14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft and Toyota Racing Development (TRD) have just announced a new application developed to improve car performance and help Toyota’s motorsport division win races.
The so-called TRD Trackside app is running on Windows 8-powered tablets and represents an innovative way to establish a real-time communication link between the race car driver and the racing team crew chief.
It can be used to compare times with just a tap of a finger, Microsoft said, and replaces the traditional laptop that so many teams still rely on.
“One of the biggest differentiators between TRD and our competition is that we have invested very heavily in Windows software,” said Steve Wickham, VP of Chassis Operations at Toyota Racing Development.
“Our teams have such a vested interest in staying one step ahead of the competition, they’ve been asking for ways that we can enhance communications even further and wanted a more mobile computing platform that could be used trackside.”
The application allows the crew chief to input performance data on the tablet and then allow the driver to compare his car’s performance in real-time. This also helps the team make more effective adjustments to the car during practice sessions, the company said.
In addition, the app allows for real-time performance tracking, providing an in-depth time comparison for TRD’s driver. “The crew chief is then able to quickly relay that information to the driver, which allows teams to speed up trackside tuning and develop winning race strategies on the fly,” it added.
Since it’s designed to work on Windows 8 tablets, the application is fully optimized for the touch and requires just a few taps to successfully set up new data.
Trackside will officially debut at Daytona in February 2013, with the application currently under heavy testing in practice runs across the United States.