+++ Technology transfer from the automotive industry to the ice track
+++ Data-driven optimisation of material and driving line in luge +++
Individualised spikes from the 3D printer for faster starts in bobsled
+++ Two home World Championships as season highlights +++
Munich. The German Bobsleigh, Luge and Skeleton
Federation (BSD) is facing a new season that holds two highlights in
front of a home audience: the FIL World Championships Luge (January
22-28, 2024, Altenberg) and the BMW IBSF World Championships Bobsled
and Skeleton (February 19 to March 3, 2024, Winterberg). The BSD aims
to continue its success in the World Cup and international events, and
is building on the technology partnership with the BMW Group that has
existed since 2010.
The BMW Group expertise, technological capabilities, and innovations
in the automotive industry and motorsport particularly benefit
disciplines where material plays an important role, such as luge,
bobsled, and skeleton. At the BSD season-opening press conference at
the BMW dealership in Dresden, the two projects on which the BMW
technology transfer is focused this season were presented: the ‘BMW
Data Coach’ in luge and spike plates for shoes in bobsled.
Data-driven optimisation of material and driving line.
The system of sled and luge athlete on the ice track is a combination
in which many factors play a role and influence each other. The
fundamental task in luge is to optimise as many variables as possible
to achieve the best run time. The ‘BMW Data Coach’ provides
significant added value in this regard. It is a data-driven evaluation
and optimisation of relevant factors in the interaction between sled
and athlete. This optimal interaction differs from person to person
and from track to track. Therefore, an individual and
location-dependent setup is required, just like in motorsport.
The basis for this are measurement and simulation methods that
provide luge athletes with new opportunities for individual
development and tuning of their sleds, as well as identifying the
ideal driving line. This approach has long been established in vehicle
development and motorsport. Since 2016, the BMW Group and BSD have
been working together on this technology in luge and continuously
refining it.
Special sensors in the sled record a variety of driving data, which
can be precisely reconstructed on the ice track thanks to a special
evaluation software. The software was developed by former luge junior
world champion Dr. Julian von Schleinitz, who benefits from his
experience as an athlete and his expertise as a data scientist at the
BMW Group. With the data collected over the years, the ‘BMW Data
Coach’ is increasingly able to determine the ideal driving line and
optimise components and tuning of the sports equipment.
Von Schleinitz goes one step further: the data set is now so large
that, in combination with computer simulations, predictions about the
use of new components and setups can be made, or working hypotheses
can be checked on the computer. This makes it possible to simulate a
much larger number of variables in the complex system of luge and
athlete virtually, more efficiently than if components had to be built
and tested or driving lines had to be tried out.
The characteristic of the Altenberg World Championships ice track
makes the ‘BMW Data Coach’ particularly valuable. The track is very
long, making optimal sled tuning even more important. The same applies
due to the numerous abrupt curves, entrances, and exits, as well as
the pressure of more than 7G when entering the ‘Kreisel’. Another
setup factor in Altenberg, where the ‘BMW Data Coach’ helps, is the
many open straights, whose ice is exposed to much greater weather
influences than in covered ice tracks.
Interestingly, the data also showed that the top luge athletes Max
Langenhan and Felix Loch drive significantly different lines in
Altenberg. In simulations, the perfect combination of both lines
should be calculated, learned by the athletes, and implemented in
competition until the World Championships. Optimising such details
gives the BSD an advantage in Altenberg for another reason, namely
that the track has been on the competition calendar for a long time
and is well known to international competitors, which reduces the home advantage.
Accelerating with 3D Printing.
It’s no secret that start times play a crucial role in bobsleigh,
determining the speed the sled carries into the ice channel – there’s
no ‘pedal’ afterwards. To translate the athletes’ strength in pushing
on ice into the acceleration of the sports equipment, the right
footwear is crucial. The power transfer occurs solely through spike
plates on the forefoot soles. Each shoe has more than 250 small, sharp
teeth that must exert immense forces on the ice. Improvements to these
plates directly lead to optimising performance on the ice track.
Once again, the technology transfer from automotive development and
manufacturing has been enhancing the spike plates for the past three
years for BMW and BSD. 3D printing is an established innovative method
today, and BMW’s technology experts have been using it since 1991,
integrating 3D printing across the entire product lifecycle, from the
conceptual idea of a vehicle to production and even for spare parts.
This technology is perfectly suited to the spike plates in bobsleigh,
which, until now, was essentially off-the-shelf. 3D printing opens up
entirely new possibilities. Performance factors such as geometry –
where exactly the spikes placed, the number of struts and teeth, and
the weight can be efficiently varied. The spike plates can be printed
quickly and inexpensively, tested by athletes until the optimal result
is achieved. There is no longer a standard; the efficiency of the
process allows for the production of individual plates for each
athlete. The ongoing optimisations are expected to be completed by the
2026 Winter Olympics. The experts are also targeting the stiffness of
the plates and, consequently, the shoes because not every athlete
performs best with the same shoe stiffness.
Another milestone in this journey was reached this year. Various
materials for 3D printing are now available for the spikes, tested by
athletes. The use of special construction software is also new. It is
utilised to optimise components for vehicles as well as equipment for
BMW Group production systems in terms of weight and stiffness. This
software also aids engineers at the BMW Group in designing the spike
plates. It allows for the rapid, automated, and, above all,
individually tailored creation of the respective 3D print data. The
preferred parameters of each athlete – such as geometry, stiffness,
number, and shape of spikes – are automatically incorporated into the
design and adapted to the individual plates, based on 3D scans of the
athletes’ shoes. This algorithmic design process results in
significant time savings and maximum variability.
Strong Partner in Bobsleigh, Skeleton, and Luge Sports.
In the 2023/24 season, BMW is not only present as a technology
partner for BSD at international ice tracks but also continues to be
the title partner for the BMW IBSF World Cup Bobsleigh and Skeleton
and the BMW IBSF World Championships Bobsleigh and Skeleton.
Additionally, BMW remains the main sponsor for the FIL Luge World Cup
and the FIL World Championships Luge.