In 2018, Robert Wickens faced one of the few worst-case scenarios in racing. While competing at Pocono, his No. 6 Lucas Oil Arrow IndyCar hit another car (Ryan Hunter-Reay), resulting in a brutal crash that red-flagged the race. Wickens surprisingly survived the incident, but his injuries would leave him paralyzed. Chances were likely that he wouldn’t be able to walk, or race again.
Technology has made considerable strides over the years for disabled racers. Enough to where paraplegic drivers have been using experimental hand-controlled systems, typically built specially for that specific racing vehicle, that allowed them to return to the very thing they loved doing: racing. Michael Johnson was one of those drivers, and in 2021, after Wickens' long road of recovery and rehabilitation, he offered the former driver a chance to return to the track, using his specially modified Hyundai Veloster TCR equipped with a hand-controlled system. The offer led to Wickens signing on for a full season ride with Bryan Herta Autosport (BHA), nabbing a championship win in 2023, and provided a way to further the development of the hand controls to make them more realistic and accessible for other paraplegic drivers who also want a chance at a championship — or just be able to artfully hoon a car around a track again.
How it started
The earlier hand control system Wickens utilized (demonstrated in the video below) in his first seasons with BHA functioned via a brake ring that is mounted behind the steering wheel. When Wickens pulled on this brake ring, a series of linkages applied pressure to the primary brake master cylinder which then sent hydraulic pressure to the anti-lock brake controller and eventually to the calipers at each corner to enable braking.
While the system did offer some assistance to applying brake pressure, it was in the form of pressurized air helping Wickens to move the linkages and was typically delayed. There was very little feedback as all of these motions were happening and a lot of mechanical moving components which made it hard to do fine movements like trail braking, which require feeling how the car responds as you gradually brake, and is essential in racing competitively.
All these linkages also made it difficult for seamless handoffs of the car between Wickens and his co-drivers. In the Michelin Pilot Challenge series, drivers tend to share cars — switching throughout the enduro races. Wickens raced with Mark Wilkins and Harry Gottsacker, who would hop into the car after Wickens’ stints and flip a switch to use the standard foot controls. While the transition mechanically was easy between both abled and disabled drivers, the early system's mechanical linkages took up pivotal space within the driver cockpit, and required drivers to maneuver their feet to work around things. It also made it difficult to get Wickens in and out of the car.
That control system would be continually developed over the next few years with BHA’s engineering team, and eventually, very little remained of the original system sourced by Johnson. But in late 2023, the engineering team realized they may be able to apply recently developed LMDh technology to make the system even better. They reached out to the gurus at Bosch Motorsport.
Designing an easier future of racing for disabled drivers
Senior Motorsport Engineer Jordan Krell and the rest of the engineering team at Bosch Motorsport were immediately up to the challenge and looked to the Electronic Braking System (EBS) developed for the hybrid LMDh race cars as a starting point. Originally deployed in IMSA to control the braking functions of the brake-by-wire system used in the LMDh prototypes, the EBS uses electric signals to blend friction brakes and regenerative braking provided by the hybrid components installed in the cars.
Bosch engineers wanted to address the needs of the hand control system and figure out a way to rid the car of all of those cumbersome linkages. They built a replica of the system that Wickens was using in their lab and began swapping out components, along with designing a new system layout.
Each adjustment eventually left them with a system that connected from the brake ring on the steering wheel to two small master cylinders under the steering column. These cylinders were then routed hydraulically to the primary master cylinder by the brake pedal and from there lines were connected to the EBS. The circuit was completed by connecting the EBS to the ABS unit that is a standard component on the Veloster N TCR.
The next step was tuning the EBS, and once again, Bosch went to the LMDh platform in order to acquire a pedal feel simulator. The simulator allowed them to give accurate braking feedback as the brakes were applied. This pedal feel simulator is an optional component on LMDh cars which can connect to the hydraulic circuit on the EBS in order to provide feedback when brakes are applied through it.
Not only did this new system clear out a bunch of mechanical components under the steering wheel and around the pedal box, but it also seamlessly integrated with the existing Bosch components and allowed for Wickens and his co-drivers to easily swap in and out of the car with the flick of a switch that changes controls from hands to feet.
One of the biggest improvements with the new EBS-based system is the fact that the boost provided by the column-mounted master cylinders is not only more precise but also more powerful so now Wickens can operate the brake ring with one hand while completely using the other hand for another function like shifting which will allow him to take his braking to the next level.
This new system not only offers a direct benefit for Wickens inside the cockpit of the Hyundai Veloster N TCR, but opens up opportunities to race in other cars since the system uses Bosch components that are compatible with ABS modules found in GT cars and prototypes. Wickens could now take the system technology with him to step up to the next level of competition and get behind the wheel of a GTD or GTP car in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship.
Wickens was able to truly put the new system to the test at IMSA’s run at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway just a few weeks ago, where he and teammate Harry Gottsacker finished on the podium after starting the Michelin Pilot Challenge race from deep in the TCR field. They enter the upcoming race this weekend at Michelin Raceway at Road Atlanta second in the championship with the opportunity to nab a back-to-back championship win. With the developments made in just a few years, and this latest partnership with Bosch, whatever this weekend’s outcome may be, it will be a win for Wickens, and a further win for the disabled hoping to get a chance to take on motorsports, again.
