Over the last week there has been a lot of news that has surprised the world of Formula 1, including the possible farewell of Adrian Newey to Red Bull, so much so that it overshadowed the F1 Commission meeting held on Thursday.
During the meeting, no impactful decisions were made, but many topics were discussed, including from a future perspective, for example postponing the discussion relating to the expansion of the points zone to twelfth place. Another aspect touched upon is that of the locations of the pre-season tests for 2025, even if a definitive agreement has not yet been reached.
Furthermore, the F1 Commission has approved the use of a new rear camera, which will make its official debut during the Spanish Grand Prix weekend. This is not an absolute novelty, given that in reality F1 had already conducted experiments in recent months, installing it on the Safety Car for example.
The onboard camera ranking positioned above the airbox
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
However, for Formula 1 cars it will represent a new perspective. Until now, single-seaters had a camera mounted in the upper part of the car, above the airbox, which, having two views, could film both the front and rear areas of the car. However, FOM is always looking for new solutions and as they have mounted a camera along the nose of the cars, giving a lowered view, the idea is to repeat the same experiment, but at the rear.
The new camera, in fact, will be incorporated into the crash structure mounted on the rear axle, which serves to absorb impacts to the rear axle: more specifically, to give a reference, it will be positioned near the rear light to be activated in case of rain or during charging of the battery. Thus, while previously the rear view included the bonnet and rear wing, the new angle will offer an unobstructed and lowered view of the rear.
Speaking to Motorsport.com earlier this year, F1 director of broadcast and media Dean Locke said the new angle should be able to mirror some of the spectacular on-boards that can be seen in other categories, such as Formula E, which has made these lowered views a strong point in recent years. This will allow you to follow any duels closely.
The new camera will be incorporated into the rear crash structure
Picture of: Giorgio Piola
“Our rear camera positioned above the airbox is good, but it is located in the center of the car. So, it is not possible to achieve what we do in the Porsche Supercup, where we put a camera in the taillight and we have two cars that are very, very close.”
Despite various tests carried out last season, placing a camera in that spot was anything but a simple undertaking: “The result was really fantastic and we really liked it, but it's very complicated. It's four meters and on that type you can have a lot of interference and stuff like that, so we've been working on fixing some of the issues.”
Once the technical problems had been overcome, the last obstacle was to obtain approval both from the teams, who will clearly then have to mount it on their respective cars, and from the FIA, because the camera is located in a critical area for safety. After discussions with the Federation, the F1 Commission gave the green light, so its use has been approved starting from the next Spanish GP.
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