From Washing Machines to Formula One™: How LG squares up to F1™

Issued: 22 July 2009

In the second of our F1 features, Formula One journalist Will Buxton uncovers some startling similarities between an F1 car and an LG Washing Machine. There are more than you might think.....

So.... a student of social anthropology and a student of politics walk into an F1™ garage to talk about washing machines. Believe it or not, this isn’t the first line of a joke. It’s actually the first step on a voyage of discovery made between a meeting of minds and a meeting of worlds, the likes of which I had, until last month, thought to be miles apart.

“I’ve got a meeting with LG today,” I told a few colleagues on a blustery and cold morning at a Grand Prix™.

“Cool,” they replied. “What are you discussing? TVs? Mobile phones?”

“Washing machines,” I said.

Silence.

Our meeting was planned at BMW’s beautiful motorhome, which rises almost organically out of the asphalt in the world’s Formula One™ paddock like a giant flower constructed of brushed metal, soft woods and clean white fabrics. It’s a good place for an interview.

It was here that I was introduced to Frank Lee and the voyage of discovery for both he and I began. Frank’s the social anthropologist in the mix, while I’m the student of politics. Our lives had followed slightly twisting and bizarre turns since our days of study to find Frank representing LG as an LG Product ambassador, and myself an F1™ fan who got insanely lucky and landed his dream job as a journalist covering the pinnacle of global motorsport.

With absolutely no idea how the worlds of consumer electronics and motorsport would gel, I hadn’t even taken my first sip of espresso before I realised that Frank had exactly the same passion for his world as I do for mine. And within a matter of minutes it was abundantly clear that our worlds had much in common.

I showed Frank around BMW’s garage and explained the finer points of an F1™ car to him, and a few days later I was invited to London to visit LG’s European base for a first hand view of a product which until a matter of days before I had considered to be about as far removed from the world of Formula One™ as is a banana from a stopwatch.

But as Frank explained, and as was confirmed in discussion with BMW’s Technical Director Willy Rampf, a Formula One™ car and an LG washing machine are incredibly similar creations.

No, really!

On first sight, the two are equally as impressive: both equally sophisticated and stylish in their design, tightly packaged and heart-stoppingly beautiful, and both hiding beneath their surface an incredibly high level of technological genius.

It is under the surface where the similarities start to fly at you thick and fast. Frank buzzes around his baby, explaining how it all works, and it doesn’t take long for the comparisons to become glaringly obvious.

“The key advantage of this washing machine is that it is built on direct drive technology,” he enthuses. “There are no belts no pulleys, the motor is a huge electromagnetic device and by electrical polarity it rotates the drum. It is so energy efficient that if you unplugged the unit and spun the drum it would charge and generate enough electricity that it would turn itself on.

“The motor itself on the washer is directly attached to the drum. It does two things. One, it acts as a natural counter weight and balance, like a crankshaft. Through that centrifugal force it balances the unit but it applies direct energy so energy loss is minimised and performance increased. There areno gears, nothing. There is nothing to compromise the energy transfer. Over time a traditional washing machine with belts and pulleys will lose its tension. From day one you’d have an inefficient machine. But with this machine you’d have the same performance on the first day as you would in the tenth year. There’s no decay or depreciation in performance.”

The similarities between the washer and Formula One™’s newest and boldest technical development is striking. Kinetic Energy Recover Systems (KERS) made their debut in F1 in 2009. It’s an incredible technology that derives power from the energy created by the cars under braking, then stores it to be utilised by the drivers as a boost.

“The KERS unit”, says BMW’s Willy Rampf, “is basically an electric motor which acts as a motor and generator, an energy storage device like a battery or something similar and a control unit which controls the electrical power going from the generator to the storage device and during boosting from the storage device to the electrical motor. The energy is taken from the rear wheels, only when braking is applied when the system is allowed to charge. The amount of energy is regulated to 60kW which is equivalent to 83 horsepower for 6.7 seconds per lap.”

The KERS unit uses an electric motor, working on magnetic fields, much like the washing machine’s motor. And as Willy says, “I’m not sure how many kilometres they could run to, but all I know is that we’ve never had any reliability issues.”

Reliability is key in Formula One™, but so too is speed. With an F1™ car reaching speeds in excess of 300kph, a millimetre intolerance in the road surface will feel like a mallet smash. An F1™ car thus has to endure incredible vibration and resonance, not only through the speed at which it travels and the surfaces over which it runs, but with a power unit revving to 18,000rpm, it has the vibration of a monstrous engine to contend with too.

“The main part of how we make a car able to withstand vibration is the experience that you design the components in a way that they don’t break due to those vibrations,” Willy explains. “The materials we are using have to be very tough and that’s the reason why carbon fibre is very common in Formula One™, because it does not normally fatigue. It’s not sensitive to vibrations. The knowledge and also the properties of specific materials like carbon fibre is crucial in this respect. One of our targets is always a weight reduction every year so you have to know the technique and the technology of carbon fibre better and better and to learn every year that you can make the components last longer, or have the same stiffness but having reduced the weight.”

