The NTT IndyCar series will test and compete with a new cabin cooling device during the double game Friday through Saturday at the Iowa 0.875-mile oval.
After testing a raised blade that channeled air into the helmet crown during opening practice last week at Road America, the series switched to a new blade designed to take oncoming air and use it to accelerate hot air and stuck in the cabin.
A scoop will be provided to each team for the consecutive comparison in Iowa, where ambient temperatures are expected to peak at 80 and 90 degrees during the two-day event, and humidity is predicted to range from 73-89 per cent, which could lead to high temperatures in the cabin behind the new display safety device. With the exceptional amount of physical effort required in Iowa, and a pair of 250-lap races scheduled to start within a 24-hour window, the new hot-air scoop could be a crucial tool for driver preservation.
“It has a radius around the inside of the spray screen; the one we tested at Road America put more air directly into the driver, and with this, what we are doing here is trying to get the air to move in the cab, ”IndyCar President Jay Frye told RACER. “We fully intend to run it in practice and qualifying on Friday and the race, and based on the feedback we get, and if it works to everyone’s satisfaction, it would be used as they see fit.”
The new firsts, made through rapid prototyping, are not intended to be the final design. With more time and development, Frye says the inlet shovel bolted onto the windshield could be replaced by a new carbon fiber upper frame that has inlets built into the windshield.
“The final version of the product will not look like what we are trying in Iowa,” he said. “We are looking at what we could do, given the time we have, to incorporate it into the carbon frame over the halo, so that you don’t really see it. Your goal is to create an air curtain that brings in quick air and takes out stagnant air. So, we will start practicing with them first, we will stop, we will take them off, we will run without them and then we will use them again and listen to what they have to say after the session and look at the data. “
The series is also seeking more information from its paddock to look for other long-term options to improve cabin cooling. Seat cooling technology, small aerodynamic swing blades designed to channel more air out of the cab, and thermal insulation barriers between laterally mounted radiators to the left and right of the cab are among the menu items exploratory.
“We received a lot of input from many teams, vendors, and their experience over the years in different series where they used various applications to cool booths,” said Frye. “We are looking for ways to better insulate the cabin so there is less heat and many things like that.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our partners Red Bull, Pankl, PPG and Dallara for their work and development assistance with the spray, and our teams and drivers, who have been there with us developing it from the start. Many of these tests would have happened in private tests if this were a normal year, but instead, our fans can see the process as it unfolds in the races, which will be an ongoing project for the rest of the season. “
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