The final solution for Track Limits

What is track limits in general motorsport? Track limits is defined by the boundary lines of a racing track the driver is allow to use during an event. Mostly two white lines, one on each extreme side of the track, and the car must be in contact with it at least by one wheel to be considered within the limits. If all wheels aren't in contact even for a millisecond, there should be penalty like lap time deletion of time penalty in a race.

In modern racing, many racing tracks have been modified to remove gravel and grass from the edges of a racing circuit and replaced with high grip asphalt, like the image above from Circuit Paul Ricard, South of France, which I drove many thousands of kms in F2, F1, LMP1 and others. The removal of gravel traps happens due to safety and cost, both for the circuit and the teams. There is much less car damage and a smaller risk of crash, if the driver does a mistake and go off the racing line. The negative side is that there isn't any harsh penalty going out there so drivers always use this to increase their performance (faster lap time) or strategically during a race or a overtake battle.

Track limit problem plagues modern motorsport. What to do and how to police it? Currently the mainstream solution is either adding kerbs or video analysis by the regulators. This isn't working well because of a clear problem: it needs to be processed and communicated by a human and the penalties happens way after it happened. Or in the case of kerbs, we have seen cars literally flight off the track like Monza or Spa. It is bad for the regulators, for the drivers and for the public.

I'm here to suggest something totally different:

Automated system based on optical sensors precision

It is simple. A laser is installed at the bottom of the race car with a light sensor attached to it. The sensor picks up reflection from the ground, with milimetre precision. Each colour or type of paint reflects light in a different way.

We have tested it extensively. It works perfectly.

Next step is to paint the exact half-width of the car on the extremes of certain corners, so if the laser sensor picks up the signal from this paint, the car has clearly exceeded the track limits.

When this happens, the penalty is automatically applied. It can be anything - power reduction for few seconds, energy reduction, lap deleted - and it is instantaneous without human subjetive interference. People argue this can be dangerous but there are numerous ways the penalty can be programmed so safety is ensured, for example, as a ramp down profile, 10% less power for an entire lap, anything really.

It is a virtual gravel trap - it acts in similar way without the damaging effects of the real gravel. As an example, if the driver was pushed there by other driver irregularly, the driver would still be reported to the stewards and receive a post race penalty, but the dynamic of the battle for position would be completely different. Drivers would be more careful not to go there and the public would understand the result without a post-race penalty.

The benefits are very clear. It is safer, cheaper and more accurate than any other system that are in place.

So why we haven't see this?

There is absolutely no reason this is not used by FIA apart from legacy inertia. FIA does not like to change things in general, specially in regards to innovation.

Anyway I would like very much to see that in Formula E in the next years or so. It would make our lives so much easier, specially with some chicanes in street circuits.

Leave your comment about this and I will be happy to interact. Thanks for reading. Please subscribe.

Lucas