The lights that guided Lewis Hamilton to victory at the Singapore Grand Prix
For those of you who tuned in to the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday, you would have undoubtedly been delighted to see Lewis Hamilton storming to a first place finish and leapfrogging teammate and arch-rival Nico Rosberg in the drivers' Championship standings.
What you may not have noticed, however, was the flag signal system that was in place.
Singapore made history back in 2008 by becoming Formula One's first-ever night race and with this came the obvious issue of how the drivers would see the flags traditionally used by marshals to communicate with the drivers.
To solve this, the race organizers incorporated electronic flag displays similar to those used to guide pilots at major airports, which supplemented the manual flag-waving of the marshals.
The system was developed by lighting consultant firm Valerio Maioli Spa and went through vigorous testing at the Barcelona, Imola and Monza racing circuits before meeting the FIA's stringent requirements.
A total of 35 displays were placed around the track, each controlled by a hand-held panel and connected to a central monitor that provides the race director with an overview of the warnings being displayed around the circuit.
The displays have so far proven to be a great success and, along with an abundance of floodlights and projectors, have helped to turn the Marina Bay Street Circuit into a truly spectacular venue.
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