And, of course, there is the suspension, which forms the most critical part of linking all the various performance aspects of an F1™ car in order to create the best on-track package. A combination of springs and shock-absorbers take the impact created by kerbs and bumps, preventing vibrations by negating any oscillating forces.

Incredibly, the LG washing machine utilises complex spring, damper and shock absorption technology to negate vibration to the extent that it is possible to run one on top of four wine glasses. I know, that sounds a touch far fetched... but its’ not. The technology is such on an LG washing machine that if you purposely tilted the machine so it was no longer level, the drum would still balance itself and spin quietly and smoothly. And how? I’ll let Frank explain.

“What I’m excited about is a new technology called DVA. Just like a car, when you’re driving it creates vibration and resonance which creates problems at high speeds, with the drum going at 1800rpm, like an F1 car going at 18,000 rpm, there is resonance as well as vibration. The solution to vibration created from the high speeds in an LG Washer is the DVA, a physical apparatus that has been positioned within the body of the washer to produce a counter-resonance to the machine itself. So in addition to the dampers, DVA is specific to a certain vibration level and it will resonate to counter it. That is extremely exciting for us. There are situations where at a certain rpm, and at a certain frequency created by the body itself it counters with a counter resonance to have zero net effect. It has been tuned, the weight, length and materials, to work in line and cut out vibration.

“We use a special chip, called the MEMSIC chip. It will check acceleration, tilt and inertia. It constantly monitors the vibration of the drum and the physical body, and it will change its programming on the fly. There’s so much data being picked up by the sensors. When the chip recognises vibration it will slow down the rpm, redistribute the clothes in the drum and then bring it back up to top speed.”

See. I told you it was clever.

“We employ a two stage damper system. Now most washing machines only employ a single stage damper which only responds to large movements. With a two stage damper you can address the minute movements of the drum and if there is an off balanced load the second stage deploys so you can adjust the movement. Anything that can cause vibration, from the water pump to the compressors, there are mini gaskets, mini shock absorbers that position it above the floor to reduce vibration. Even down to the adjustable feet on the appliance itself, there is a stage of absorption to minimise that. Just as in a car you’re looking at three things – preload, compression and rebound. So this is the same idea.

“Also, around the rim and similar to crankshaft counterweights, we have ball bearings which will position themselves opposite to the clothes in the drum to ensure a balanced load and minimise vibration. The ball bearings redistribute weight evenly acting as counterweights, balancing the load. It is ingenious. In its simplicity alone”

The use of DVA, the MEMSIC chip and the two-stage dampers therefore work in a similar fashion to active suspension, which was outlawed in F1™ in the 1990s. So efficient is the machine at countering vibration you can confidently install these washers not only in your kitchens but even on the 2nd floor and walk-in closets.

And so to the actual usability of the machine itself. The first interaction one has with the washing machine is its main dial. It is robust yet slick, with a rewarding click and beep with each twist “On our washing machine there are many different algorithms that have been programmed and are all easily accessible through the main dial. All have been programmed so with the spin of the dial you can access all the preset functions to make it simple and easy to operate. Or you can shift off that and do it manually. From one simple dial you can control everything. This is command central, and includes the option of manual override.”

The LG spin dial is the simple management system for very complex machine operation, which is very similar to an F1™ steering wheel. Along with the simple on/off functions for the pitlane speed limiter and suchlike, the F1™ steering wheel can be used to change any number of functions on an F1™ car. The LCD display tells a driver when to change gear, where there’s a danger on the track and what colour flag is being waved at them.

“There are hundreds of changeable variables through the steering wheel,” Willy says. “A driver can change the throttle characteristics, the differential, the gear shifting characteristics, front wing, pitlane speed limiter. Part of the regulations allows the driver to change elements of his car’s characteristics via the steering wheel, but the rest have to be programmed into the car, which is only possible when the car is in the pits.”

To help the driver and the team know what to change and what issues there might be with the car at any one time, there exists an army of engineers both at the track and back at the team’s factory whose job it is to constantly monitor every aspect of the car’s systems.

“I think on the track we have around 20 and at the factory we have between five and 20 people,” Willy confirms. “They monitor the data coming constantly from the car to the garage and the base in Munich and Hinwil. There are two kind of monitoring: performance and reliability. They can’t affect what goes on from the pits, you can only instruct the driver to change a certain switch position and change his driving his style. So if the engine is looking fragile we might ask him to reduce the revs.”

To provide the same monitoring and management of the machine’s performance as an Formula One™ car, LG couldn’t have a team of 40 engineers constantly monitoring every customer’s washing machine. What they’ve done instead however is create the technology to do it internally.

“The unit is constantly monitoring vibration but also the chemistry of the water,” Frank confides. “It will override you if you’ve put in an improper amount of detergent or selected too short of a wash cycle. It is constantly measuring the chemistry. Have you got the right amount of water for the weight of load? Is the cycle long enough? Will you require an extra rinse because you’ve put too much detergent in? It is constantly checking the turbidity of the water and will adapt itself.

