Friday, March 29, 2024

IndyCar racers use LEDs to show their positions in real-time

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An IndyCar racer with an LED position display

It’s sometimes hard to keep track of positions in an IndyCar race, especially if you’re in the stands and don’t have the luxury of a broadcaster or data stream to point things out. Never fear, though: as of this weekend, the league’s cars are carrying LED panels that display the driver’s race position in real-time by working in conjunction with timing lines embedded in the tracks. They’re also smart enough to switch to pit stop times, so you’ll know if that tire swap is running too long.

The technology is getting its first proper shakedown at the Mid-Ohio race on August 2nd (today, if you’re reading this in time) at 1:30PM Eastern. However, some teams already see potential problems. While the LED array is only 0.11 inches thick, it’s still adding small amounts of weight and wind resistance to the car. There’s also a concern that pit crews might be distracted with a display just inches away from where they’re working. They may not have much say in the matter, mind you — IndyCar is a spectator sport at its heart, and the sacrifices might be justified if they help fans make sense of vehicular chaos.

Filed under:
Transportation

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Via:
The Verge

Source:
IndyCar

Tags: car, indycar, led, race, racing, transportation, vehicle

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