Moog Industrial Group recently designed and delivered a high performance driving simulator for race car test and simulation for leading race car manufacturer, Dallara. The company had been looking for a way to effectively shorten product development time and reduce the cost of testing and driver training compared to track testing. Dallara asked Moog to provide the motion system with dome, steering wheel control loading, electric cabinet with real-time controller and real-time PC, with Moog cueing software to enhance the performance of the simulator. The solution is based on high-fidelity motion simulation technology that has been used successfully in innovative test and training systems for the aerospace, defence and automotive industries.
Dallara Automobili, based in Varano de’ Melegari, Italy, provides design, engineering and support for some of the world’s most competitive car racing teams. Since the driving simulator was delivered in 2010, Dallara has reaped a wide range of benefits from using the Moog test system including saving training time and costs, eliminating potential problems and safety concerns with using a racetrack, enabling better evaluation of design choices, and providing early feedback in the development process.
The high performance driving simulator was specially developed for test and simulation in motorsport. For this application, very low latency and high acceleration and velocity are required so race car drivers can experience the most accurate feel of the car’s behaviour. For the 6 DOF motion system, Moog designed new actuators that feature higher stiffness at lower weight to meet stringent frequency response specifications.
The integration of a Moog control loading system provides the force feedback during steering and the special shape and construction of the dome, as well as the high quality visual system helped improve the fidelity of the system. Most high performance driving simulators use a control loading system to simulate the force feel of driver controls. The technology has been widely used for decades for flight controls in flight simulation. A highly responsive actuator (control loader) combined with an intelligent controller creates the most realistic experience. Amplifying a signal from the real-time computer, the servo drive transmits electric control signals to the control loader to produce the required force. Software on the host model computer sends the required forces, which correspond with the vehicle type and drive scheme.
“Over the two years that the simulator has been operational, it has proved to be an indispensable tool for us to reduce the development time and costs for new products and the cost for car setup optimisation and driver training as part of race preparations,” says Andrea Pontremoli, Dallara’s CEO and general manager. “It has contributed greatly to the evaluation and refinement of car parts and bodies prior to the production phase. For example, we have reduced the number of prototypes – most of the early prototyping can now be done by using sophisticated models and testing them in the simulator.”
Moog has provided motion systems for driving simulators used by a variety of automotive OEMs and component manufacturers. Driving simulators with various setups can also be used for other applications, such as evaluating the ride and comfort of a car, investigating the behaviour of drivers and evaluating active driver assistance systems. In applications like these, a high performance driving simulator also represents an extremely useful tool for developing designs and optimising their prototypes. The required level of fidelity for the application plays a crucial role in selecting the type of simulator and motion system and Moog works on cars with customers to evaluate requirements and ensure the right technology is used.
More details can be obtained by visiting http://tinyurl.com/n5tx6zh
For more information contact Willie Steyn, Moog, +27(0)12 653 6768, [email protected], www.moog.com
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