Tire Life Extension Methods
Modern passenger vehicle tires undergo complex mechanical and thermal stresses, with tread wear rates averaging 0.004 inches per 1,000 miles under normal conditions. Material degradation accelerates at operating temperatures above 85°C, while dynamic loading during cornering can generate lateral forces exceeding 1g, affecting both structural integrity and wear patterns.
The fundamental challenge lies in developing tire compounds and structures that can maintain grip and safety performance while significantly extending service life beyond the current 40,000-60,000 mile standard.
This page brings together solutions from recent research—including multi-depth sipe designs for sustained traction, thermally-optimized tread compounds, and advanced cord-to-rubber bonding techniques. These and other approaches focus on practical implementations that balance durability improvements with manufacturing feasibility and cost considerations.
1. Heavy Truck Tire Tread with Angled Non-Overlapping Sipes in Shoulder Ribs
COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, 2025
Heavy truck tire tread design that improves traction and shoulder rib wear compared to solid ribs, without abnormal wear, by using non-overlapping sipes in the shoulder ribs with specific angles. The sipe angles range from 41°-85°, allowing the sipe to exit into the shoulder notch towards the tread edge. This provides better traction and wear rate in the shoulder ribs compared to solid ribs, without the risk of abnormal wear.
2. Tire Wear Prediction Method Using Embedded Wear Indicator Tracking
COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, 2025
Method for predicting the remaining life of a tire on an aircraft before replacement. The method involves tracking the wear of a specific wear indicator in the tread of the tire. The wear indicator is a feature with a known shape and location in the tread. By monitoring the appearance of the wear indicator as the tire wears, the remaining life can be estimated. This allows anticipating when the tire needs to be replaced without relying solely on direct visual inspection of the tread height. The wear indicator provides a more reliable and predictive measure of wear progression.
3. Tire Casing Life Prediction System Utilizing Heat History and Sensor Data
THE YOKOHAMA RUBBER CO LTD, 2025
A tire casing life management system to predict the remaining life of the casing inside a tire's tread. The system calculates the heat history received by the tire during a short period, estimates the cumulative heat over a year based on the short period, and predicts casing life from that. It uses temperature sensors, travel data, and weather info to accurately estimate casing life. It also proposes tire operations based on remaining casing life, transmits the casing life to users, and determines retreading feasibility.
4. Airless Tire with Bent Spoke and Intermediate Ring Load Distribution System
NISSAN MOTOR CO LTD, 2025
Airless tire design with improved load distribution to enhance durability and prevent spoke failure. The tire has spokes connecting the wheel rim to the tread, with a bent section between the rim and tread ends of each spoke. An intermediate ring connects the bent sections. This configuration allows load applied to the tire to be transmitted circumferentially through the ring instead of just through the spokes. This distributes the load better compared to straight-spoke designs, preventing excessive loading on spokes near the ground contact.
5. Aircraft Tire Composition Incorporating Graphene for Enhanced Inflation Pressure Retention and Crack Resistance
AKRON POLYMER SOLUTIONS INC, 2025
Aircraft tire compositions with improved inflation pressure retention, air retention, and crack resistance using graphene. The tire compositions have low permeability and high inflation pressure retention due to graphene addition at very low levels. This allows reducing natural rubber in the innerliner to improve air retention without sacrificing durability. The graphene also improves crack resistance in tread compounds. The graphene used is pure and exfoliated into monolayer sheets.
6. Tire with Multi-Layered Apex Configuration for Gradual Stiffness Transition
SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES LTD, 2025
Tire design with improved rolling resistance and durability by using an apex configuration between the bead and carcass ply. The tire has an apex with three layers: an outer tapered apex body, an intermediate harder strip apex, and an inner softer apex body. This gradual stiffness transition between the apex and carcass ply reduces concentration of stress at the outer end of the apex body compared to a single apex layer.
7. Centralized Vehicle Cooling System with Sensor-Driven Control Module and Brushless Fans
TOIGO IMPORTADORA E DISTRIBUIDORA DE SISTEMAS AUTOMOTIVOS LTDA, 2025
Centralized cooling system for vehicles like trucks, trains, etc. that actively cools brakes, wheels, tires, and bearings to prevent damage and extend component life. The system uses a central control module that monitors factors like braking force, vehicle speed, terrain, and air flow to optimize cooling times and intensities. It also has sensors to detect temperatures and interconnects with the vehicle's TPMS system to monitor tire temps. The module controls brushless fans with IP69 protection and current control. The system can operate with the vehicle off to dissipate heat. It provides an integrated, adaptive, and proactive cooling solution for vehicles compared to passive systems.
