New Hand-Controlled Electronic Braking System Is Adaptable to All Kinds of Race Cars
By John Oreovicz
INDIANAPOLIS – Robert Wickens’ journey since an accident that paralyzed him in a 2018 IndyCar Series race at Pocono Raceway has inspired racing fans with every new achievement.
Wickens returned to competition in the 2022 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, driving a Hyundai Elantra N TCR modified by Bryan Herta Autosport to incorporate specialized hand controls on the steering wheel. He and co-driver Mark Wilkins reached the podium on their debut outing at Daytona International Speedway and won a pair of races later in the season. In 2023, Wickens teamed with Harry Gottsacker to win the championship in the Touring Car (TCR) class.
Now the 35-year-old Canadian has collaborated with Bosch Motorsport to adapt Bosch electronic braking control technology developed in the hybrid-powered Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) cars that race in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship to the Hyundai he races in the Michelin Pilot Challenge. More importantly, the new system could be utilized in GTP cars – and conceivably in nearly any racing car.
Expanded to incorporate all four wheels of the TCR car rather than just the rears as in GTP, the electronic braking system utilizes the same steering wheel ring to activate the brakes. Electronic controls replace a series of mechanical linkages that physically operate the car’s standard brake pedal, eliminating delays and friction from the mechanism.
For Wickens, the electronic braking significantly reduces the physical pressure required on the steering wheel brake ring for the stopping power necessary in racing. He can now brake with one hand, freeing up the other to use the wheel-mounted downshift paddle during braking.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the development of the Bosch system is a huge breakthrough for Wickens and all physically disabled drivers.
“It provides opportunity,” Wickens said. “I think it’s safe to say the system that we developed with Bryan Herta Autosport and Hyundai had a ceiling that was more or less at the level of the TCR category. I’ve always had ambitions of trying to have the opportunity to explore the possibilities of racing in the WeatherTech Championship or other professional categories around the world.
“What this does – and it’s not a guarantee by any stretch of the imagination – but it does give me a chance.”
Indy Provides Fitting Stage for New Technology’s Debut
Appropriately, the Bosch hand control braking system made its debut at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where so many significant automotive-related technologies have been developed and proven over the past 115 years. Established in 1886, Bosch’s history pre-dates that of the speedway; the company’s first patent application for anti-lock brakes was filed in 1936, and Bosch is the established automotive industry leader in the field of vehicle stability controls.
Bosch was a key partner in the development of the standardized hybrid system used by all five manufacturers participating in the GTP class (Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Lamborghini and Porsche). Bosch components include the Electronic Braking System, Hybrid Control Unit and Motor Control Unit as well as telemetry and related sensors.
“We’re taking the next step of innovation with an electronic braking system that is hand controlled,” said Jacob Bergenske, director, Bosch Motorsport North America. “The platform is based off our proven performance in the LMDh electronic braking system, but it’s an innovation on top of that which we are super happy to collaborate with Robert on. We’re at the beginning or the dawn of a new generation, and of course we still have more potential to release.
“This system is about providing opportunity and parity across the field, for people who are not able to race at the top level of racing. Robert is here to prove that.”
The hand-controlled electronic braking system received its first real-world shakedown just after the IMSA weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in May. More recently, Wickens completed three days of testing at the Putnam Park Road Course outside Indianapolis.
Wickens used the system for the first time in competition at Indianapolis on Sept. 21, where he and Gottsacker finished second in the No. 33 Hyundai. They remain in contention for their second consecutive TCR class championship heading to the Oct. 11 season finale, the Fox Factory 120 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
“Honestly, it feels great,” said Wickens. “So far, it’s doing everything I want it to do, and with no latencies or surprises like I’ve had in the past. I’m just really looking forward to the potential that the system has for me. From a driving standpoint, I feel like we’re probably 80 to 85 percent where I want it to be. I know it’s just going to keep getting better and better as I continue to adapt and re-learn my braking techniques, and really still continue to work on and improve the finesse of the system, because it’s still very young in its life.”
Wickens Appreciates Chance to Pay It Forward to Future Disabled Drivers
While Wickens has much to be proud of when he reflects on the last three years racing in TCR, he yearns to return to a top class of racing to compete for overall victories. Thanks to the collaboration with Bosch, he and other disabled drivers have a tool that can theoretically be adapted with relatively minimal cost or difficulty to almost any racing car.
“It was the most exciting project that everyone wanted to work on,” noted Jordan Krell, senior application engineer, Bosch Motorsport. “There are a lot of components in this that are from the (GTP) system, so they are already race-proven, but now we’re putting them in a new application. It was a little tricky to make all of that work, and it took a lot of teamwork.
“We designed the system to be very modular and to be able to go into pretty much any race car,” he added. “It would be actually less work to fit it into a GTP car than a TCR car. Making it equitable was our big focus behind it.”
Those words are music to Wickens’ ears.
“Racing in GTP would always be the ultimate goal of mine,” he said. “I want to race for overall victory like anybody, but I need to get myself into the WeatherTech (Championship) first. Right now, I don’t have anything confirmed, but we’re going to keep working hard and see what we can find.
“The big thing and the goal for all this is trying to create equal opportunity for unable-bodied drivers,” Wickens added. “If I can include myself, hopefully when I’m done with my career, I can hold my head up high for creating an easier path for the next generation of disabled motorsport athletes trying to find their way to the highest levels of motorsport.”
Thanks to Bosch, that dream is on its way to becoming a reality.