TransDev supplies timing belts, pulleys and drive lock bushes for exciting autosport motion platform application. Ball Racing Developments Ltd (BRD) designs and builds high performance motion simulation systems for professional road and race driver training. Its latest autosports motion system, the BRD Velocity V1-500™ combines race simulation software based on actual F1 telemetry data with high definition video graphics and a high performance servomotor controlled motion platform producing a totally realistic and sophisticated race driver training experience.

Timing belts and bushes

BRD has chosen TransDev as its preferred supplier for Synchroflex® Generation III timing belts, matching precision pulleys and Drivelock® bushes for powertrain components to produce key motions on the new rig.

Rather than hexapod or Stewart platform based mechanics, which accurately reproduce aerospace motions but have limitations in race car simulation, BRD has chosen a motion platform using three tightly coordinated linear axes to produce the Surge, Sway and Yaw displacements that race cars experience when driven at the edge of their stability envelope. Surge is the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle in its longitudinal axis; Sway (or Sideslip) is attributed to the centrifugal effect in direction change such as cornering; and Yaw occurs when the vehicle over or under steers – producing a rotation around the tyres.
The V1-500 motion platform has a travel range of +/- 0.6 metres in its longitudinal and twin lateral axes, providing Surge and Sway velocities of +/- 1 m/sec and accelerations up to 2 G. The combination of positioning both lateral axes, which are connected through semi-rotating fore and aft chassis fixing points, produces a Yaw effect with +/- 27 degrees travel at a maximum velocity of +/- 45 degrees per second.

With high power brushless servo motor drives on each axis, the 500 kg payload is supported on low friction recirculating linear motion guide bearings with high helix, 25 mm diameter x 40 mm pitch precision ballscrews delivering the rapid acceleration/deceleration performance required for a realistic simulation experience.
The motion platform has underside mounted servo motors for both lateral axes transferring position commands from the simulation software to the ballscrews via a 1:1 ratio belt and pulley system on 150 mm centres. To maintain the instantaneous performance and transfer the extremely high acceleration torques called for in the specification, BRD engineers worked closely with TransDev to select 32 mm wide Synchroflex Generation III AT10 series timing belts and matching timing pulleys together with TransDev’s Drivelock 70 series bushes for maximum stiffness and optimum reliability.

Through its unique tooth form design providing maximum contact and with improved polyurethane and bifilar wound high-tensile steel cord structure, the Generation III belt and pulley design can handle up to 67% higher power transmission than other manufacturers timing belts and also provides longer life, optimised belt tracking, reduced noise and maintenance free operation. Drivelock 70 series self-centering high concentricity bushes make pulley to shaft alignment straightforward and maximise torque transmission using friction rather than keyways.

The resulting cockpit experience forms an excellent part of the professional drivers physical training programme with realistic motion cues providing experience, skill and competitive edge. A demo version of the BRD F1 simulator will be on show at several major exhibitions this year including Motek, Utrecht, Autosport and PRI in the USA. Further information is available on the www.brdsim.com website.