Goodyear introduce tires for autonomous cars

Switzerland: While ideating about the future, Goodyear displayed the mutated industry’s signature “round and black” identity to “spherical and black,” with a touch of “biomimicry” and lots of imbedded sensors at the 2016 Geneva International Motor Show. The Akron headquartered tire manufacturer unveiled two new innovative concept tires at the 86th Geneva Motor Show that the company believes would be appropriate for autonomous cars.

The concept tires - The IntelliGrip, features advanced sensor & treadwear technology and the second tire, Eagle-360 is a spherical shaped tire design likely to be fitted in a vehicle by magnetic levitation. According to Goodyear, the IntelliGrip is designed with advanced sensor technology to communicate with autonomous vehicle control system, detecting road conditions as well as sensing weather conditions for the improved driving experience.  Goodyear also envisions that the concept tire has the ability to assess the road and vehicle conditions using the company developed algorithms.  For Instance, on a rainy or slippery road surface, the tire would shorten the stopping distance, provide a quick cornering response and optimize stability.

On the other hand, the Eagle-360 spherical tire, as per the company, would provide the autonomous cars with optimum maneuverability, connectivity with vehicle and biomimicry to increase the safety.

According to Goodyear’s senior VP and CTO, Joseph Zekoski, tires would play a critical role as the primary link to the road surface in self-driving vehicles. Moreover, the company’s concept tires are likely to play a dual role in near future, one, as innovative platforms to push the boundaries of creative thinking and another, testbeds for next generation technologies. The VP added that although the tires were only concept, however, they depicted a prime aspect of the company’s innovation strategy and its vision for safe & smart mobility.