The Magazine For Slot Car Enthusiasts
Interactive Speedway - The Future of Scale is Interactive
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By Dave Smith
The Solution !
Imagine a time when scale racing is as interactive as Nintendo. A time when the guidance system of the vehicles is no longer the default definition of the product; when an actual pole qualifier must lead a running start; when cars and drivers are faced with varying problems with different solutions based on actual track and race conditions; when real crashes cause real and enforced caution periods; when cars must pit for fuel; when tires wear and lap times slow; when there is actually a realistic and functional pit road; a time when scale racing is a direct reflection of the skill and strategy of the real thing. In 1960 these were the sci-fi dreams of millions of young scale racing enthusiasts. In 2001 they still are.

It's been a long journey since my early days as a Fire Ball Roberts and Model Motoring fan, but from primary school through 20 years as an Air Force pilot, the magic of scale racing has never grown old. Whether in some other corner of the globe or here at home, and whether or not the local proprietor spoke English, I’ve always managed to stick my head into the nearest hobby shop just to see what’s new.

Disappointingly though, I haven’t seen anything truly new in scale in a long time. I’ve wondered why scale racing has somehow been locked into its 70’s mold and has been deprived of the innovation that is driving nearly every product on the planet with perhaps the exception of pencils. In a booming world filled with embedded microprocessors, composite plastics, digital communications, and fly-by-wire jets, where is the advancement process that had taken the 1960’s vibrators to G-Plus in less than 15 years. Where is the improved performance? Where is the increased realism? Where is the interactivity? Has innovation been reserved for only Tickle-Me-Elmo?

Scale racing has always been an interest and particularly the smaller scales. It always seemed more realistic, easier to deal with in a home environment, less expensive, and more family oriented than its larger counter parts. With that background, in 1995 I started doing some preliminary research to find out what others had tried, what technology could be used to support improvements, and most importantly what the “average” potential customer really wanted in home scale racing.

Through hundreds of interviews in varying locations the research revealed that the major toy manufacturers were totally missing the mark. They were, and still are, focusing their “electric racing” category on 8 year olds and have all but forgotten the pre-teens and adults that, given the correct product, still enjoy the concepts of scale. In direct opposition to the manufacturer’s toddler focus, each year children become more accustom to technology and their abilities become more comparable, in digital terms, to those of adults. This trend is dubbed “age compression” in the toy industry, and is used to describe the migration of children to ever increasingly sophisticated toys at earlier and earlier ages. Why has scale been excluded?
The Headache ?
This is every parents' fear.
Data Center
The "Brains" of the system

The research also revealed 4 major “average customer” expressed expectations. They are: Convenience, Realism, Reliability, and Interactivity.

Convenience. Almost without exception, the call from mothers is for convenience in what ever they purchase and with that comes an expression of pure disgust for sectioned tracks. On the surface this may seem an unimportant consideration for the serious H.O. hobbyist, but for the average household where “Mom” is responsible for 80% of the purchases and will undoubtedly face the task of assembling and disassembling an electric racing set for little Johnny, convenience is a major issue. Toy studies have shown that if a product fails to fit within the parents “comfort brand”, that the toy or game will have little chance for success on the retail shelf. Year after year manufacturers ignore this issue and the result has been a decade of dismal sales while the demand for everything NASCAR or F1 related ( dependent on location ) continues to skyrocket.

Realism. Potential customers continually ask, why can’t the product be as good as the picture on the box? This again may seem trivial, but the underlying insinuation is that the package is more exciting than the product. Countless potential customers express disappointment with the products appearance when assembled and wonder how tracks with loops and jumps correlate to the real world of racing that is viewed by millions around the globe every Sunday afternoon. Heard time and again was “why does it look like that on the box” when what I get for my money is track on the carpet? The end result is low product expectations, a high return rate, and a potential year round hobby or family game that has been rendered a disposable Christmas toy by the general public.

