The Nürburgring’s Nordschleife has been a development hub for the international automotive industry for decades. Manufacturers and suppliers use the demanding 20.832-kilometre circuit to test vehicles and components under extreme conditions. Now, for the first time, an academic institution is also taking part in these test and development runs: Mittweida University of Applied Sciences is using the Nordschleife to gather real-world vehicle data for its research into simulations and digital twins. This adds a further dimension to ‘testing and development at the Nürburgring’ – bringing science and industrial vehicle development even closer together.
For Mittweida University of Applied Sciences, the test and development runs are about bridging the gap between real-world and digital vehicle development. In the “Motion Simulation & Software Development” Living Lab at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences, researchers and students develop digital twins of vehicles. These virtual models are designed to replicate the behaviour of a real vehicle and its components as realistically as possible. To achieve this, elements such as tyres, aerodynamics, the powertrain and the chassis are integrated into the simulation. Real-world data is crucial to the quality of these models. “High-quality and realistic data form the crucial basis for reliable research results,” explains Professor Dr Matthias Vodel, Head of the Living Lab.
The university is now collecting this real-world reference data during test and development drives on the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife. There, the team can use a real vehicle to record data under a wide variety of conditions whilst making targeted adjustments to the vehicle or individual components. This produces structured data sets, which are subsequently analysed at the Living Lab in Mittweida and used for the development and validation of digital vehicle models. In Vodel’s view, the Nordschleife is particularly valuable for this purpose: no other test track demands so much from vehicles. He therefore describes the reference data collected there as the “gold standard for test applications in automotive research and development”.
Findings from research are directly incorporated into teaching. The data collected on the Nordschleife is integrated into the university’s degree programmes and courses. In the Master’s programme in ‘Media Informatics and Interactive Entertainment’, for example, students analyse telemetry data and compare datasets from virtual drives with real-world measurements from the Nürburgring. The insights gained from this can in turn be tested on the Living Lab’s simulation platforms and utilised for further research. This creates a cycle comprising real-world testing at the Nürburgring, scientific analysis in Mittweida, and research and teaching at the university. Simulation and real-world testing thus complement one another. In Vodel’s view, real-world testing remains indispensable for assessing vehicles and components under real-world extreme conditions. “In this context, the Nürburgring and the Nordschleife are irreplaceable in the medium and long term – both in reality and in simulation environments.”
The fascination of the Nordschleife extends right into the lecture theatre
In addition to its scientific benefits, the link to the Nürburgring also exerts a special influence within the university. For Vodel, the Nordschleife was already the starting point for his research activities. When he took up his professorship in Mittweida in 2018, he wanted to bring research to life using a practical yet fascinating example. This led to the creation of the Living Lab, which opened in 2019. Since then, the Nürburgring has been an integral part of the simulation scenarios carried out there.
University network centred on the Nürburgring
The connection between Mittweida University of Applied Sciences and the Nürburgring began even before the university took part in the test and development drives. Mittweida has been a member of the Nürburgring Academy for several years. Founded in 2018, the association links universities, the Nürburgring and businesses, bringing together a range of academic disciplines. These include technical disciplines such as motorsport engineering, mechanical engineering, vehicle engineering and engine technology, as well as motorsport and sports management, and other fields ranging right through to medicine.
For Dr Karl-Josef Schmidt, Head of the Nürburgring Academy, Mittweida’s participation in the test and development runs is therefore a logical development that is in line with the founding philosophy of the Nürburgring Academy: “In engineering sciences in particular, the aim is to facilitate not only theory but also practical application and testing, and to make the Nürburgring’s resources available for this purpose. The diversity of disciplines is a deliberate part of the concept. The Academy aims to bring together fields of study that are connected, in the broadest sense, to the events and motorsport industry.
Interface between students and businesses
This approach is particularly evident in the direct exchange between universities and businesses. Among other things, the Nürburgring Academy organises intensive weeks featuring classes at the Nürburgring, company visits and guest lectures. For example, during a joint training week, selected students from the universities of Stralsund, Trier and Mittweida, as well as the Saarland University of Applied Sciences, come together at the Nürburgring. Theoretical lessons are combined with excursions to companies and practical insights.
In addition, the Nürburgring provides topics for academic theses. Questions relating to motorsport, vehicle development or the management of a motorsport and events venue can thus be addressed in semester projects as well as in bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral theses. At the same time, the Academy brings students together with companies associated with the Nürburgring. For Schmidt, this creates a win-win situation: students get to know potential employers, whilst companies come into contact with qualified young academics at an early stage. At the same time, academic research can address specific issues and deliver results that are of practical use to the Nürburgring or the companies involved.
The example of Mittweida illustrates just how far this networking can go. According to Vodel, after around five years of collaboration with the Nürburgring and the Nürburgring Academy, the university is now involved in four ongoing research projects at national and EU level. Together with partners from academia and industry, it is working on, amongst other things, tyre simulations, sensor systems and vehicle components. “Without the Nürburgring Academy’s network, these activities would not have come about,” says Vodel.
The cycle of digital development and real-world testing is set to continue in the future. The Nordschleife remains the challenging venue for development and testing in both worlds.
About the Nürburgring Academy e.V.:
The Nürburgring Academy’s academic network currently comprises universities and other institutions with a variety of specialist focuses. In the fields of engineering, vehicle development and motorsport, the network includes the University of Applied Sciences Kaiserslautern/Zweibrücken (Motorsport Management), the University of Applied Sciences Stralsund (Vehicle Engineering and Design), the University of Applied Sciences Trier (Mechanical Engineering), RWTH Aachen University and the East Bavarian University of Applied Sciences Amberg-Weiden (Digital Product Development).
In the fields of sports science and management, the Nürburgring Academy includes Koblenz University of Applied Sciences with its RheinAhrCampus in Remagen, the IST University of Management in Düsseldorf and SRH University of Applied Sciences in Heidelberg. Other members include Mittweida University of Applied Sciences with its Faculty of Applied Computer and Life Sciences, and the Apollon University of Health Management in Bremen. From the medical sector, the Marienhaus Clinics and Aachen University Hospital are represented. The range of members is complemented by the European University of Applied Sciences Rhein/Erft.
Nürburgring 1927 GmbH & Co. KG, as the operating company and key partner for practical work at the site, is also a member of the Nürburgring Academy. In this way, the Academy combines academic expertise in engineering, digitalisation, sport, management and health with the diverse practical applications offered by the Nürburgring.