pitot tubes on race cars

[Rocket Science Racing]

Don,

Again:

"A pitot-static tube is a device which enables the measurement of the
dynamic pressure of a fluid in motion, such as the air flow around a moving
vehicle. Dynamic pressure can be thought of as the frontal pressure seen by
the car due to its motion through the air. The aerodynamic performance of
the a vehicle is proportional to the dynamic pressure and so its measurement
is important in understanding variations in a vehicle's performance around
the track."

I suppose that only suggests usefulness in a general way, i.e. it's useful
for measuring aerodynamic performance of a race car. Unfortunately I can't
take it to the next level because I am not a race car aerodynamicist, but
dynamic pressure is a variable in quite a few aerodynamic calculations.

You can calculate dynamic pressure using vehicle speed, air temperature,
pressure and humidity (those last three get you air density), but apparently
it's easier and more accurate to measure it directly.

There are several application notes on the PI Research site that I haven't
bothered to read. That might be a good next step.

Scott

 -----Original Message-----
From: 	Doug Johnson [mailto:ur-quattro at msn.com]
Sent:	Thursday, July 22, 2004 11:05 PM

Scott,

You've told us the method the pitot tube uses to determine pressure (from
the quote you included), but you forgot to tell us how you use such
information....

Thanks,

~ Doug