorsport-specific cellular modem in the world. It features three simultaneous LTE connections, utilising Control’s SurePath™ technology to deliver live telemetry data to the garage using the best network available at any point on the track – seamlessly switching between three network connections. When developing the TLM-P1, the Control team searched for an antenna that could support a broad range of LTE bands to cope with the network switching and global coverage requirements. Additionally, they required a solution that could handle the harsh requirements of the Motorsport industry. Endurance racing often takes place over 24-hour periods of time, so it’s essential that the antenna solution can withstand harsh conditions for long periods without its performance being affected. Furthermore, every last gram counts in Motorsport – the antenna needs to be extremely compact and lightweight so it doesn’t affect the overall weight of the vehicle

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The Solution 

Following a series of field tests with several antenna suppliers, the Control team chose Taoglas as their trusted RF and antenna partner. The Maximus FXUB66 – a flexible wideband antenna designed to cover all working frequencies in the 600-6000 MHz spectrum, including all Cellular, NB-IoT, Cat-M, Wi-Fi, ISM and GNSS bands – was chosen, as they found it had the “most reliable performance”. At just 120 × 50 × 0.2mm, the antenna is ultra-thin and weighs just 3.8g, making it extremely compact and suitably lightweight. Additionally, the antenna is assembled by a simple “peel and stick” process, attaching securely to non-metal surfaces via 3M adhesive – making it the ideal solution for a simple installation on the inside of a car’s windscreen. “The results with the Taoglas Maximus FXUB66 were immediate and a significant step forwards in terms of antenna performance, allowing us to maximise coverage at race circuits,” said Nathan Sanders, Technical Director and Founder, Control. “Once installed correctly, antennas continue to work well in the long-term, almost becoming a “fit and forget” type of component. The Maximus FXUB66 has required no maintenance, allowing us to focus on other performance areas.”

 For more information about the TLM-P1 solution visit the dedicated: TLM-P1 Telemetry Modem product page.

Featured Taoglas Product Click here for FXUB66.54.0150C datasheet 

RACECAR ENGINEERING TELEMETRY REPORT FEAT. CONTROL

Featured in June’s edition of Racecar Engineering, you can now download your own copy of the special technology report featuring Control – Race Winning Telemetry.

Focused on telemetry networking, reporter Stewart Mitchell met with our Technical Director and founder Nathan Sanders to discuss how telemetry systems have evolved to work effectively and reliably in Motorsport.

Covering everything from the evolution of Motorsport telemetry, to handling coverage challenges at some of the toughest racetracks around the world, this is one to read for anyone who wants to understand how improving their telemetry can improve their race strategy.

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“Networking: How data transmitting services have evolved to work effectively and reliably in today’s congested airwaves.“
– Stewart Mitchell

Racecar telemetry and data transmitting systems have come a long way since the days of huge data logging boxes mounted inside the cockpit collecting analogue sensor input data at low resolution. The information back then was crude and challenging for engineers to decipher after the car came back to the pit lane.

Data logging technology’s evolution saw it move to digital sensors and smaller data storage boxes uploaded to static computers in the pit lane when the car came back to the garage.

Then came radiotelemetry, which could transfer data from the car wirelessly to the pit lane. This was a true revolution for the racecar engineer. Radiotelemetry is still used extensively today, but has its limitations – fundamentally, coverage and bandwidth.

The challenges of coverage are a function of the distance over which radio transmitters can transfer signals and data. Radio doesn’t go very far and causes major signal issues at large circuits, especially those with significant gradient changes such as the Nürburgring or Spa Francorchamps…”

To continue reading this Racecar Engineering telemetry report, download your copy now by following this link.