Goodyear’s future tires for self-driving cars: four maglev spheres

Goodyear’s future tires for self-driving cars: four maglev spheres

Goodyear imagines the future tire could be a sphere connected to the car by magnetic levitation. Its tread pattern would stiffen in dry weather. The car could drive sideways to make parallel parking a snap. The back wheels would steer. Someday, of course.

That’s the Goodyear Eagle-360 concept tire, one of two the company is showing at the Geneva International Motor Show, a concept that could “literally reshape the future for autonomous cars,” Goodyear says.

Clean sheet design, every-direction maneuverability

When the tire is a sphere, it’s maneuverable in all directions. Where a handful of cars steer the rear wheels a couple of degrees to improve cornering and lane changes, the Eagle-360 could stop then drive sideways into a parking lot or parking space (image below). There’d be no such thing as excess tread wear on some parts of the tire, because sensors would continually rotate the tire’s orientation (just not at highway speeds) to equalize wear.

Embedded sensors would communicate road and weather conditions to the vehicle, and then via DSRC (dedicated short range communications) and telematics to nearby cars, and to the Web for wider distribution.

Biomimicry, making the tire emulate the pattern of brain coral, would have it change the tread shape and work like a natural sponge, becoming softer in wet conditions and dryer when it’s not raining.

All this hinges on magnetic levitation: The tires would not touch the car. Instead, they’d be suspended via magnetic levitation. The maglev feature then would be the car’s suspension, steering gear, and propulsion. In other words, the self-driving car of the future would have to be an electric vehicle, or convert carbon fuels into gobs of electricity.

IntelliGrip concept: closer to reality

The other concept tire shown by the company was the Goodyear IntelliGrip, studded with sensors in each tire, one that could potentially be manufactured in the nearer future. The IntelliGrip would be able to sense road conditions (presumably potholes, frost heaves, and excess gravel in corners that would be a hassle for cars and a safety threat to motorcycles) and weather conditions. The tire would also be constantly monitored for wear. Algorithms would adapt the tire for high running temperatures and (insert Tom Brady joke here) improper inflation.

Combined with GPS and telematics, such a tire could provide a map of roads badly in need of repairs. Cities and towns would hate this, as it’s more money to spend on road repairs. Motorists would love it, since it’s less money wasted on broken wheels and tires. Every study shows bad road infrastructure costs drivers and companies more than the government saves.

MY NEXT PROJECTS
1)THEO JANSEN MECHANISM
2)UNDERWATER WELDING
3)Solar Roadways
4)PELTON WHEEL TURBINE