By ATN Editorial Team
Summary: Ansible Motion has launched the Delta T1 Sport, a compact, six-degrees-of-freedom Driver-in-the-Loop (DIL) simulator built around an all-new patented Triform motion system. Lola Cars will take the first production unit at its Silverstone headquarters to support its ABB FIA Formula E World Championship GEN4 programme, with Super Formula, LMP2, LMH/LMDh, F2, F3, F4 and Formula Regional categories named as further target series.
Key engineering takeaway: The Delta T1 Sport delivers 1m of surge, 1.2m of sway and 120 degrees of yaw, plus 0.2m of heave, 22 degrees of roll and 16 degrees of pitch within a 2.4m by 2.4m floor footprint and a 300kg payload. The patented Triform motion system (AML TMS1) departs from a hexapod baseline, prioritising mechanical stiffness and low dynamic mass for ground-plane fidelity and ultra-low latency. Connectivity to sister-company rFpro for vision and track surface modelling, and to AVL RACETECH for vehicle modelling, plus links into external SIL and HIL toolchains, are built in as standard.
Why it matters: Engineering-class DIL simulators have traditionally needed dedicated buildings, deep foundations and seven-figure budgets that put them out of reach of second-tier motorsport teams. By packaging high-fidelity 6-DOF dynamics into a 2.4m square footprint without special facility or flooring requirements, the Delta T1 Sport pushes Driver-in-the-Loop simulation down into a tier of single-seater and prototype racing that has previously made do with seat-only or static rigs.
- Dynamic, high-fidelity, compact Delta T1 Sport driving simulator from Ansible Motion removes barriers to accessing engineering-class Driver-in-the-Loop (DIL) simulation
- Lola Cars adopts Delta T1 Sport simulator at its Silverstone headquarters to support its ABB FIA Formula E programme
- Delta T1 Sport is designed for all single-seater and cockpit racing series – such as Super Formula, LMP2, LMH/LMDh, Formula E, F2, F3, F4 and Formula Regional categories
- All-new, patented Triform motion system (AML TMS1) delivers high-dynamic performance with a minimised footprint, complexity and cost of ownership
With the launch of the Delta T1 Sport, leading Driver-in-the-Loop (DIL) simulator manufacturer, Ansible Motion, introduces the first in a new class of motorsport simulators that offers high-fidelity dynamics, ultra-low latency and a fully immersive experience – all within a compact footprint and accessible price point. Lola Cars will receive the first production unit to support its vehicle development initiatives, including its ABB Formula E World Championship GEN4 campaign.
Optimised for single-seater and cockpit racing series, such as Super Formula, LMP2, LMH/LMDh, Formula E, F2, F3, F4 and Formula Regional categories, the Delta T1 Sport opens the door to engineering-class DIL capability for race teams, drivers and organisations where space, infrastructure, installation complexities and cost of ownership have traditionally been barriers.
The Delta T1 Sport features an all-new Triform motion system that blends a uniquely high mechanical stiffness and low dynamic mass, to deliver elite physics, along with trusted, repeatable, tuneable motion performance.
According to Dan Clark, Ansible Motion’s managing director, “Delta T1 Sport delivers the fidelity that drivers and engineers crave in a compact, easy to install and operate, inclusive package that has not been available until now. This new class of simulator will unlock fresh opportunities for teams to efficiently pursue and extract vehicle performance gains by leveraging a streamlined, optimised approach. Our customers will benefit from best-in-class, combined solutions in terms of technical integration, technical support and value, with the freedom to distinctively configure aspects of their DIL simulation environment that ultimately lead to competitive advantages.”
The first production Delta T1 Sport will be delivered to Lola Cars’ Silverstone headquarters. Founded in 1958, Lola Cars is the most successful manufacturer of customer race cars of all time and has more than 500 championship wins globally. Reborn in 2022, Lola has re-established itself as a leader in design and engineering. The British motorsport company will draw on the benefits of virtual development for its Formula E programme, with a wider range of DIL-simulator-supported initiatives set to follow in the longer term.
Till Bechtolsheimer, chairman of Lola Cars, says, “We are delighted that Lola will be the first user of the pioneering Delta T1 Sport simulator which will efficiently connect to our existing workflows, enabling us to accelerate our engineering processes and improve development as we strive to drive innovation through motorsport. Ansible Motion is an ideal partner for Lola with a shared ambition to push boundaries and shape future technologies.”
Peter McCool, technical director of Lola Cars, says: “We do not underestimate the impact this technology will have on our car development, software validation and race preparation, for both Formula E and future projects. As part of our relationship with Ansible Motion, we will also be able to offer this technology to our customers and clients, giving them the opportunity to experience first-hand the benefits of Driver-in-the-Loop simulation.”
