Project 676: Ferrari working on control of MGU-H and MGU-K in corners and straights amid improved PU

Being Ferrari has never been simple. The imperative for the Prancing Horse is to win, and when it doesn’t, everything seems disastrous. The legacy left by Enzo weighs heavily, a prerogative that must be managed, especially when the technical project seems to be working. Currently, things are not going in the right direction. The hybrid turbo era has only brought bitterness. The Maranello team embarked on this journey with the wrong approach, presenting itself at the dawn of the new era, the 2024 season, with an embarrassing power unit.

The effort to recover on the engine side, however, did not take long to manifest itself, and already in the following championship, the step forward was felt. About 10 years after the introduction of power units, we can now define the Ferrari package as truly excellent. Most likely, the best in the field. Through the diligent study of on-board data related to the myriad of controls activated by the driver via the steering wheel, our editorial team has gained significant knowledge in recent years. For this reason, after collecting interesting information, today we present an article related to the functioning of the hybrid part and relevant information about the future of the Scuderia.

Project 676: Ferrari works on the control of MGU-H and MGU-K in curves and straights, strict regulations
F1 has always been the ultimate expression of technology applied to motorsport. On one hand, in a romantic way, Adrian Newey still uses pencil and ruler to design his masterpieces, while on the other hand, simulations and artificial intelligence are dominating the scene. The FIA, in agreement with the teams, decided in due course to limit the hours of use of computer devices and the computing power they can develop. The reason for these choices was twofold: to bring the teams closer in terms of performance and ensure that human minds and knowledge make the difference.

Today, we want to delve into specifics and understand how automation can find its leading role in the electrical management. We will learn how automatic controls can ensure the administration of the hybrid part in curves and straights. Finally, we will talk about the operating margin available to the Scuderia, according to the regulations, to improve the automation in the 2024 car. First of all, let’s clarify a basic concept regarding the MGU-H and MGU-K motor generators.

The performance that the cars can develop is not limited solely by the sum of thermal and hybrid power. Artificial intelligence, computing power, electronics, and control, in fact, if not regulated properly, would produce a considerably higher lap time. For this simple reason, the extreme attention paid during FP1 to configure the use of the hybrid part is always very high, aimed at maximizing the extra power provided by the energy recovery systems to ensure the car’s maximum performance depending on the layout of the various tracks.

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TAG 320B ECU: shared management between FIA and teams. Stringent constraints to limit computer assistance
Since the 2009 season, the FIA decided to install on the cars an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) called TAG 320B, designed by McLaren and still present in current single-seaters. This component is divided into two parts: the first is composed of standard circuits created by the International Federation, while the second is reserved for the teams. The section managed by the regulatory body aimed to create common control software. A necessary move to avoid fraudulent informatics, effectively eliminating potential benefits for the teams.

The components managed by the teams’ engineers can communicate with the standard part by providing input signals and receiving certain outputs, without modifying the code that “lives” inside it. In doing so, the FIA directly manages most of the control circuits through software installed on the car, without having to spend time and personnel on viewing telemetry data from different cars. The areas “monitored” are mainly three: power management, traction control, and braking. The basic concept is as follows.

When a driver provides an input on the accelerator or brake with a certain percentage, the control system studied by the International Federation ensures that the actual output is the one “generated” by the driver. The driver, therefore, produces information, for example, 70% throttle, which passes through the FIA ECU, and from there, it is sent to the team’s managed part. The control performed by the teams can then divide the power supplied into 40% on the thermal component and 30% on the electric one, and then send the data back to the standard ECU.

This is to explain that the engines deliver the required torque only when the sum of the power generated by the teams in the above-mentioned division is equal to that received by the International Federation’s ECU. If this does not happen, the signal is sent back, waiting for the power division to be delivered correctly. In this way, “torque cuts” are avoided in the hypothetical case that the rear tires in traction are slipping.

As mentioned, the FIA conceptually manages the power delivery similarly during the races. Let’s take an example. A team, according to the regulations, can “electronically” remove part of the thrust generated by the engine when the driver presses the throttle fully, and the FIA’s standard ECU imposes a 10-second interval before returning to the previous power level. This aspect is crucial in managing the race pace, where entry and exit from corners are exploited to save energy over a lap.

To better understand what it is, let’s simplify the matter by analyzing the acceleration phases on the straight, full throttle, and braking. Assuming to exploit the car’s power to the maximum, performance is mainly limited by the grip and drag generated by the single-seater. This condition is used in qualifying, while in the race, the various teams mainly have two options for “efficiency.” The first concerns the recharging of MGU-H and MGU-K during acceleration and braking, where the saved energy can reach a value of up to 40%.

The second, more well-known strategy, concerns “fuel saving” in the final part of a straight. Based on the strategy to maximize efficiency, the drivers, by identifying the ignition of a luminous LED, know they have to lift off to save fuel. This practice, analyzed several times by the editorial team of the Italian website FUnoanalisitecnica, allows a total energy saving of up to 60%, effectively canceling the assistance of the thermal part.

However, the price to pay is high, with a loss in lap time, in the most marked cases, of around 3 tenths of a second on the straight. However, understanding this practice is not always easy, as fuel management through “lift and coast” is increasingly marginal and implemented only after the main straights, replaced by greater partialization in fast corners.

Project 676: Ferrari ready to unveil greater efficiency on PU 066/10 in the 2024 season

Finally, having explained some regulatory and energy management constraints, let’s try to identify how the work done in Maranello on the control and management of the hybrid and internal combustion unit part can further improve the car’s performance for the upcoming racing season. To understand the improvements that Ferrari technicians can make, let’s consider the elements available. The contribution of the energy from the motor generators is divided between the traction phase and the straight. In the first case, the MGU-H works, unloading the energy accumulated during full throttle. In the straights, it is the MGU-K that provides support, releasing the kinetic energy accumulated during braking.

Certainly more delicate is the administration of gear changes, also regulated by an ECU shared between the FIA and the teams, in upshift and downshift. In these two phases, the recharging of the motor generators is interrupted to provide support to the internal combustion engine, which is “unable” to provide power while the gear change takes place through the transmission. The operating margins of Ferrari, as for the rest of the teams, are undoubtedly limited. Nevertheless, the working group has actually spent a lot of time on this aspect.

We are talking about a measure that has already been implemented during the last season, in late summer, whose results have only partially appeared in the second part of the championship. According to information gathered by Formula Uno Analisi Tecnica, the Project 676 will benefit from additional improvements only tested on the PU 2023 during free practice. We are talking about a maximization of the energy charging and discharging phases, combined with an ability to deliver endothermic power that will increase the grounding capacity of the 066/10 unit’s approximately 1000 hp.

Within the 2023 regulatory framework, it was possible to homologate new components defined as “non-tangible,” acting on electronic elements delegated to the management, control, and processing of the propulsion subsystems (ERS, ECU PU, PU-CE). Increasing the operation of these components, in turn, means increasing the efficiency of the power unit, acting on factors such as ignition times, motor generator management, and injection. These “actions,” together with the aero-mechanical changes made to the 2024 Formula One car, will try to make a difference.