Ferrari front wing

[manchild]

I'm not sure that they are not cooling steering and suspension by some front intake - check the lognitudinal hole at the keel fairing. It's big enough and aero ligical since it reduces the pressure under the nose contributing to its downforce generating.

[scarbs]

I imagine that window is for the corrlyte sensor to measure slip angle. It is often bolted to the front of the keel

[manchild]

I imagine that window is for the corrlyte sensor to measure slip angle. It is often bolted to the front of the keel

Jep, could be so and could be both too if that gadget isn't blocking that hole but raised a bit above it.

[DaveKillens]

Of course, the history of that specific nose section should be known. If it was for testing or racing. A nose for just the race would be without unnecessary instrumentation, and as we all see, very easy and quick to change. A unit for testing could be heavily instrumented, with sensors to measure temperatures, pressures, slip angles, vibration, and anything you can think of. Most temperature infra red sensors are three or four wire, while a piezoelectric crystal force transducer could be wired with just one high impedance cable, which appears to be exactly what the picture displays.
http://www.npl.co.uk/force/faqs/transtypes.html#piezo
http://www.smartec.nl/infrared_sensor.htm
I find it difficult to see how instrumentation could be carried and used in the nose during a race. There should be some form of self-coupling device, and I don't see one. I thought that maybe the four locating pins might be used to carry voltage, but since carbon fiber is conductive, it's hard to see how they could be insulated. Maybe the wires and sensors are installed, and during pre race testing an electronic module carrying the electronics is attached in the nose, and it is further wired to the chassis, where the telemetry gear is located. And for the actual race, that gear is stripped out.
Hey guys, I'm just putting forward some thoughts, as my post began with "If Ferrari are running a "cable" inside the upper winglet, it may be superior use of engineering." That's all assumption based on an "IF". I don't believe in any conspiracies, I do recognize and applaud good engineering, and being able to work within the rules and take maximum advantage of any grey areas. All teams do this, and Ferrari are no different in any way from their competitors. Apart from the fact that because of their success, they are under a microscope of close scrutiny by many.

[manchild]

I've been staring at that pic a bit more and I think if those are sensors than they are powered by same source as TV cam on the right side. If you look closely you'll see cable going into right wall of nose cone exactly where TV cam is located. Since TV cam casing is much bigger than cam itself, TV cam might share same aerodynamical casing with transmitter sending signal acquired from sensors to main telemetry gadget.

http://img235.imageshack.us/img235/5841/dscn01185kt.jpg

[manchild]

Ballast added on endplates (Barcelona testing)

High res pics 3557 x 2362 - 1.5 MB each

http://www.velikanagrada.com/images/sli ... /massa.jpg

http://www.velikanagrada.com/images/sli ... massa1.jpg

[Tp]

Hmm Interesting looking at the ballast placed on the front wing endplates, back in '04 with the short stint tyres Bridgestone's front tyre functioned better the more the car's ballast was shifted forward. They worked harder and generated more grip. Maybe they're doing a similar thing with the 248?

[Tp]

Also looking at the pictures of the 248 there are changes to-
-The endplates
-The number of wing elements on the main wing (At Austrailia, they had three, where as at the test they only have two.)

[Reca]

Before people go crazy about legality of ballast on endplates I think it’s opportune to notice that that’s a pyrometer, the temp sensor needing the famous cable that created the excitement in the last few pages...

Of course, the history of that specific nose section should be known.[...]

Exactly, and in fact the red label on the pic reads “Scorta (= Spare) T car”.
From the pics I saw of the MS car during Australian race, it looks to me it wasn’t carrying the sensors on endplates, it had them only in practice, while the pic of the crashed car with the cable visible is of Massa’s car. Considering that Australia was the 3rd consecutive race outside Europe, and that Massa crashed in qual, it’s possible they were lacking spares so Massa had to use for race one of the “testing” wings.
As for the cable, as far as I can tell from all the pics I saw, it runs inside the main wing element, not inside the upper one.

I've been staring at that pic a bit more and I think if those are sensors than they are powered by same source as TV cam on the right side. [...]

There’s no TV cam on the right side, it’s always a dummy, the tv camera, if present, is on the left; Ferrari this year, just like Honda/BAR since last year, uses the camera fairings as part of the standard aerodynamic design, they are on both sides even when there aren’t cameras on the nose.
Furthermore, compared with the position of the cable in that pic the TV cameras are lot higher, you can see the screws quite high, on both sides.

[manchild]

When I wrote ballast I only translated what site that published those photos wrote and they mention "Ferrari Media Centar" as source. So, it is not my oppinion but simple translation of news.

[m3_lover]

The Ballast that is added is evident from those gray little things hanging off the endplate, or are those sensors of some sort?

http://img235.imageshack.us/img235/5841/dscn01185kt.jpg

Also on this picture, you see those vanes underneath the wings, is that to seperate the air or a guiding vain?

[Reca]

When I wrote ballast I only translated what site that published those photos wrote and they mention "Ferrari Media Centar" as source. So, it is not my oppinion but simple translation of news.

When I wrote that it’s opportune to correct the info I didn’t say it because it was you who posted it but because that info, that doesn’t come from Ferrari Media Center (only the pics do), is IMO wrong.

[RacingManiac]

F1 cars don't run ALL the sensors in race trim, as there is little point of doing so, but they will run all of them in the test. It is not inconceivable that they have the infrastructure built in to the car so the sensor just have to be "plugged in" to work....

[mikie9988]

I could have sworn that I saw the upper element on the Ferrari front wing move AGAIN! I believe I saw it during one of the nose camera shots when Massa was entering turn 1 at Hockenheim. It wasn't as much as it used to be (before the FIA said something), but it was still moving - at least a few millimetres. Is there something I don't understand or is Ferrari breaking the rules? Did I even see it at all? I don't know for certain, but it looked to be so.

[DaveKillens]

From what I assume, when Ferrari applied a "fix" for the original wing separation that started this thread many months ago, it was just a fairing to cover the gap so that the opening and closing wouldn't be seen anymore. But I believe it moves as before, we just can't see any obvious gaps opening and closing.
So maybe you did see movement of the upper wing. I don't doubt that at all. But the Ferrari nose has been under intense scrutiny, and it just has to be legal under the FIA regulations, as it was when initially introduced. The new Renault upper wing has a unique mounting to the nose, the manner in which it curves and meets the nose, it's quite capable of movement in the same manner than the Ferrari. But instead of sldining in out of a dowel or whatever, the curvature and mounting angle could easily allow flexing of that upper wing.