- Airlsess Space tyre concept displayed for Space Rovers used by NASA
- Connected-tyre concept to use sensors to send info to ADAS
- Airless tyre designs also displayed for Automobile mobility on Earth
The much awaited unveil of the new concepts from Bridgestone at the CES technology show 2020 came yesterday with the company showing off some of its latest new tech and inventions for outer space and the automotive world. Yep, you read that right, they've made tyres that can be used on the moon!
CES 2020 was the first time Bridgestone decided to participate in the show and boy did they not disappoint. There were three major concepts displayed by the company during the show: a sensor-filled connected smart tyre, an airless lunar tyre for space and an airless tyre for "Earthlings" for improved mobility.
Lets talk about the Airless Space tyres first. Bridgestone has developed an airless tyre that might be utilised by NASA for its rover during a Lunar Space Exploration Mission. The airless tyres are still undergoing tests and will definitely be used if found to be good enough for NASA's standards.
Next in line is the other variant of airless tyre pitched as mobility solutions for on-earth automotive mobility. The airless tyre showcased by Birdgestone resembled the Michelin Uptis in many ways with the tyre tread and wheel being combined into a single structure. The tyre also had similar shock absorbent spokes running from the center or the hub to the outer tread. These shock absorbent spokes are to airless tyres what air is to pneumatic tyres. Applications are endless raging from utilization in commercial fleets to personal mobility.
The Connected Tyre
The Connected Tyre from Bridgestone will accommodate the recently developed "Smart Strain Sensors" that will be linked with ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) of today or potentially, the driverless technology of the future. The sensors in the tyres will be able to sense the road as well as the tyre condition and send that information to the car. This information will facilitate the ADAS of today and tomorrow to make crucial decisions and corrections to improve automobile performance and safety.
Hans Dorfi, director of digital engineering at Bridgestone Americas while commenting on the Connected Tyre said:
"The connected tyre displayed by bridgestone goes beyond the elementary tyre pressure monitoring systems of today. Bridgestone is pitching the connected tyre to be extremely advanced and having the capability to sense, sync and act when paired with ADAS or driverless systems.
ADAS systems today completely ignore the tyre. Bringing that information into the vehicle can provide additional layers of safety."
via caranddriver.com
Also Read : Bridgestone Invents Sensor Technology For Autonomous Vehicles
The Smart Strain Sensors will be placed in close proximity along the contact patch within the tyre to record the waveform-data changes. The sensors will be able to measure the strain on the tyre and use algorithms to reliably predict the road condition as well as the tyre condition. The sensors measure the deformation of the adhesive as a variable to help measure the strain on the tyre.
The data collected by the sensors is then sent to a special proprietary software developed by Bridgestone that uses algorithms and digital models of the tyre in different circumstances to predict tyre and road factors.
ADAS of today are extremely rigid and elementary when it comes to tweaking the vehicle's outputs to maximize performance and safety. The system simply does not have enough data to differentiate between different types of tyres or terrains. The only thing it can do is react when a tyre slips, but even that has its own limitations. For eg: traction control makes it almost impossible for you to drive on snow if your car gets stuck. The electronics simply cut off the gas even when you need it along with the little bit of rolling/slipping of tyres that can actually help you. Bridgestone's new connected tyre is supposed to give the ADAS more information to be better at preventing crashes and understanding terrain and tyre variables.
Some information from the tyre could be sent beyond the car it's attached to. The sensor is sensitive enough to detect shallow potholes, and data like this could be sent to the local Department of Transportation in order to build up a map of which roads might need repairs soon. Bridgestone said it has not yet talked to any local government about adding this data to a smart city.
Bridgestone was quite mum when asked about the price tag of the connected tyre and some other aspects like the battery life, as reported by Car and Driver magazine.
Finally, the question as to when will these technologies be out for public use; Bridgestone didn't really have a definite answer. Roshan Thapliya, digital solution center director at Bridgestone, was quoted as saying that the company has proved the concepts work through tests in Japan and now needs to do further tests to be 100% sure it is commercially viable. The company is on the brink of completing the development phase and will soon approach automakers or fleet companies to get a taste of real world functionality for their products.
