This device would tie in to existing PC racing sims.
The track portion would be a rolling road (coveyer belt wooo) a few inches longer than the wheelbase of the go-kart corner to corner, able to rotate 360 degrees,and tilt 15 or so degrees.
The go-kart portion would have a ring around the rolling track portion, and the go-kart is rigidly mounted to this ring, which can also rotate and tilt the same amount.
The screen in front is the race sim you are tied into.
When you drop your clutch and launch your go-kart, wheelspin will be detected and the road will roll towards you, increasing speed as the tires stop burning out, as your car rushes ahead on the screen.
As you brake for the corner, the rolling road begins to slow. Fighting against the adhesion of the tires, a small puff of smoke comes off just as you give it too much brake while turning in.
When the wheel is turned for the corner, both the track and the kart rotate and pitch, with the angle of the car slightly steeper then the track going into the corner. Sliding could be produced by too much angle vs speed on the rolling road and kart, while showing you drifiting to the outside of the corner on the screen.
Most speeds and track configurations could be accounted for, while using a real cart to simulate real racing. Bumps could be simulated as well, either under the track or the whole machine bouncing up and down.-- Giblet, Jun 30 2007 Dragtag in Melbourne http://site.dragtag...u/webpage.php?id=13A correspondent writes: "We already have something similar for real cars in Australia (I'm sure it exists elsewhere), it's called Dragtag in Melbourne, and consists of a 4 wheel dyno and a large screen. Car is strapped down, and the system can detect the turning of the from wheels so you can drive round tracks." [jutta, Jul 04 2007] Short on kart racing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kart_racingOOoOOo - Karty. [Letsbuildafort, Jul 05 2007] I like the idea of moving within the projected images that make up the virutal reality created by the invention. I think it would be kinda pointless to run a go kart on a treadmill. Better to just use the pan / tilt of the ride and mount that to the chassie. But then you don't move within the images......-- evilpenguin, Jun 30 2007 You bunked, debunked, and rebunked my idea in one anno.-- Giblet, Jun 30 2007 What did you expect from a penguin, particularly one that is evil?-- Canuck, Jul 01 2007 Evil ice.-- Giblet, Jul 01 2007 evil yellow ice?-- jong-scx, Jul 01 2007 But what about the go-cart rolling on a treadmill? Thats not evil. Inless the treadmill braked suddenly and the cart was thrown maliciously into chaos. yes... chaos-- evilpenguin, Jul 01 2007 Read the idea again.
The car is rigidly attached to the ring, that pitches and yaw's the car.
The most damage the kart can do is spin it's tires and smoke them.
A rolling road is a 'treadmill', but I don't want a treadmill that goes 180mph to run on.-- Giblet, Jul 01 2007 Excuse me, but is this your clutch I found back there? I'm pretty sure it was you that dropped it.
No need to thank me, I'm Canadian. It's what we do.-- Canuck, Jul 04 2007 Hey! My home hockey team is named after you.
BrauBeaton, as soon as they shut down Monaco for the day, or the Monzao circuit in Italy for my friend and I to race around, then simulators will be still be required.-- fancypants, Jul 04 2007 // ...using a real cart to simulate real racing.//
You know the kind of power real nice, professional shifter carts regularly put out? Furthermore, they still employ 2-stroke engines of 125cc displacement or greater. I would fathom that treadmill durability and acute smoke inhalation would be an issue here.-- Letsbuildafort, Jul 05 2007 Shifter carts go up to 500cc. They are insane.
Mind you, F1 cars put out ~850hp and the rolling roads in the wind tunnels go up to 180mph, no problem. This tech would just have to made smaller and not go as fast. Easy.
A flexible hose, I would also fathom, would easily pipe the exhaust outside, and if it's still too much for you, a hood fan could also be employed.
I doubt you'd have this in your apartment, but in a purpose built facility all these 'obstacles' can be easily overcome.-- Giblet, Jul 05 2007 Perhaps another manner of device that moves the wheels on the cart? It provides motive force, and it would have to be powered by electricity so we could call it an electronical mot-or.
It could also have some sort of sound-producing apparatus that dopplegangs the sound of one of those newfangled internal combustion monstrosities, to create the illusion of reality.-- shapu, Jul 05 2007 random, halfbakery