Team Penske is one of the more decorated Indy 500 teams in recent years, having claimed two titles since 2015 and seven since 2000. As it prepares to compete at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, the team is leaning on Verizon to help it gather real-time video from the track.
Team Penske has been using Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network during practice sessions to prepare for the 103rd running of the Indy 500. The network has been used to transmit real-time video that can then be used to analyze the real-time performance of cars coming in and out of the first turn on the 2.5-mile track. Drivers speed through the corner as fast as 230 miles per hour.
“The difference between first and last place is often a couple of hundredths of a second so if we can get and evaluate information essentially in real-time and tweak performance it clearly gives us a huge advantage,” said Carlos Gutierrez, an engineer with Team Penske, in a statement.
The initial turn is critical because it’s the first 90-degree left-hand turn drivers are thrown into after the straightaway from the start. Team Penske used 5G to stream high-quality video content from connected cameras to a spotter stand. With that real-time feed, the team was able to better analyze a driver’s performance and make immediate changes while a car was on track.
“Prior to 5G, we’d capture video of a six to seven hour practice session, store it in on a memory card, then go back to the garage and analyze that information after practice,” Gutierrez said. “The faster this data gets to the team, the faster we can help the driver on the next lap and gain a competitive edge.”
Penske’s engineers took the nearly real-time video transmission and overlaid feeds from multiple drivers’ previous laps to compare driver lines and alert the pit and the driver of adjustments needed to improve performance on the next lap. Verizon also provided the spotter with near real-time video feeds from a number of other cameras on the track.
“Before, spotters had to rely on a pair of binoculars, or delayed video feeds. With 5G, we’re giving them access to information they never had before so they can warn the driver of an accident ahead or who’s coming up behind them,” said Alex Smith, a member of Verizon’s technical staff.
Verizon has been showing off its 5G capabilities since the 2017 Indy 500. That year, it blacked out the window of an IndyCar and equipped a driver with virtual reality glasses to navigate around the track using just the live video feed from a camera on the hood of the car.
The company has also worked with the NFL and NBA to test how 5G can improve both athlete performance and fan experience. Last year, it demonstrated how 5G technology could give two NFL players the ability to run plays and catch footballs in a VR environment by connecting a pair of first-person goggles to a video from helmet-mounted cameras.
It also used 5G in partnership with the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center to offer fans virtual courtside seats using augmented reality and virtual reality during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Verizon said this same technology could give IndyCar fans the ability to experience the race from inside a driver’s car or to choose different live-video camera angles.
