Suspension Setup Tracking Software

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  • dualdj1
    Senior Member
    • Jun 2009
    • 654

    #1

    Suspension Setup Tracking Software

    I've been tracking suspension changes and effects on our Late Model with a spreadsheet over the past year, and finally decided to build a program to make tracking from race to race, night to night easier. It is in the very early stages, but my intent is to provide it to the racing community free of charge as a means to help low budget teams better track their changes to help improve on track performance.

    Currently the software is a very early version, but I have it available for download at:
    Download Dirt Track Suspension Setup Tracker for free. Dirt Track Stock Car Suspension Setup Tracker. This project is designed to help dirt track teams track their suspension changes over seasons, to help tune suspension setup for different track conditions. Written in C# and completely open source.


    Right now it's based on swingarm, but I will be making a 4 bar version soon as well. It is also primarily rear suspension, though I can also add front if there's enough desire.

    I look forward to having others try it out, and letting me know what they'd like to see added. I currently plan to have either a reporting setup or some way to view data based on track conditions, as well as just previous nights/races.

    Feel free to message here or PM me with any questions/comments.
  • rubbinsracin
    Senior Member
    • Aug 2009
    • 668

    #2
    I would be very interested in this if you created a 4bar version!

    Comment

    • mab18
      Member
      • Aug 2009
      • 41

      #3
      In the weights/springs/tires area I would add a place for tire circumfrence for each corner of the car.

      Comment

      • dualdj1
        Senior Member
        • Jun 2009
        • 654

        #4
        I'm hoping to get either a separate 4 bar version, or have 4 bar incorporated into this version by mid next week.

        mab thanks for the suggestion, I'll go that route instead of a stagger field and have a calculated stagger in there for display instead.

        Comment

        • basscatcher89
          Senior Member
          • May 2007
          • 378

          #5
          glad to know im not the only one working on this. Mine has been stalled for the last couple months though with work getting in the way. Very handy tool to have. What language are you building yours in?

          Comment

          • dualdj1
            Senior Member
            • Jun 2009
            • 654

            #6
            It's in C#, as that's what I've got the most experience in lately. The source is available on the project page if you want to check it out and see if it's something you can use/add to. I'm always open for suggestions!

            Comment

            • dualdj1
              Senior Member
              • Jun 2009
              • 654

              #7
              Updated today. Now has settings that can be used for either 4 bar or swingarm, along with a few other additions. You may have to start fresh with the new data (xml) file if you are using the first version, but can try with your old file first if you'd like.

              Comment

              • jdpower
                Junior Member
                • May 2008
                • 28

                #8
                After extracting the Zip file, I get windows error message when trying to open the .exe

                Comment

                • joedoozer
                  Senior Member
                  • Nov 2009
                  • 745

                  #9
                  Yup me too. I get an error message.
                  Crew Chief "Tip of the day":
                  Most handling problems can be solved by adjusting the screw-ball. It can be difficult to fine tune at times. Explaining yourself loudly and striking it on top of the helmet with a dead blow hammer usually works well.

                  Comment

                  • dualdj1
                    Senior Member
                    • Jun 2009
                    • 654

                    #10
                    Thanks for letting me know, I have to do a few things this morning, then will get the issue fixed.

                    Comment

                    • dualdj1
                      Senior Member
                      • Jun 2009
                      • 654

                      #11
                      the problem was in the formatting of the xml data file, and has been fixed. the current zip posted has the correct xml file. let me know if there are any other issues that come up. I plan to keep revising this week and updating with new/revamped features.

                      Let me know if you like the radio button setup for the bars, or if you would prefer a drop down box (like selecting panhard type) with 1,2,3, etc. I kinda prefer the visual location style with the radio buttons, but that's just me.

                      Comment

                      • 5m Racing
                        Junior Member
                        • Mar 2011
                        • 5

                        #12
                        I just downloaded the software and like it a lot. Had a few questions tho. I started a night and put in qualifying data. Then changed to heat race data and made changes and save the set up changes and the race info and it save the track condition changes but did not save the bar changes and my qualifying bar data and my heat bar data were the same. Also is there anyway of putting a spot that i can record all my shop scaling data w/ ride hieghts, lf %, rear % and total wieghts and bite. I think your software is gonna be a great help to my racing operation as keeping notes is the hardest think to do for us. Thanks a lot.

                        Mike Fryer
                        Performance Automotive Racing
                        5M - Dirt Late Model

                        Comment

                        • dualdj1
                          Senior Member
                          • Jun 2009
                          • 654

                          #13
                          Mike,
                          Thanks for the feedback. I'm sure as we go there will be more and more things to put in, so we have to figure out the best way to do so. This will be a work in progress, until probably after the season is started. I hopefully can come up with a way so data doesn't need to be reentered when I do version updates, but at this point as I add fields I've been having to reenter data.

                          I think I already have a spot for weights, though I could have it display the calculated %'s/total weight/etc. Is this something that we need to have for every race, or would it be something on the night as a whole? (ie before going out, this is what we scaled/set the car to, then maybe have place to note changes made during the night)

                          Right now all the settings you have for the last selected race will carry over, so you only have to enter your changes.

                          I think I will change the update buttons to just a single one, that updates both the selected race condition, and the chassis settings at the same time, rather than have 2 separate buttons.

                          Comment

                          • 5m Racing
                            Junior Member
                            • Mar 2011
                            • 5

                            #14
                            yes there is a place for weights but no %'s etc. I think that is just something just for the night as a whole just like you said. That sounds like a great idea. The combining the save buttons sound like a good idea too. I see how the changes carry over which is great but the problem i encountered was that when i changed the bar settings for the heat race it changed my bar settings for the qualifying session as well. I think when i changed bar selections on the feature, amain and bmain it changed them all the way up to the qualifying bar settings. I dont know if i am making sense or not.

                            Thanks,
                            I look forward to continuing to work with you on this.

                            Comment

                            • joedoozer
                              Senior Member
                              • Nov 2009
                              • 745

                              #15
                              Originally posted by 5m Racing View Post
                              yes there is a place for weights but no %'s etc. I think that is just something just for the night as a whole just like you said. That sounds like a great idea. The combining the save buttons sound like a good idea too. I see how the changes carry over which is great but the problem i encountered was that when i changed the bar settings for the heat race it changed my bar settings for the qualifying session as well. I think when i changed bar selections on the feature, amain and bmain it changed them all the way up to the qualifying bar settings. I dont know if i am making sense or not.

                              Thanks,
                              I look forward to continuing to work with you on this.
                              When you want to update your set up, make sure you click the race first. In the upper left menu. Make sure qualifying (for example) is highlighted Blue. Then click update setup. It will save the changes.
                              Crew Chief "Tip of the day":
                              Most handling problems can be solved by adjusting the screw-ball. It can be difficult to fine tune at times. Explaining yourself loudly and striking it on top of the helmet with a dead blow hammer usually works well.

                              Comment

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