Reliability. For the hobbyist, problems with the track conductors are an accepted way of life without a permanent layout. But for the "“average consumer” who would otherwise enjoy racing in scale, this problem only serves to add to the frustration of having to spend 30 to 45 minutes putting a “set” together in addition to knowing that the same will likely occur the next time little Johnny wants to play. Chores are not fun, and all you need do is read the customer reviews of “electric racing” products on the web at Toys-R-Us to understand how frustrated and disappointed the average electric racing consumer really is.
Overpass
Pit Area
Allowing for real life racing problems
Interactivity. No matter how cliché, the echo boomers are growing up in a digital world. As expected, their desires for scale are for more functional interactivity between the driver and the car and most express enthusiastic interest in scale if increased interactivity can be achieved. Why can’t the cars do more than just go around the track? Why doesn’t something happen when the cars crash? Where are all the real racing problems? Where are the skill levels and data storage? Where is pit road? These are the resounding questions of a video driven age group that also just happen to parallel the sci-fi dreams of boomers.

Initially supported through the Center for Technological Innovation in Charleston, SC, the resulting CAD/CAM designed phase IV Prototype is the culmination of 5 years of consumer research, hardware and software development, potential customer feedback, experimentation, and intellectual property protection efforts. Through a network of enthusiastic ( and sometimes gratis : ) institutions and organizations that include the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the University of West Virginia School of Engineering, Solutions Cubed, and Industrial Design Associates, we have been able to take a scientific approach to meeting the demands of today’s potential scale racing enthusiasts.

While the prototype represents a DOS 1.0 level starting point, it provides a flexible platform for growth that can easily be configured to suit the needs of varying age groups and assorted types of racing emulation’s. A folding and expandable 4 x 6 layout provides a realistic representation of today’s modern speedway environments complete with an alternative road course and functional pit road while addressing the consumer expressed issues of convenience, realism, and reliability. True video game like interactivity is achieved through the software generated control of an embedded microprocessor architecture that enables a host of new and realistic scale racing features.

The processor controlled features include programmable logarithmic power controls embedded in the main processor, a realistic vehicle sequencing system, track detection for enunciating and enforcing actual cautions and slowing the field, game dependent momentum and tire wear simulations, player controlled pit schedule relevant fuel restrictions with random pit entry, random pit problems, static and dynamic point (pit) detection, functional track condition displays, and data entry and storage, all controlled through simple key entries on an LCD screen, individual controllers, and pit selectors.

These embedded functions and tactile design features provide an interactive scale racing environment readied in minutes for realistic family scale racing fun. The current software mimics a real racing weekend and provides segregated segments for practicing, qualifying, and racing with each feature enriched with it’s own specific interactive functions, lights, and sounds. After practicing, all players may qualify and then are automatically paired in heat races all the way to the final championship race. And yes, video race fans, the software is capable of generating additional hidden game features as your skill level progresses. You get the idea, beat the track record and open a new and surprising game or challenge.

In the early 60’s the magic of Aurora Model Motoring captured the hearts of millions who were still relatively new to electricity, amazed at My Favorite Martian, accustomed to dial telephones, and happy with 3 channel black & white TV. So too will a new approach to scale for a digital generation accustomed to microprocessors, bored with Star Wars, addicted to cell phones, the internet, in-car-video, and 100+ channel HDTV. Fueled by video game-like performance, advanced tactile realism, added convenience, and increased reliability…….

….The Future of Scale is Interactive.

From the Author:

I'll always love my old T-jets, but if our hobby is to grow and prosper it must find a clear and unobstructed path to the future. This concept is still "just slot cars" much like the Wright Flyer and the F-15 are both "just airplanes". The approach has changed, but the fundamentals remain the same. With internationally registered operating system (OS) software copyrights, two utility patents published for both mechanical and electronic hardware design, and more in the works, our "little project" has attracted the attention of companies like Ford Motor Company, M&M Mars, Hewlett Packard and Intel's Smart Toy lab. We hope you too will approve !Comments, questions, and investor inquiries are welcome at tracks@worldnet.att.net.

Additional Reading:
Slot Car Tracks Meet the Computer Age
(http://www.speedvision.com/pub/articles/racing/08inews/010405a.html)

Editors Note: For as long as HO World has been around, and before that, in posts to the Mailing List, we have stated that the current status of slot cars, as sold to the public, was grossly overlooked by the major manufacturers. This system addresses many of those issues, including ease of assembly. Dave, and his partner/wife Laura will be looking for assistance to get this project off the ground, and produced. If you have any interest, please contact Dave at his email address (tracks@worldnet.att.net).