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Goodyear's smart tire concept 'prints' its own treads
The thunk-whumma-whumpa-whuppa sound of a tire puncturing and losing pressure at freeway speeds is unmistakable. However, if Goodyear has its way humanity might not have to endure the filthy, sweaty, swear-inducing process of swapping rubber on the shoulder of American roads ever again.
Pirelli's 5G tire warns other vehicles about dangerous road conditions
The future of cars is connectivity, with vehicles able to communicate with infrastructure like traffic lights and to share information about traffic conditions with other drivers and local authorities. Tire manufacturer Pirelli is bringing its own approach to connected car technology, debuting what it's describing as the worlds first intelligent tires that transmit data via 5G.
Bugatti's record-breaking speed run required special wheels and nerves of steel
Speed kills. That had to be on the minds of Bugatti and Michelin engineers (and driver Andy Wallace), when together they pushed a modified Chiron to 304.77 miles an hour. As you would expect, driving a production car that fast involves more than just finding a straight path, strapping in and hoping for the best. Instead, it required adjustments to the car, the wheels and nerves of steel.
GM and Michelin will bring airless tires to passenger cars by 2024
Airless tires for everyday cars might soon be far more practical. GM and Michelin have unveiled a prototype of Uptis (Unique Puncture-proof Tire System), a Michelin-made tire intended for passenger cars. It looks like Tweel and other air-free concepts of years past, but its mix of composite rubber and resin embedded fiberglass lets it operate at highway speeds -- earlier options tend to work only when you're slowly putting around. It's not as visually appealing as conventional tires, but Michelin claims it's just as comfortable.
Michelin’s 3D-printed tire is as stunning as it is futuristic
Looking at Michelin's new concept tire (dubbed the "Vision") is like staring at a mesmerizing painting of future wheels. The blue webbed structure looks nothing like a typical black tire, but feels just as sturdy. It also boasts a unique set of advanced environmentally friendly features. Many of these principles are already being used in existing tires, while others are still fairly abstract ideas. The Vision is a proof of concept, combining ideas old and new, and it gives us a glimpse at Michelin's plans for what it calls "sustainable mobility."
These homemade wheels let you maneuver your car as you please
Your regular old car's wheels can probably only go in a finite number of directions. One crafty YouTuber took it upon himself to create a set of wheels that would allow his trusty Toyota Echo to handle moving around in just about any direction you can think of. The result looks pretty ridiculous, but also totally awesome.
Tires with built-in sensors keep a watchful eye on tread wear
Continental is bolstering its Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS ) to not only monitor your tire pressure but its tread depth, too. As your tires age and change shape, so does the way they roll and interact with the road surface. Continental's clever system keeps track of these differences and compares them over time with model-specific stored data. When your tires eventually hit some pre-determined threshold, the car will notify you that your boots have reached their end of life. Continental expects this to roll into retail for the 2017 season in cars equipped with its TPMS systems. But fret not, you can always use that old standby -- your eyes -- to actually look and see if the tread wear indicators are flush with the tire surface. If they are, remember it's safety first, so go get yourself a new set. [Image credit: Continental]
Bridgestone rolls with air-free tire concept (video)
The days of flat tires and spares are numbered. Sure, self-inflating tires are all well and good, but don't protect from the darn puncture itself. Similar to Michelin's tweels, Bridgestone has cooked up some air-free concept tires that use a tough but flexible thermoplastic structure that behaves like a normal tire with nary any horizontal force produced. Each wheel is able to support around 150kg, although on a typical electric mobility scooter the load is more likely to approach 50kg. Bridgestone is looking to show off those curved, hypnotic spokes on the retail model, but is still researching how to protect against objects getting lodged inside. Roll over the break to see those spokes in action and imagine a future without puncture repair kits.
Insert Coin: PumpTire self-inflating bicycle tire
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. We love tires -- they provide an infinite boost in life to the ever-so-necessary wheel, soften the blow while driving on dirt roads and over potholes, and, upon retirement, serve as an ideal plaything for our children. But there's still something missing. As much as we try to make it not so, our tires let their air supplies trickle away -- albeit at an ever so sluggish pace -- ultimately causing inconvenience, and often with unfortunate timing. A slightly deflated bicycle tire won't have the same damaging effect as, say, a battered donut that explodes as you roll down the highway, but it can still put a serious damper in your ride. The self-inflating PumpTire sets out to make sure you never have to suffer a flat bike tire again, using a unique detachable valve that senses when a tire needs to be inflated, then pumping air from a thin tube on the outside of the tire into the inner tube. PumpTire founder Benjamin Krempel is turning to Kickstarter to fund the project, which includes designing, testing, and manufacturing a pair of self-inflating bike tires. A $75 pledge gets you two City Cruiser tires, a $130 retail value, including a pair of 65 psi valves and inner tubes. If you pledge $100, you'll receive a pair of City Pro high-performance 95 psi tires, which are expected to retail for $150. Krempel has set his funding goal at a massively high $250,000 with just over five weeks remaining. A cool quarter-million is quite the lofty sum, but as always, you'll receive a refund if the project doesn't get the fiscal green light. Jump past the break to see it in action, and for an update on our previous Insert Coin project.
