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IndyCar is reintroducing the LED displays on cars to help fans follow on-track action and to aid its safety team as it attending to crashes in 2019.
The previous-generation matrix LED system was ditched just four rounds into the 2018 season due to inconsistency with its performance.
That prompted IndyCar to contract racing data tracking company MoTeC to modify the system that is used in IMSA.
That work has now been completed, and all Indycars at next week’s opening 2019 round in St Petersburg will carry the panels, which will be situated on their rollhoops.
For the sake of the trackside fans and watching on TV, the panel will display a car’s current running position, when the driver has engaged the push-to-pass overtake assist button – signified by a flashing green “PP” – and a clock for timing pitstops.
To assist the IndyCar’s safety team, the panel will show whether a car’s engine is running, which is aimed at allowing the team to restart and release the car back into competition.
An IndyCar release explained that “if the car’s engine is running, the left-side LED will display a green ‘snake’ moving from bottom to top and the right-side display will show what gear the engine is in (including a “0” if in neutral).
“If the engine is not running, the left-side LED will display horizontal red bars climbing from bottom to top and the right-side LED will display the gear the engine is in.”
Jay Frye, IndyCar president, stated: “We know that fans at racetracks and watching from home appreciate the LED system that helps them keep track of how their favourite cars and drivers are performing.
“That’s why we worked hard in the off-season to develop a more reliable system that will have even brighter displays that make them more visible to everyone.
“Our thanks go to MoTeC and Jon Koskey, IndyCar’s senior director of technology, who led the effort on this important project.”