Throttle & Brake Sensor Formulas

Cool Insights from Throttle & Brake Sensors in LO206 Karting

The throttle position and brake sensors are two of the most revealing channels in kart telemetry. In a single-speed LO206 with a centrifugal clutch, they show exactly how you’re managing momentum, rotating the kart, and carrying speed. Here are some of the most actionable math channels you can build to turn raw pedal data into clear performance stories.

1. Trail Braking Active (State)

NAME: Trail Braking Active
INTERPOLATION: Stepped Values
DESCRIPTION: Binary flag (1 = trail braking). Detects overlap of meaningful brake pressure while still on throttle — classic advanced technique to settle the kart on entry and rotate without lifting fully. Thresholds: brake > 10% (or 0.3 bar if pressure) AND throttle > 5%. Tune based on your brake sensor scaling.
FORMULA: ("Brake Pressure"[bar] > 0.3) * ("Throttle Position"[%] > 5)
FUNCTION: Brake Pressure
OUTPUT UNIT: 
DISPLAY UNIT: 
DECIMAL FIGURES: 0

Insight: High % time in trail braking = sophisticated corner entry. Low = early lift-off and square corners (lost time).

2. Coasting Active (State)

NAME: Coasting Active
INTERPOLATION: Stepped Values
DESCRIPTION: Binary flag (1 = coasting). Neither meaningful throttle nor brake — highlights hesitation zones where you're losing momentum for free. Thresholds avoid noise on light trail-throttle or light brake.
FORMULA: (("Throttle Position"[%] < 10) + ("Brake Pressure"[bar] < 0.2)) > 1
FUNCTION: Inline Acceleration
OUTPUT UNIT: 
DISPLAY UNIT: 
DECIMAL FIGURES: 0

Insight: Total coasting time per lap is often 1–3 seconds lost in Masters class. Great for finding "dead zones" mid-corner.

3. Throttle Application Rate

NAME: Throttle Application Rate
INTERPOLATION: Linear Interpolation
DESCRIPTION: Rate of throttle pick-up (% per second). Positive values only — measures how aggressively you get back to power on exit. Smooth progressive application = better traction; sudden stabs = wheelspin.
FORMULA: MAX(0,DERIV("Throttle Position"[%])) * 100
FUNCTION: Throttle Pedal Voltage
OUTPUT UNIT: %/s
DISPLAY UNIT: %/s
DECIMAL FIGURES: 1

Insight: Compare max values across corners. High spikes often correlate with over-rotation or spin.

4. Brake Modulation Smoothness

NAME: Brake Modulation Smoothness
INTERPOLATION: Linear Interpolation
DESCRIPTION: Inverse of brake pressure oscillation — lower = smoother modulation (better). Uses absolute derivative to penalize jerky stabbing. Gate to braking phases only.
FORMULA: ("Brake Pressure"[bar] > 0.3) * (100 - ABS(DERIV("Brake Pressure"[bar])) * 50)
FUNCTION: Brake Pressure
OUTPUT UNIT: score
DISPLAY UNIT: score
DECIMAL FIGURES: 0

Insight: Average this per braking zone. Higher scores = smoother, more confident braking.

Best Ways to Visualize This Data

  • Time Chart: Overlay GPS Speed, Throttle Position (green), Brake Pressure (red), Trail Braking Active (yellow), and Coasting Active (grey). Zoom corner-by-corner to see lift points, overlap zones, and coasting gaps.
  • XY Scatter (Throttle vs Brake): X = Throttle %, Y = Brake Pressure, color by GPS Speed or LatAcc. The top-right quadrant shows your trail-braking consistency.
  • Histogram Duo: Compare full-session throttle histogram vs filtered (no coasting) to see true on-power throttle usage.
  • Lap Comparison: Overlay throttle/brake traces between laps — differences in trail-braking duration or throttle pick-up timing become instantly visible.

In LO206 Masters racing, the fastest drivers minimize coasting and maximize controlled pedal overlap — often gaining 0.2–0.5 s per lap just from better throttle/brake management.