From Wirth Research press release
United Kingdom-based Wirth Research has designed Formula 1 ’s first ever car without a wind tunnel. The Cosworth-powered Virgin Racing VR-01 has been designed by ‘greener’ CFD process.
The car will be raced under the Virgin Racing banner in 2010 and has been generated by state-of-the-art Computational Fluid Dynamics technology at Wirth Research’s facilities in Bicester, Oxfordshire.
The car, on course to run for the first time in February, has already passed most of Formula 1’s mandatory crash tests.
All other major components are also on schedule at Wirth Research, whose workforce has doubled in size to 110 engineers since the new 2010 Formula 1 entries were announced in June.
This unique approach to car design and development is part of a process we call “Development in the Digital Domain”.
This process also includes extensive use of Wirth’s Driver In the Loop simulator to “virtually” test and develop new cars before any parts have been produced.
Wirth Research has already proven its capabilities by using this method to design the Acura LMP1 and LMP2 prototypes, the cars winning both classes in the 2009 American Le Mans Series.
photo: Fluent
United Kingdom-based Wirth Research has designed Formula 1 ’s first ever car without a wind tunnel. The Cosworth-powered Virgin Racing VR-01 has been designed by ‘greener’ CFD process.
The car will be raced under the Virgin Racing banner in 2010 and has been generated by state-of-the-art Computational Fluid Dynamics technology at Wirth Research’s facilities in Bicester, Oxfordshire.
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The car, on course to run for the first time in February, has already passed most of Formula 1’s mandatory crash tests.
All other major components are also on schedule at Wirth Research, whose workforce has doubled in size to 110 engineers since the new 2010 Formula 1 entries were announced in June.
This unique approach to car design and development is part of a process we call “Development in the Digital Domain”.
This process also includes extensive use of Wirth’s Driver In the Loop simulator to “virtually” test and develop new cars before any parts have been produced.
Wirth Research has already proven its capabilities by using this method to design the Acura LMP1 and LMP2 prototypes, the cars winning both classes in the 2009 American Le Mans Series.
photo: Fluent