“Our goal is to get the best results possible, in the shortest amount of time using the least amount of resources, just like a Formula One™ car is trying to do. So our machine employs steam technology, injecting it directly into the wash. With the power of steam you dramatically reduce water and energy consumption with improved cleaning performance. It’s also the only washer that can effectively kill dust mites and other allergens. We inject atomised, heated water molecules directly into the drum so the clothes are exposed to ideal conditions for the best clean possible. It’s like taking your clothes to the Spa in that it relaxes the fibres of the clothes to allow the water and detergent to clean effectively, pushing the cleaning agents through the clothes.

“The wash optimiser actually monitors the wash throughout the cycle. It measures the chemistry of the water by emitting an electrical charge to determine whether or not to extend the wash or the rinse cycle. This little device provides a compelling benefit for our discerning consumers. What’s the benefit? Many people suffer from skin irritations that can be triggered by residual detergent found in your clothes. This is especially a concern for families with newborns.

“A natural complement to better washing performance has been the introduction of the New Motion Wash. The only motion in the machine is the drum itself. Based on the type of wash and the materials of the clothes you can now select the appropriate level of agitation by selecting from 5 preset settings. It's reassuring to know that our machines are approved by Woolmark and suitable for your delicate wool apparel. The washer will literally mimic hand washing in this setting to minimise shrinkage and premature wear. From tumbling, rolling, stepping, swing or scrub these preset drum movements make laundry a simple chore.

So it’s clearly a very clever piece of kit. But it’s durable too, as indeed it has to be. An F1™ car can be brought into the pits at any moment, where a team of mechanics are waiting to make any changes, fit any faults and replace any parts. LG recognised that its units needed to be reliable but also durable, thus the use of an electromagnetic motor which won’t lose efficiency over time as there are no working belts or pulleys that can wear and break down eventually. It’s a similar thought process that’s gone into the rest of the electronics.

“We have rubberised circuit boards,” says Frank. “Obviously you have water and electricity which don’t mix so well. So, all of our circuit boards are coated in rubber. If we were to take a look at a circuit board coming out of a car and look at one from the washing machine, you’ll see ours is coated in rubber so things don’t shake, things don’t get wet. They can deal with the extreme conditions. Unlike an F1™ car you don’t have a team with you to help fix your washing machine. We can’t have a technician in your house so our reliability has to be excellent. As you minimise the number of parts, you’re also making it simpler for a quick in and out repair should something require attention. You’re dealing with a device that is dealing with water constantly, so this protects against corrosion and moisture. If there was a leak, you wouldn’t want the circuit board to fry. So it is very robust.”

F1™ cars also have to come into contact with water, as races go on in rain and shine. Similar to LG who coat their circuit boards in rubber to protect them from rain, F1™ cars have all of their electronics locked away in watertight boxes.

“There is a requirement for all electronic components to be waterproofed,” Willy confirms. “It doesn’t mean they have to run underwater, but they have to be waterproof enough that any water spray you can ever imagine on a car, no drop of water can go through any connectors or housings. To make it waterproof, the connectors all have to be sealed with rubber sealed and the electronic components live within a black box, and this black box has to be sealed so that no water can get in.”

There are similarities too in the level to the research which goes into materials to be used in Formula One™ cars and LG Washers. For example, LG uses nickel plating on its heat exchange unit as the finish is so smooth that the element will not pick up limescale and thus maintains its performance from the first wash to the last. Meanwhile at BMW, the team uses gold foil to line the inside of the engine cover to reduce heat transfer from the exhausts (which can hit 1000 degrees) to the bodywork.

But why should either entity go to all this trouble? The reasoning behind every decision is amazingly similar. For BMW, the desire is to get the driver around the track as fast as possible, using as little energy to create the most performance. It is to create the smallest, lightest package possible, but also the most reliable. Frank was amazed when we first saw BMW’s 2009 challenger. “I thought it would be the size of an F16 fighter jet,” he grinned, astonished. “This is so small. I’m amazed.”

Like a Formula One™ car, for LG the most crucial part of the development process has been to create a reliable, durable and high performing unit, which will use fewer resources for an improved result. By working to reduce the size of the component parts they have been able to increase the size of the washing drum. Just as Formula One™ regulations tell designers like Willy Rampf that their cars have to fit within certain regulated dimensions, so too does a washing machine have to fit into a pre-designated space. But in minimising the parts within that space, LG has been able to increase the size of the drum to 9kg. That’s big enough to get a king size duvet comfortably inside.

Quite incredibly, the worlds of the washing machine and of the Formula One™ car have some striking similarities. From the intelligence of design, the monitoring of the technology, the materials used right down to the use of dampers, suspension and regenerative energy devices, they are closer cousins than one would dare to believe on first impression.

When I was first told about the subject I’d be talking about with Frank, I have to say my first impression was one of slight bewilderment. How could the two worlds have anything in common? And yet they do. And not just tentatively, but from their foundation through to their ultimate conclusion.

And most incredibly of all, perhaps, is that for the last month my first topic of conversation with colleagues and friends hasn’t been about F1™, how fantastic the cars are or how glorious and thrilling the spectacle continues to be.

It’s been about LG washing machines. And how I have, simply have, to get my hands on one.