The FIA, Formula One’s governing body, is experimenting with artificial intelligence (AI) during the upcoming Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to address breaches of track limits. Employing ‘Computer Vision’ technology, which relies on shape analysis to detect the number of pixels crossing the track’s edge, the FIA aims to distinguish genuine breaches where drivers fully cross the white line marking the track’s perimeter. This initiative is geared towards easing the workload at the FIA’s remote operations centre (ROC) and streamlining response times.
During the Austrian Grand Prix on July 2, the sport encountered a substantial challenge, managing a deluge of about 1,200 potential violations with only four individuals handling the task. By the decisive Qatar weekend in October, the team had expanded to eight members monitoring 820 corner passes, reporting 141 incidents to race control, leading to the deletion of 51 laps.
Despite these efforts, some breaches during October’s US Grand Prix in Austin remained unaddressed, prompting stewards to express dissatisfaction with their inability to enforce track limits violations at turn six.
Tim Malyon, the FIA’s head of remote operations and deputy race director, highlighted the effectiveness of Computer Vision technology in medical fields, citing its role in analysing data from cancer screenings. He explained its intended use to eliminate cases where no infringement occurred, allowing skilled personnel to focus on the genuine 20%.
Malyon stressed that integrating Computer Vision would diminish the number of potential violations considered by the ROC, with fewer cases forwarded to race control for further action. “They don’t want to use the Computer Vision to diagnose cancer, what they want to do is to use it to throw out the 80% of cases where there clearly is no cancer in order to give the well-trained people more time to look at the 20%. And that’s what we are targeting. I’ve said repeatedly that the human is winning at the moment in certain areas. That might be the case now but we do feel that ultimately, real-time automated policing systems are the way forward,” he told Reuters.
Track Limits
In Formula 1, track limits refer to the boundaries of the racing circuit that define where drivers are allowed to drive their cars during a race. These limits are typically marked by white lines on the track’s edges. Drivers are expected to stay within these limits; however, there are instances where they might exceed these boundaries. When a driver goes beyond the track limits, they risk penalties or warnings from race officials. Formula 1 has specific rules about track limits to ensure fair competition and safety for all drivers. Exceeding track limits can lead to penalties like time penalties or having lap times deleted during qualifying sessions if a driver gains an advantage by going off-track.
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