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As an introductory non-assessed module it sets the scene for both the Advanced Motorsport Engineering and Advanced Motorsport Mechatronics MSc courses, providing the context for motorsport engineering and mechatronics in relation to the sport and the industry behind it. 

• The Advanced Motorsport Engineering MSc and the Advanced Motorsport Mechatronics MSc with reference to its key components: the taught modules, the group design project (GDP) and the individual thesis projects as well as considerations such as ethics, health and safety and the environment.

  • Introduction to aspects of motorsport which will be developed during the course such as the design of competition vehicles.
  • History of motorsport including the evolution of competition vehicles.
  • Competition vehicle categories.
  • Sporting and technical regulations.
  • Library sessions with the Information Team covering qualitative information, referencing, ethics and plagiarism.
  • Careers sessions including CV writing, preparation for interviews and assessment centres, interview techniques, using LinkedIn.
  • Group exercise, ‘The Cranfield Challenge’, which relates to the use of materials and structural integrity.

On successful completion of this module you will be able to:

• Describe the elements of the courses in relation to the MSc award. This includes understanding the variety of assessments, the Group Design Project, and the individual research project.
• Relate the MSc courses to the practice of motorsport engineering.
• Illustrate the historical development of motorsport and competition vehicles.
• Assess the design and categorisation of competition vehicles.
• Evaluate the criticality of the technical and sporting regulations and what these mean to motorsport engineers.

• Professor Matthew Harrison

To provide you with a series of learning activities during which you will acquire an understanding of the engineering principles on which engine design and development depend. Some activities will be classroom based, some reliant on group work and some requiring active learning by the student. The course aims to encourage you to acquire skills in information gathering, the processing of information, analysis and communication and these skills will be tested by written assignments.

• Gasoline engine performance characteristics: performance indices,
• Idealised thermodynamic cycles and the limits to ideal behaviour,
• Maximising power output using high engine speeds: thermo-fluid implications,
• Maximising the air/fuel charge in every cylinder: intake system design, supercharging & turbo-charging,
• Fuel systems, combustion control and engine management systems,
• Mechanical design of high performance two and four stroke petrol and diesel motorsport engines,
• The matching of engine, transmission and vehicle,
• The design of high performance vehicle transmission systems,
• Hybrid and electric powertrains as used in motorsport.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Explain what counts as excellent engine performance and how to use engine simulation techniques to find such levels of performance,
• Test and evaluate the physical processes at work during the preparation of the fuel & air mixture and its eventual combustion and emission with particular reference to high engine speeds,
• Evaluate the matching of engine, transmission and vehicle chassis for motorsport applications,
• Appraise the operation of high performance vehicle transmission systems,
• Examine hybridisation and electrification of motorsport powertrains.

• Provides an understanding of the electronic and data acquisition systems that are integral to the modern motorsport vehicle.  Appreciation of principles of data acquisition to “get good data” on track or in test environments.
• Provides methodologies for the analysis and interpretation of the data acquired, and how this underpins all performance optimisation.
 

• Electrical circuit issues, sensors, signal conditioning,
• Sampling issues in amplitude and frequency domain,
• Data communications on car and test cell,
• Data processing and analysis techniques,
• Introduction to realtime software,
• Practical system packaging,
• Build of software and hardware in a basic embedded control and data acquisition system.

On successful completion of this module you will be able to:

• Describe the fundamental role electronic systems and acquired data have on and off vehicle throughout motorsport.
• Design, evaluate and optimise data systems based on fundamental principles of electrical and digital information transfer.
• Propose and apply suitable data analysis techniques to tackle particular engineering questions in a motorsport context.
• Analyse data in the context of a chosen field, maximising the result from a particular test (vehicle dynamics used as an example with direct involvement in configuration and calibration of instrumentation on a vehicle for a track test)
• Evaluate a basic embedded control system.

• Professor James Brighton

To provide you with fundamental information on vehicle dynamics focussing on limit behaviour with explanations and derivations from first principles, using simplified physical models. To provide experience of a computer based dynamics simulation package of industrial standard, and to provide experimental exercises to illustrate major physical concepts.

• Minimum time optimisation,
• Tyre shear force development, measurement and characterisation,
• Suspension geometry description and analysis – important properties,
• Steady turning equilibrium states; suspension/chassis interactions; roll angles, load transfers, jacking,
• Yaw/sideslip handling dynamics; steady turn responses, understeer and oversteer; stability and controllability (a) small perturbations from straight running (b) small perturbations from cornering trim,
• Limit behaviour and design aspects; differentials and brake balancing,
• Simulation tools and model building,
• Vibration behaviour of car and wheels; springs; dampers; track roughness and the use of electro-hydraulic shaker rigs for setup.

On successful completion of this module you will be able to:

• Appraise the performance limits of a competition vehicle and the sources of such limitations,
• Evaluate the interactions of competition vehicle and participant and discuss intelligently the requirements on the competition vehicle from a controllability point of view,
• Distinguish the complex relationships between competition vehicle design aspects and competition vehicle performance,
• Examine simulation and optimisation methods for improving design and performance.

​​To provide you with a series of learning activities during which they will acquire an understanding of how to apply management techniques to the context of motorsport and thus building an awareness of the specific management challenges faced in this sector. The course aims to encourage you to acquire skills in information gathering, the processing of information, analysis and communication and these skills will be evaluated and assessed by group presentation and by written group assignment.

