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My client was contracted to create a replica of a formula 1 racing car cockpit to be used in filming of TV idents for the Malaysian Grand Prix on 5th April 2009. A major part of the project was the steering wheel, which forms a centre piece of the cockpit, and had to be as realistic as possible.
In the event a company that manufactured replica steering wheels from various teams was located. These replicas are collector items which, whilst they are constructed from similar materials to the real thing, are basically ornamental and therefore non-functional. To make the cockpit more interesting and convincing, one of the requirements was to make the electronic components of the steering wheel functional to some degree.
The steering wheel was dismantled, and electronic elements were retro-fitted. These incorporated:
- The engine RPM gauge consisting of 5 red, 5 green and 5 blue LEDs
- The gear indicator
- Auxiliary lights
An interface board was designed and constructed which permitted the RPM lights to be operated, either continuously, or flashing at a variable user-definable speed. In addition, a switch was providedto change the gear indicator to be set to any number between 0 and 9. The whole ensemble was powered from a PP3 battery to permit maximum on-set flexibility.
Technical details:
- LED flash controller: 555 astable configured with 50% duty cycle and variable flash rate from 0.2 to 5Hz (approximately)
- LED drive: via multiple NPN transistors, to support total current load
- Gear indicator: controlled via BCD switch and TTL BCD to 7 segment decoder / driver
- Power supply: PP3 battery downconverted to 5V via fixed output voltage regulator
- Current consumption (average): approximately 0.4A
- Battery life: approximately 30-40 minutes
The project, including all design and build aspects, was completed in two days. Note that my client was responsible for ALL physical aspects of the project, including such components as the carbon-fibre look vacuum formed interior panels.
Notable in this project is that the production company, on receipt of the cockpit from the shippers in Malaysia, called us to congratulate us on our excellent work.
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