Pitstop Tech

[LionZoo]

I figured I should create a thread for some of the interesting pitstop technology that has popped up and specifically will pop up in the future. F1 is after all, not just a race about cars and drivers, but pretty much everything else involved and pitstops are a big factor.

The inspiration for this is the new trolley that Toyota used for nose changes. As an engineer (at least that's what my diploma says!) I'm impressed to bits at a clever bit of manufacturing engineering and it was so simple. Much much better than the Ferrari pitstop lights, which I must say if implemented correctly would actually be an advantage.

How long until the Toyota trolley is protested by Flavio because it'll increase his R&D costs? Honestly if I were him, I'd look into stealing it as much as possible because Piquet Jr. could stand to be the man that gains the most from this interesting bit of tech.

[Captain Hammer]

I'm pretty sure I've seen trolleys used for nosecones elsewhere ...

[CarlosFerreira]

I figured I should create a thread for some of the interesting pitstop technology that has popped up and specifically will pop up in the future. F1 is after all, not just a race about cars and drivers, but pretty much everything else involved and pitstops are a big factor.

The inspiration for this is the new trolley that Toyota used for nose changes. As an engineer (at least that's what my diploma says!) I'm impressed to bits at a clever bit of manufacturing engineering and it was so simple. Much much better than the Ferrari pitstop lights, which I must say if implemented correctly would actually be an advantage.

How long until the Toyota trolley is protested by Flavio because it'll increase his R&D costs? Honestly if I were him, I'd look into stealing it as much as possible because Piquet Jr. could stand to be the man that gains the most from this interesting bit of tech.

Fair enough! However, I didn't realize what were they using. Do you have any picture, or could you explain what the trolley consisted of?

[minrdi]

I saw the trolley assembly used by the Toyota team for Timo Glock's nosecone change, and thought it was an ingenious piece of kit. I've had a look for any photos, and unfortunately couldn't find any

The Williams team has, for years, used a hydraulic jack that lifts the front end of the car during the pit stops, which obviously saves the poor front jack man's back in trying to hoist up the front end of the car under his own steam. I'm unaware of other teams using a similar jack, and would be pretty certain that most do it the old-fashioned way.

[LionZoo]

I can't find any pictures, but it's basically a trolley assembly that is wheeled to the front of the Toyota car. The ingenuity of it is that the trolley is positioned so that it's at the exact height of the car's nose when it's jacked up so you don't need to fumble with the nosechange as this makes positioning the nose so much easier.

[RejectSteve]

I saw the trolley assembly used by the Toyota team for Timo Glock's nosecone change, and thought it was an ingenious piece of kit. I've had a look for any photos, and unfortunately couldn't find any

The Williams team has, for years, used a hydraulic jack that lifts the front end of the car during the pit stops, which obviously saves the poor front jack man's back in trying to hoist up the front end of the car under his own steam. I'm unaware of other teams using a similar jack, and would be pretty certain that most do it the old-fashioned way.

The trolley in front is a Toyota.

I think quite a few teams used hydraulic jacks in the late 80's or early 90's but Williams are the only team who continue with it.