More Good News: It’s Exactly How We Imagined It Would Be
We’re a little late to the party, sure, but Goodyear’s Eage 360 Concept Tyre ended up lost on the cacophony of properly outrageous announcements at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show. That’s a shame, because its really very cool.
Look far enough into the predicatable future, and you’d probably envision cars that fly. That kind of advancement is a few leaps ahead of where we are now, and for now we’re having to make due with ground transport.
Enter the Goodyear Eagle 360, a concept that the tyre manufacturer sees as the next step in tyre technology and application. For one, it’s spherical, much the rubber fitted to the Audi RSQ Concept in 2004 movie I, Robot.
Goodyear say that maneuverability, connectivity, and biomimicry were paramount considerations for the Eagle 360’s developmental goals, with special attention given to the advent of autonomously operated cars.
“By steadily reducing the driver interaction and intervention in self-driving vehicles, tires will play an even more important role as the primary link to the road,” said Joseph Zekoski, Goodyear’s senior vice president and chief technical officer. “Goodyear’s concept tires play a dual role in that future both as creative platforms to push the boundaries of conventional thinking and testbeds for next-generation technologies.”
The advantages of a spherical tyre are immediately obvious, particularly if like in the promotional video, can be attached to cars via frictionless magnetic levitation pads. They can allow for movement in virtually any direction without the alteration of car’s lateral postion, and being more space efficient in regard to compact parking spaces.
The 3D printed tread on the Eagle 360 would behave like a natural sponge, designed to stiffen in dry conditions and soften when driving over wet roads to provide extra grip and better resistance to aquaplaning.
Additionally, sensors within the tyre and car would be able to alert other self-driving cars of hazards and changing surface conditions to increase overall road safety.
Intriguing stuff indeed.
