VDG
Status: ConceptCodename VDG. A vehicle data gateway, work in progress.
VDG gathers data from every device on the car's local network and relays it to the pit wall over a cellular link. It holds data on board through coverage gaps and gives secure remote access to each device's own web interface. It is in development, and the build journal below follows its progress.
R&D bench development phase.
- Type
- Hardware
- Status
- Concept
- Compliance
- Not certified
- Updated
Build journal
What VDG is for
Each device on a race car already knows something useful. Sentinel knows the brake and tyre temperatures, Agile knows the lap and sector times. The hard part is getting all of it off the car while the car is still on track.
VDG, the Vehicle Data Gateway, is the piece that does that. It sits on the car’s own local network alongside the other devices, with a built-in network switch and a Wi-Fi access point for anything that connects wirelessly. It collects data from each device on a regular cycle and sends it off the car over an encrypted cellular link, so the pit wall can follow it live from anywhere with an internet connection.
It also opens the whole vehicle network to the pit wall over a secure link. The web pages built into Sentinel and Agile can be reached remotely, as if you were standing next to the car.
Coverage at a circuit or on a rally stage is never perfect. When the link drops, VDG keeps the data on board and sends it once the connection returns, so nothing is lost.
Any new device added to the car network, such as a camera, another sensor hub or an OBD gateway, becomes reachable the same way, with no changes to VDG itself.
Where it is now
The proof of concept runs on off-the-shelf hardware. It has settled the software, the network layout, the cloud link and the remote access. The next step is a custom board that brings the processor, an optional 4G/5G modem, Wi-Fi, an Ethernet switch and a small backup battery into one compact unit built to stay in the car.