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Are pit boards destined to become a thing of the past? It's a valid question, because the Sachsenring GP will be remembered as the first race at which Race Direction will communicate directly with the riders via the bikes' instrument panel. Testing began last year and has continued, without fuss, during free practice this year.
In Germany, teams can choose to test this system during qualifying and the race. Race Direction, in case of any penalties or the waving of any flags, will be able to transmit the information directly to the riders in question.
As you can see from the image alongside, for now Race Direction can send 7 different messages to indicate: red flag, black flag, blue flag, black flag with orange disc, ride through, drop a position, exceeding track limit. A specific text will be used to signal each warning.
Teams that can already see this type of information on the instrument panel, underwent some technical checks today. Ducati is one such example, already ready, while Yamaha probably won't be until next year.
This is only a first step though, as from 2018 the teams themselves will be able to send personalised messaged to their riders. They will be able to tell them, for example, when to come in to change bike or inform them as to the gap from another rider.
These communications will be fixed for everyone, in the sense that teams will have standard messages that they can choose from. The instrument panel will therefore be a key communication tool when it comes to race management, the future is now.