8. Study of tyres sustainability in the specific field of industry
lucia knapcikova, matus marticek - 4S go, s.r.o., 2025
Tyre sustainability is an important aspect of environmental responsibility in the automotive industry. This paper encompasses processes tyre production, use, wear and disposal a way that minimizes negative impacts on environment human health. It focuses extending life tyres, reducing their ecological footprint recycling them efficiently. From production to use recycling, number measures can be taken reduce tyres ecosystems society. These steps include innovations materials, improved technologies responsible approach waste management.
9. Heavy Truck Tire Tread with Groove Configuration and Lateral Sipes for Enhanced Wear Life
COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, 2025
Heavy truck tire tread design that improves wear life without compromising wet braking performance. The tread has a unique groove configuration with hidden, open, and partially hidden grooves. This configuration provides more contact surface area for wear resistance without increasing the contact pressure that can harm wet braking. It also has lateral sipes that extend across multiple grooves to prevent irregular wear. The hidden grooves have undersurface channels that open to the contact surface as the tread wears. This provides additional contact surface without increasing the total depth. The open grooves have bottom surfaces that become visible as the tread wears. The partially hidden grooves have bottom surfaces that partially become visible. The sipes have a height greater than half the tread depth. The hidden grooves, open grooves, and partially hidden grooves along with the sipes provide a more complex contact pattern as the tread wears, preventing irregular
10. Method for Thermobonding Adhesive-Coated Polyethylene Terephthalate Cords with Tensioned Heat Treatment
BRIDGESTONE EUROPE NV/SA, 2025
A method to improve the durability of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) cord reinforcing plies in tire cap layers. The method involves coating the single filament PET cord with an adhesive, drying it, and then thermobonding the cord at elevated temperature under tension. The bonding step applies tension of 8-12 mN/dtex to the cord while heating it between 23-260°C for 30-90 seconds. This process strengthens the PET cord and enhances durability without adding weight or increasing noise compared to untreated PET cord. The treated PET cord can be used in tire cap plies to improve durability without sacrificing other performance characteristics.
11. Tire Tread with Central Groove Featuring Tapered and Wide Straight Sections for Enhanced Wear and Cut Resistance
BRIDGESTONE CORP, 2025
Tire design to balance wear life and cut resistance in construction and mining tires. The tire has narrow grooves in the tread to increase rubber volume and wear life. However, narrow grooves can lead to cut separation between the tread and belt due to road cuts. To address this, the tire has a unique groove configuration in the center of the tread. The center groove has a tapered section that gradually widens towards the base, followed by a wide straight section. This design provides initial rubber volume for wear resistance, but in the middle of wear when cuts are more likely, the wide straight section appears to prevent separation between the tread and belt.
12. Torque Distribution System with Sensor-Based Bias Adjustment for Tandem Drive Axles
PACCAR INC, 2025
Balancing tire wear between tandem drive axles in vehicles like trucks to reduce premature tire replacement and improve vehicle performance. The system biases torque distribution between the front and rear tandem axles based on operating conditions to compensate for asymmetric wear. Sensors monitor axle conditions, and a controller calculates a bias factor based on factors like loading, torque, and scrub. It then adjusts the requested torque split between the axles to mitigate uneven wear. This prevents accelerated wear feedback loops and improves tire life.
13. Vehicle Tire Rotation Detection System Utilizing Onboard Sensors for Rolling Radius Discrepancy Analysis
FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES LLC, 2025
Detecting when a tire rotation is needed for a vehicle using onboard sensors to monitor tire rolling radius and recommending tire rotations based on the difference in rolling radius between the front and rear tires. The system compares the rolling radius difference to a threshold and notifies the driver when it exceeds the threshold, indicating that a tire rotation is recommended. This allows optimizing tire wear by moving the less worn tires to the positions that will wear down faster.
14. Pneumatic Tire with Center Cover Layer and Differential Tread Region Thickness
THE YOKOHAMA RUBBER CO LTD, 2025
A pneumatic tire design that balances shock burst resistance and high-speed durability. The tire has a tread with center and shoulder regions. The center region has a center cover layer between the tread and carcass. The center region thickness is less than the shoulder region thickness. This reduces center tread height compared to the shoulders. It prevents excessive loading and pressure differences in the center during high-speed driving that can degrade durability. The center cover layer provides shock burst resistance without excessive center tread height.
