Front Wing

What does the front wing do?

Generates downforce on the front axle
Serves to control the turbulent air around the tyres
Holds the greatest impact on the total air flow, as all subsequent parts are dependent on its air
Creates the basis for the overall aerodynamic concept

How is a front wing developed?

Creating an overview of the current state of development and understanding
Trying to reconstruct a current wing in order to deepen your CAD knowledge
New ideas are discussed and worked out with the whole team
Draw up a rough connection concept and discuss it with the interfaces, e.g. those responsible for the mono system
Provide wing variants for CFD analysis and then discuss the results together
Further development of the wing based on the CFD results, e.g. by
1. Adaptation of flap-gaps
2. Adding winglets
3. Adding Vortex Generators
Renewed CFD analysis and further adjustments up to design freeze
Fine elaboration of the connection including FEM analysis

How is a front wing tested?

The test phase is basically divided into 2 phases, one during the design phase and one after the vehicle is put into service
During the design phase:
- Testing of new fibres in terms of stiffness, strength, processability, surface quality
- Testing of new moulding material to achieve a better surface quality
- Testing of new surface treatment methods
After commissioning
- Validation of CFD results for next year and possible pre-development projects
  - Thread tests
  - Wind tunnel tests
  - Flowwiz trials
  - Pressure load cells to measure the downforce
- Testing different wing settings to adjust the car setup
- Stability test of the connections

How is a front wing manufactured?

Various processes are used in production. These are

3-/5-axis milling for connecting parts, which are mostly made of aluminium
3D printing for plastic parts with very complex geometries that cannot be produced from CFRP
Prepreg-out-of-autoclave process, as well as infiltration process for the CFRP components