rFpro began in 2007 as an internal project within an undisclosed Formula One team, built on the isiMotor physics engine and gMotor graphics engine licensed from Image Space Incorporated. In 2017, rFpro Limited and Image Space Incorporated joined forces, with rFpro acquiring assets from both engines it had been licensing since its initial release. AB Dynamics, a British solutions company, acquired rFpro Limited in 2019. In 2020, rFpro partnered with German simulation company Cosin Scientific Software to integrate the FTire flexible ring tire model into the platform. In 2024, rFpro launched AV Elevate, an integrated platform for advanced driver-assistance systems and autonomous vehicle development.
A number of Formula One teams use or have used rFpro, including Alpine, Ferrari, Force India, Mercedes-AMG, and Sauber. In 2014, Scuderia Ferrari cited rFpro's track surface fidelity—accurate to better than one millimeter in height and one centimeter in position—as a ten-fold improvement over their previous simulation solution, along with its ability to respond to dynamic inputs faster than a driver can detect. rFpro is also used by most of the top 10 road car OEMs and Tier-1s for chassis, powertrain, and control system engineering.
rFpro operates a 120 Hz graphics engine and a rigid multi-body physics engine that samples suspension and drivetrain at 800 Hz. Its library includes high-definition laser-scanned racing circuits, public roads, and proving grounds used in major series including Formula One, Formula E, NASCAR, WEC, IMSA, IndyCar, and Super GT. A tool called TerrainServer feeds LiDAR data at one-centimeter resolution to a vehicle model running in real time at up to 5 kHz. Users can integrate their own in-house vehicle physics through a Simulink or C/C++ interface as an alternative to rFpro's native physics engine. The platform also offers weather simulation and hyper-realistic digital twins of circuits like the Las Vegas F1 Circuit, which includes iconic landmarks and dynamic night-race lighting conditions.
rFpro is used to accelerate vehicle development, including aerodynamics, chassis systems, steering systems, transmissions, powertrains, and control systems. It provides subjective and objective measures for evaluation and analysis, allowing for more testing earlier in the engineering process. The software's realism and immersion also make it suitable for driver training, helping drivers understand setup changes, improve lap times, learn complex controls, or familiarize themselves with new circuits. rFpro's ReplayServer records every test, enabling side-by-side comparison of driver laps.
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