Formula One is one of the most dangerous sports on the planet.
With cars that can travel at speeds of 350km p/h and beyond, keeping the drivers safe has been a challenge the sport has faced down through the years, with moments of reflection coming particularly after a crash.
After the death of F1 legend Ayrton Senna, the sport once again had to look at itself and figure out a way to protect the people behind the wheel.
But what are some of the advancements made in recent years that aim to do just that? OTB's Shane Hannon went in search of the answers for this year's Science Week.
1: Changes to the tracks
One of the big changes has not been on the car but on the track.
The tracks have been changed and chicane's have been added to reduce speeds. The run offs at the corner have been expanded and different surfaces such as gravel have replaced the tarmac; in theory this will slow the cars down should they fail to manoeuvre the corner.
If all else fails and a crash into the barriers is unpreventable, the technology for this has changed too. The old-style tire barriers have been replaced with a new high-speed crash barriers that are designed to cushion the impact and reduce the risk of serious injury to the drivers.
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2: HANS device
Introduced to Formula One racing in 2003, the Head and Neck Support (HANS Device) system consists of a carbon fibre shoulder collar which is secured under the driver’s safety belts and connected to his helmet by two elastic straps.
In the event of an accident, HANS is intended to prevent a stretching of the vertebrae and to prevent the driver’s head from hitting the steering wheel.
3: Biometric gloves
The final advancement is barely seen by viewers of F1 but is vitally important.
The gloves were introduced to the sport in 2018 and act as a sort of first responder to an accident.
The gloves are worn by every F1 driver and monitor their vital signs during the race via a flexible 3mm sensor stitched into the palm area of the fabric.
Initially the optical sensor will measure ‘pulse oximetry’, or the amount of oxygen in the blood, alongside the pulse rate, enabling the trackside medical team to receive important information as soon as there is an incident. This is potentially important in the context of a racing driver because if they have an injury that is affecting breathing, the oxygen content of the blood will diminish rapidly.
Biometric data helps to assess the driver’s conditions before, at the time of the crash and after the crash as far as the rescue operations are concerned.
OTB Sports are partnering with Science Week to ask what challenges are most important to us and how science might help. Visit scienceweek.ie to share your ideas and find out about the events taking place throughout Science Week 2021.
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