15. STATE AND TRENDS OF HARMONIZATION OF AUTOMOBILE TIRE PARAMETERS, THEIR IMPLEMENTATION IN THE UNION STATE
b v kisulenko - Joint Institute of Mechanical Engineering of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, 2025
The article presents the analysis of technical requirements for automobile tires, which have a direct impact on safety wheeled vehicles by increasing adhesion tires to support surface with low coefficients, wet asphalt, rolled snow and ice, as well environmental characteristics wheel rolling resistance sound level reduction when driving asphalt. scientific novelty is research aimed at limiting abrasive wear tire tread, development test methods its assessment during road bench tests. uncertainties possible systematic accidental errors that occur testing are analyzed, may affect results supervision in market products released basis primary certification. carried out application international norms UN Regulations Global Technical Republic Belarus Russian Federation, Eurasian Economic Union whole. Recommendations offered early modern State countries comparison Regulation On Safety Wheeled Vehicles.
16. Tire with Untwisted Steel Cords Featuring Specific Filament Gap and Ternary Metal Coating
BRIDGESTONE CORP, 2025
A tire with improved adhesion durability between the steel cord and rubber coating for better fuel efficiency and longer tire life. The tire uses steel cords for belt reinforcement that are not twisted and have a specific maximum gap between filaments. The steel cords are coated with rubber and have a ternary metal coating of copper, zinc, and iron. This coating composition and cord configuration provide better adhesion between the steel and rubber compared to conventional cords. The reduced gap between filaments prevents belt edge separation. The specific ternary metal coating improves adhesion. This allows thinner rubber coatings for fuel efficiency while maintaining adhesion.
17. Construction Vehicle Tire with Variable Depth Cavities and Low-Hysteresis Elastomer Layer
COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, 2025
Heavy duty construction vehicle tire with reduced crown temperature for longer tire life. The tire has cavities extending into the tread from the surface or edge that contain a low-hysteresis elastomer layer with silica filler. The depth of the cavities varies linearly with the silica content of the adjacent low-hysteresis layer. This allows heat exchange between the cavities and external environment to dissipate internal tire heat.
18. Tire Balancing System with Combined Non-Absorbent and Moisture Absorbing Beads
COUNTERACT BALANCING BEADS INC, 2025
A tire balancing system that uses a mixture of non-absorbent beads and moisture absorbing beads to improve tire longevity and balance. The mixture prevents moisture buildup inside the tire that can cause corrosion, pressure fluctuations, and clogged valves. The non-absorbent beads provide balancing while the moisture absorbing beads prevent excess moisture from clumping the balancing beads.
19. Pneumatic Tire with Turned-Up Ply and Dual Apex Rubbers Featuring Specific Dimensional Relationships
SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES LTD, 2025
Pneumatic tire design that improves steering stability, durability, and ease of mounting/demounting without compromising one another. The tire has a turned-up ply with turned-up portions around the bead cores. Inner and outer apex rubbers extend between the main body and turned-up portions. The inner apex rubber height is 18-30 mm. The tire has specific buttress, maximum width, and bead thickness measurements satisfying expressions (1)-(4). This configuration improves steering stability, durability, and allows easier mounting/demounting compared to traditional turned-up ply designs.
20. ОБЗОР И АНАЛИЗ МЕТОДОВ РЕМОНТА КРУПНОГАБАРИТНЫХ ШИН КАРЬЕРНЫХ АВТОСАМОСВАЛОВ
fevzi feratovich istablaev, l n atakulov, shokhidzhon bakhridinovich khaidarov - Qarshi muhandislik-iqtisodiyot instituti, 2025
In the context of intensification open-pit mining and growth quarry machinery fleet, issues efficient use maintenance oversized ultra-large tires are becoming particularly relevant. This article is devoted to analysis causes tire wear dump trucks consideration hot vulcanization method as main their restoration. It was established that greatest risk damage falls on sides tread tire, nature defects diverse often combined. The method, in strict accordance with technological regulations, ensures restoration mechanical properties a significant increase service life. stages considered, including preparation, cleaning, application materials, heat treatment, cosmetic noted process labor-intensive requires further optimization, automation improvement solutions. addition, order resistance wheels, it proposed consider possibility implementing design changes them themselves. obtained results can be useful development regulations equipment repair systems.
Durability, performance, and sustainability are all greatly improved by tire design and manufacturing advances. Tire longevity is increased by new materials, better tread designs, and better manufacturing, all of which maintain performance and safety while providing financial and environmental advantages.
Get Full Report
Access our comprehensive collection of 97 documents related to this technology
Identify Key Areas of Innovation in 2025