Clark adds, “This is just the beginning of Ansible Motion’s collaboration with Lola, which will go on to leverage emerging technologies at the cutting edge of motorsport and engineering services.”
How The Delta T1 Sport Triform Motion System Works
As the latest addition to Ansible Motion’s DIL Sport simulator portfolio, Delta T1 Sport follows its Theta Seat Sport (already trusted in Formula E), and Theta Cube Sport (utilised by a European motorsport customer).
Ansible Motion’s DIL Sport range offers specialised features and capabilities that are catered to motorsport engineering – such as high dynamic fidelity, ultra-low latency, numerous driver-oriented realism elements and seamless connectivity to racing software and hardware systems.
“Within six-degrees-of-freedom motion space, DIL simulators must, first and foremost, deliver sufficient ground plane fidelity – especially for vehicle dynamics and motorsport applications, where vehicle directional control and stability dominate the virtual test-driving experience,” says Elliot Dason-Barber, Ansible Motion’s technical director. “Many simulators miss this fundamental point, by starting with legacy hexapods and then working backwards to sort out additional motion requirements with appendages that add complexity and cost. Our Stratiform motion architecture has always excelled in this area, with a first-principles, pure alignment with vehicle dynamics simulation and command authority. Our goal for the Delta T1 Sport was to keep this first-principles philosophy, while reimagining motion envelopes from the perspective of a high-stiffness, agile form factor that preserves low-latency, linear command-oriented dynamic fidelity across all motion axes, while also minimising the simulator’s physical footprint and reducing physical complexity.”
Forming the heart of the Delta T1 Sport, is Ansible Motion’s all-new, patented Triform motion system (AML TMS1). Featuring next-level kinematics and motion generation designed specifically for motorsport and high-performance applications, Triform preserves the spirit of large-scale Stratiform dynamics, while also distilling the physical footprint down to a practical minimum.
With a payload capacity of up to 300kg that accommodates drivers along with feature-rich racing cockpits, the Delta T1 Sport offers a full six-degrees-of-freedom motion envelope, including 1m of surge, 1.2m of sway and 120˚ of yaw. Heave, roll and pitch capabilities are 0.2m, 22˚ and 16˚, respectively. This overall motion envelope has been carefully assessed and optimised by Ansible Motion, based on its 17 years of experience creating dynamic DIL simulators, to be the physical packaging minimum to deliver realistic virtual testing experiences to drivers and engineers who demand to be accurately informed by nuanced perception of vehicle limit handling balance, track irregularities, yaw stability and vertical dynamics. Delta T1 Sport simulators also include Ansible Motion’s highly-configurable motion cueing package to tailor sensory feedback to specific series, driver personas and vehicle tuning strategies.
This overall motion space is efficiently packaged within a low mass, 2.4 x 2.4 m floor footprint, making the Delta T1 Sport an extremely compact, high-dynamics DIL simulator – which enables flexibility of location and operation without special facility or flooring requirements, while providing a significant reduction in cost of installation and ownership compared to larger dynamic DIL simulators.
Connected DIL Toolchain And rFpro Integration
Increasingly, DIL simulation forms part of wider ecosystems for race car development work, and Delta T1 Sport is designed with this in mind. Delta T1 Sport can be networked in multi-sim environments, and it includes Ansible Motion’s established DIL toolchain and software framework that provide seamless connectivity to external Software-in-the-Loop (SIL) and Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) environments.
Together with sister company rFpro, the industry-leader in real-time visualisation software, high-speed rendering, track surface modelling and virtual race circuit libraries, Ansible Motion offers complete end-to-end motorsport simulation packages that cover the cornerstones of productive DIL simulation – motion and vision. In addition, Ansible Motion’s long-standing partnerships with motorsport-focused companies such as AVL RACETECH, enable seamless connectivity to trusted vehicle modelling and analysis toolsets, as well as external systems.
Salman Safdar, Ansible Motion’s business development director says, “The Delta T1 Sport also includes a number of bespoke driver feedback and immersion systems to suit physical space, budget and performance requirements, as well as future-proofing and upgrade pathways – including, but not limited to, multiple space-efficient vision systems – including projectors, LED wall, extended reality (XR) and virtual reality (VR) options; configurable race car cockpits; active dashboard and steering wheel interaction capabilities; adjustable racing seats; configurable pedals; haptic and torque feedback for steering; harness and helmet loading systems”
With full dynamics, a uniquely compact design, seamless connectivity to racing toolsets and an attractive price point, the Delta T1 Sport is poised to redefine and expand DIL simulator usage across a wider field of racing series than ever before.
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