Formula 1 broadcasting has made many strides over the past decade to better inform fans and enhance their viewing experience. On-screen graphics are constantly evolving as new camera angles and techniques are explored.
But no camera angle can give fans a real sense of what it’s like in the Formula 1 cockpit like the so-called “driver’s eye” – the helmet camera.
Through a small 9x9mm camera attached to the helmet’s padding, fans can get a closer look at what riders can see through the visor and get some spectacular footage along the way.
Duel between Verstappen and Leclerc showed potential
A good example was the opening race in Bahrain 2022, when Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen dueled for the lead for a few laps. Formula 1 directors were able to switch to Leclerc’s helmet cam throughout the duel, providing incredible insight into executing an overtake in the fight for victory.
It was a major challenge to develop a camera that can deliver television images and at the same time meet the safety requirements of the helmet.
Alex Haristos of the Racing Force Group, which created and owns the Driver’s Eye technology, told Motorsport.com that safety was a top priority during development in order to gain FIA support.
Safety came first
“Our approach wasn’t, ‘We have to have a camera with the best picture.’ We started from the safety requirements,” he explains. “We worked on it backwards. That was the hardest thing because we had to find the right position next to the driver’s eye, in the outer protective pad.”
“The camera needs to be smaller than the pad when it’s compressed so the driver’s face doesn’t come into contact with the camera,” Haristos continues.
A camera was eventually found that fit the small space. The electronics were connected through the car and into the helmet with a very thin cable. According to Haristos, this was a breakthrough after “six or seven official attempts” to integrate camera technology into the driver’s helmet.
Formula E: The perfect development field
“Ours was the first success, and what a success,” he says. “I probably didn’t even realize it at first, but people were waiting for it.” But Formula 1 was not immediately ready to include the technology in its program.
Haristos and his partners therefore spoke to Formula E, which he says was “very receptive”. Formula E proved to be the perfect development field for “Driver’s Eye”, although the teams’ concerns resulted in some elements of the visible dashboard being blurred.
Working in Formula 1 has always been the long-term goal – and when the exclusivity window expired in the summer of 2021, little time was wasted. “After ten days we were in Spa with Fernando Alonso and did the first test,” says Haristos. “It was extremely exciting.”
The first test triggered enthusiasm
Haristos tells how he stood in the Formula 1 broadcast center with TV bosses Roberto Dalla and Dean Locke and watched the first footage being transmitted with “Driver’s Eye”. It was only supposed to be a first test, but that quickly changed.
“After a few seconds, they looked at it and said, ‘Can we air it? We’d love to air it!'” he recalls. “I said, yeah, okay, let’s do that. As soon as they did that, about 30 seconds, a minute later, all the phones in the room started ringing! Everyone wanted to know what that was.”
“Driver’s Eye” soon became an important part of Formula 1 television programming. All riders with Bell helmets – Bell is part of the Racing Force Group – have been fitted with one over the past year. Camera positioning was refined to improve viewing angles and stability, without losing the rawness that makes the footage so authentic.
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Haristos believes the technology has been “very well received” in Formula 1 and benefits all parties. “We do a business, Formula 1 produces content and can sell it to the broadcaster, and the teams get more attention,” he says. “Especially the driver himself.”
Zhou Guanyu joked last year that the angle of “Driver’s Eye” made it “a nightmare for him to analyze my line versus the others (cameras)” but acknowledged that it “very cool footage”.
“It’s more for the spectators,” added the Alfa Romeo driver. “As far as the team is concerned, they can also see what you’re changing on the switches, which makes it less private.” Unlike in Formula E, in Formula 1 the various messages or movements on the steering wheel were not blurred.
Helmet camera soon in all racing series?
The success of “Driver’s Eye” has led to the system being set to be rolled out across Formula 1 by 2023, as requested by the Formula 1 Commission at a meeting last year. Haristos says the system can be adapted to fit competing manufacturers’ helmets as needed.
“The key was to develop something from the start that already knew how modular it would be, in order to adapt it to different contexts,” he explains.
“When we started this project, the dream scenario was that this technology would be available to everyone. That was the one thing that made us all work in the same direction and think about the possibility of customization.”
The current “Driver’s Eye” camera belongs to the 2.5 generation and is almost 50 percent lighter (from 2.5 to 1.4 grams) than the first generation and has shrunk from the original 21×12 to the current 9×9 millimeters. As further advances are made, other uses outside of motorsport will also be considered.
Will other sports soon use helmet cameras?
“Skiing is a very good example,” says Haristos. “Imagine you’re going down the slope and you have this amazing view. But you don’t have a car. You only have the athlete. And there are safety regulations. So where do you get the power supply and stuff like that?”
In motorsport, the interest that “Driver’s Eye” has sparked could spill over into the entire racing world, even in closed cockpit series like NASCAR.
“The ability to offer viewers this immersive experience from the driver’s perspective is appealing to everyone,” says Haristos. “It’s going down very well, even in closed cars. I’ll be there for the opening of the Supercars season in Australia in March and we’ll launch it there. It’s very exciting.”
From a practical standpoint it may not be of much use to drivers and teams, but in the Drive to Survive era, where fans are increasingly keen to highlight the driver’s experience, Driver’s Eye has already pushed boundaries.