• The business environment in general,
• The business context for motorsport organisations,
• Managing motorsport businesses strategically,
• Creating and sustaining competitive advantage in motorsport,
• Commercial aspects of motorsport management,
• Marketing and motorsport including branding, media and sponsorship,
• Financing motorsport businesses and their on-going financial management,
• Project management and motorsport,
• Managing technical knowledge and expertise in motorsport,
• Technology transfer and opportunities for diversification,
• Appreciate environmental and sustainability considerations where motorsport is concerned.

On successful completion of this module you will be able to:

• Appraise the specific management challenges facing the motorsport sector,
• Distinguish the motorsport environment and the influences on its development,
• Assess the potential sources of competitive advantage for an organisation in the motorsport sector and the steps needed to both create and sustain such an advantage,
• Evaluate the particular issues relating to the commercial aspects of motorsport management. These would include raising and sustaining sponsorship, media relations, raising capital, diversification through technology transfer,
• Examine the particular issues relating to the management of technical expertise and knowledge in motorsport and its exploitation.

• Dr Anderson Ramos Proenca

Aerodynamics is a critical element of modern motorsport vehicle design. This module will enable students to understand the basic principles governing aerodynamics in relation to competition vehicles, including the use of wind tunnel testing techniques.

• Basic flow concepts and governing equations,
• A review of the fundamental aerodynamic characteristics of streamlined and bluff bodies,
• The application of aerodynamic design principles to motorsport wings and diffusers,
• Mechanisms for controlling aerodynamic lift and drag generation,
• An introduction to aerodynamic issues related to cooling and ventilation flows,
• An introduction to wheel aerodynamics,
• An overview of open-wheel, sports car and touring car aerodynamics,
• Experimental methods for motorsport aerodynamics including the use of a moving ground wind tunnel,
• Post-processing of experimental and numerical data obtained in aerodynamic investigations.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the essential facts, concepts and principles of incompressible flows including vortices and viscous effects, boundary layers, wing and diffuser aerodynamic characteristics,
• Demonstrate understanding of how aerodynamics affects the motorsport vehicle design and operation,
• Demonstrate a critical awareness of the wind tunnel techniques used to analyse motorsport aerodynamic problems and apply these techniques and concepts to develop solution strategies for relevant wind tunnel simulations,
• Demonstrate competence in analysing and evaluating the low speed aerodynamic characteristics of representative vehicles and components using acquired wind tunnel data, data sheets and fundamental principles.

• Dr Marzio Grasso

The module aims to provide an introduction to the selection, processing, design, and analysis of competition vehicles. The module offers combination of lectures covering fundamental concepts and engineering theories, lab exercises, finite element modelling and simulations, tutorial and peer review exercises.

• The physical and metallurgical properties of high strength steels, stainless steels, metal matrix composites and aluminium, and titanium alloys, rubbers, elastomers, plastics and honeycomb,
• Structural responses and stiffness analyses,
• An introduction into finite element modelling and simulations,
• An introduction into shape optimisation,
• Identification of failure modes and non-destructive test methods.

 

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Material selection of metallic and non-metallic structures (e.g. vehicle chassis, wheels, suspension etc),
• Develop finite element model of metallic and non-metallic structures with respect to shape, mesh, contacts, materials law,
• Analyse and validate simulation results with respect to lightweight, cost, performance, and safety margins properties,
• Optimise structural design using simulation tools.

The module on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for Motorsport is an introductory course on how CFD works. This module exposes the learner to all relevant concepts that are required to conduct a CFD simulation, from meshing, setting up the solver, selecting an appropriate turbulence modelling strategy, to visualising results, and managing simulation errors and uncertainties. High-performance computing will be touched upon as well, which will enable the learner to run simulations for large and realistic geometries.

By the end of the module, the learner will be able to perform their own CFD simulation for motorsport applications and evaluate aerodynamic designs. Lift, drag, and moment coefficients extracted from CFD simulations may then be used in vehicle dynamics models to characterise the performance of a given geometry.

• Introduction to CFD,
• Fluid dynamics - governing equations,
• Grid generation, techniques and application,
• Turbulence modelling,
• High-performance computing,
• Managing uncertainties.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Differentiate between CFD approaches for different flow regimes,
• Formulate a solution strategy for a given fluid dynamics problem in motorsport,
• Demonstrate an ability to apply commercial CFD software to a given fluid dynamics problem,
• Understand where CFD fits into the aerodynamics’ 'toolbox' in terms of the relationships between CFD, wind tunnel and full-scale, on-track testing.

• Dr Veronica Marchante Rodriguez

Provide detailed understanding and practical experience of the use of composite materials in racing car structures including materials selection, component design, manufacturing technology processing and performance.

• Materials forms, performance and selection,
• Composites application of in Motorsport industry through case studies,
• Manufacturing technology and joining techniques, including manufacturing technique training,
• Composite structures design, analyses and optimisation techniques,
• Design of safety structures.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Apply the principles of composite material selection and performance in the design and manufacturing of structures in motorsport,
• Evaluate upcoming materials/structural technologies and judge their possible applications,
• Evaluate and compare the techniques used for the design, processing and assembly and testing of motorsport structural components,
• Apply and analyse crashworthiness concepts and the influence of Motorsport regulations on the structure design.