Goodyear to preview self-inflating technology at auto show

ERJ staff report (TB)

Tyre Business staff report

Geneva, Switzerland -- Goodyear will give visitors to this year's Geneva International Motor Show a sneak peak at its Air Maintenance Technology (AMT) self-inflating tyre system design, which has been under development for the past two years at Goodyear's technical centre in Luxembourg.

Goodyear will demonstrate the technology-which promises to keep tyres inflated to the optimum pressure without the need for external pumps, electronics or driver intervention-at its booth at the Geneva Show, which runs 8-18 March.

Keeping tyres inflated properly could result in fuel savings of up to 3.3 percent, Goodyear said, citing government and industry research.

Research conducted by Goodyear Dunlop shows that consumers are unconcerned about their tyre pressure, with half of those surveyed not knowing when to check their tyre pressure and one in three motorists admitting they would not be very likely to check their tyre pressure even before embarking on a long trip.

“Consumers often overlook the importance of maintaining proper tyre pressure,” said Jean-Claude Kihn, senior vice president and chief technical officer. “We believe this technology will enhance safe driving and performance; and have a positive impact on the environment through improved fuel efficiency, reduced emissions and extended tyre life.”

The US Department of Energy's Office of Vehicle Technology awarded Goodyear a $1.5 million grant for research, development and demonstration of the AMT system for commercial truck tyres.

Goodyear said it's still too early in the development process to predict when AMT will come to market.

The Akron-based tyre maker also will unveil an innovative electric vehicle concept tyre at the Geneva show as part of an ongoing European Union project that seeks to reduce the impact of noise in cities throughout the EU.

The project, CityHush, is proposing quiet zones-so called Q-Zones where only electric vehicles will be allowed-defined by a maximum noise level. As a result, noise levels are expected to be reduced by about 15 dB, Goodyear said. There will also be a special focus on parks embedded within the Q-zone, where the aim is to achieve a 10-20 dB noise reduction.

As part of the project, Goodyear engineers are looking at how new tyre technology can contribute to a quieter inner city. One way is to develop a tyre to fulfill the requirements of future electric vehicles, Goodyear said.

“We are the only tyre manufacturer part of the CityHush project,” said Jean Pierre Jeusette, general director of Goodyear's Innovation Center Luxembourg. “The concept tyre for this project highlights our enormous research and development efforts in the production of tyres for current and future electric vehicles, focused on continuously minimizing vehicle's impact on the environment.”

CityHush will implement Q-zones in five European cities-Bratislava, Slovak Republic; Bristol, England; Essen, Germany; and Stockholm and Gothenburg, Sweden-through modelling, using input from traffic and noise mapping models available for the different cities.

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Article from Tire Business