Goodyear's self-inflating tires could improve gas mileage, leave Schrader valves unsatisfied
Reminiscent of Ghostbuster's Marshmallow Man, new Goodyear tires might just Stay-Puft on their own. The company is developing Air Maintenance Technology (AMT) tires with built-in pumps to keep themselves at the perfect pressure. The reason? Even slightly under-inflated tires can drop your mileage by 3.3 percent, costing you cash at the pump. For highway-hustling commercial trucks that's a whole lot of moola, leading the US Department of Energy's Office of Vehicle Technology to grant Goodyear $1.5 million towards self-plumping commercial tire development. For those of us who don't wear mesh hats, Goodyear is working on a consumer version in its Luxembourg lab. It's unclear exactly how they will work, but earlier implementations have a pipe that's compressed as the tire rolls, allowing air to enter the tire without bursting thanks to a pressure sensitive valve. With so much automated car technology now all we need is the kind that cleans out its own trunk and pumps its own gas. Check out the full PR after the break.
OSU foresters swap tree fibers for rubber in fuel efficient tires
Leave it to a gaggle of brilliant wood science researchers at Oregon State University to figure out that we've been doing this whole "tire" thing wrong for generations now. While studying some uses of microcrystalline cellulose, which can be made easily from practically any type of plant fiber, these Earth-loving gurus discovered that said material could actually improve the efficiency of vehicle tires when used in place of silica. Granted, only about 12 percent of the silica -- which is used as a reinforcing filler in the manufacture of rubber tires -- was swapped out, but the resulting tires gripped just as well in wet weather while decreasing the rolling resistance during those dry summer months. Furthermore, tires constructed with these fibers could be made with less energy, though long-term durability studies are still needed to prove that this whole plan is viable for more than a few thousand miles. [Via Gizmag]
Purdue tire design can sense damage, warn driver
Usually you can't tell that there's a problem with one of your tires until you've already swerved off the road and crashed into something stationary, but thanks to a group of scientists from Purdue University, the next generation of wheel wraps may be able to detect problems before you're face-to-face with the base of a telephone pole. Led by Gary Krutz of the school's Electrohydraulic Center, the team was able to produce a multi-layer design that can sense damage or defects anywhere on the tire, and which immediately alerts the driver to danger via an embedded chip. First up to adopt the new tech will likely be race car sponsors, who have a high incentive to protect their expensive investments against flats; unfortunately, this safety improvement for drivers will come at the expense of the nation's rabid NASCAR fans, as the likely decline in crashes will only serve to direct their blood-lust at fellow spectators. [Image courtesy of Purdue University]
KUMHO ECSTA DX Aroma car tires roll out with lavender scent; don't ask why
File under "zomg finally!" -- KUMHO Tires is releasing its ECSTA DX Aroma line of car tires featuring "Lavender Scent Technology," which, to translate for the non-marketers in the house, means they smell. Don't fret if lavender isn't your bag, baby -- the company plans to later introduce models with orange and jasmine aromas (what, no new car scent?). To eradicate that embarassing "plain old tire" smell from your ride, you'll have to part with $119, $125, or $138 per tire depending on your choice of size.[Via I4U]
This week's overblown privacy scare, courtesy of RFID tires
Alright, everybody panic: they can track us through our tires! Just like how all those nefarious nasties have been stalking our women and children via Nike+iPod, it turns out the new RFID-based pressure gauges in our tires can be turned against us for tracking purposes by the evil hax0rs. Of course, with the kind of range available to RFID, if you're close enough to a car to track it via RFID, you can probably see it with your eyeballs, and data collected by stationary RFID sensors to track the comings and goings of such compromised vehicles seems to be of minimal use, but that doesn't mean we can't get our panties all in a wad and start screaming bloody murder about privacy and stuff. But in all seriousness, would it really hurt to put a bit more encryption on these things?[Via Techdirt]
