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GOODYEARS FUTURE TIRES FOR SELF-DRIVING CARS: FOUR MAGLEV SPHERES

Goodyears future tires for self-driving cars: four maglev spheres

By Bill Howard (https://www.extremetech.com/author/bhoward) on March 8, 2016 at 1:00 pm
41 Comments (https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/224323-goodyears-future-tires-for-self-driving-cars-four-maglevspheres#disqus_thread)

Goodyear imagines the future tire could be a sphere connected to the car by magnetic levitation
(http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/208651-what-is-superconductivity). 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.

Thats 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, its 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). Thered be no such thing as
excess tread wear on some parts of the tire, because sensors would continually rotate the tires
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 its not
raining.

All this hinges on magnetic levitation: The tires would not touch the car. Instead, theyd be
suspended via magnetic levitation. The maglev feature then would be the cars 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 ination.
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 its more money to spend on road repairs. Motorists
would love it, since its less money wasted on broken wheels and tires. Every study shows bad
road infrastructure costs drivers and companies more than the government saves.

The Goodyear Eagle-360 concept tire

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Tagged In
cars (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/cars) automobiles (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/automobiles)
autos (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/autos) telematics (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/telematics)
infrastructure (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/infrastructure)
maglev (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/maglev)
highwaysafety (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/highway-safety)
DSRC (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/dsrc)
magneticlevitation (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/magnetic-levitation)
Eagle (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/eagle) Goodyear (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/goodyear)
Eagle-360 (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/eagle-360)
IntelliGrip (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/intelligrip)
mag-lev (https://www.extremetech.com/tag/mag-lev)

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Jointhediscussion
ThistleMeThis9monthsago

Goodyearwouldlikeustobelievetiresarerelevantinafuturewherevehiclesdon'tfly.
2

Reply Share
MikeM.>ThistleMeThis9monthsago

Maybeboth?Freewayfly,suburbiabounceonspheres.

Reply Share
Doon1>ThistleMeThis9monthsago

Carswon'tflyforaVERYlongtime.Youeverdrivedowntheroadonawindygustyday.

Theonlythingkeepingyoufromcrashingintothevehicles,flora,andfaunaaroundyouis
yourtires.Thereisjusttomanyvehiclesontheroadtoallowforthespacingthatfight
required.
1

Reply Share
ThistleMeThis>Doon19monthsago

Ikidyounot,IusethehandleDoonwhenavailable.Youmustbemeinthefuture.
ThereforeIbelieveyou.
2

Reply Share

Cyron43.>Doon19monthsago

YouforgotwearetalkingaboutSELFDRIVINGcarshere.Thisconceptalso
includesguidedtraffic.Forthefuture,thatmeansALLcarsarecomputer
controlled,notonlybymeansoflocaltrafficawareness(alwaysobeyalltraffic
lawsandimmediatelyreactonsuddendisturbances)butalsobymeansofa
centraltrafficguidancesystem.Ifthereisatrafficjamsomewhere,thetraffic
guidancecentralwilldetourvehiclesautomatically(justoneexample).

Reply Share
dc9monthsago

Inthefuture,ratherthandrivearound,wewilljustchainourselvestoatungstenpenetratorrod
firedfromarailgun,whichwillquicklydeliverustoourdestination.Eachneighborhoodwillhave
itsownrailgun,whichwillfunctionmuchlikebusterminalstoday.
Wellit'sasbelievableasthearticle.
2

Reply Share
MagnusBlomberg>dc9monthsago

Iusuallysuggestthetrabuchetandcapturenetswhenmodesoftransportationare
discussed.NotasfastbutabiteasierintheG:sthentherailgun:)
4

Reply Share

Cyron43.>dc9monthsago

Sorrybutthisiscrap.HaveyoueverconsideredtheGforces?Theywouldsmash
everyonetoapulpinasplitsecond.

Reply Share
BryanC.Winter>Cyron43.8monthsago

Oblivioustosarcasmmuch?

Reply Share
Cyron43.>BryanC.Winter8monthsago

LookslikeIdidn'tgetitbecauseEnglishisnotmynativelanguage.

Reply Share
MisterBlat9monthsago

Atleasttherearestilltreesinthisvisionofthefuture.Althoughtheymightalsobeartificial.
1

Reply Share

dc>MisterBlat9monthsago

ThetreesarejustCGI,unlikethetireswhicharetotallylegit.

Reply Share
XenoSilvano9monthsago

JoelHruska,VirtualMark,SebastianAnthony,chojin999,Dozerman,MarcGP,Phobos,Mirimon,
dc,Zunalter,JoelDetrowBitterbear,IvorO'Connor,MatthewBryant,pelovlov,some_guy_said,
BillBasham,moribund,standard,CoffeeGrunt,Wait,eonvee375,JDRahman,Techutante,Neon
Frank,Kyle,LonnieVeal,RayC,IKROWNI,SirGCal

Reply Share
XenoSilvano>XenoSilvano9monthsago

*sigh*thiswasatest
amItheonlyonehavingissueswithdisqus!?
Iamhavingdifficultylogginginanddeletingcomments
disqusisnotallowingmetodeletethiscomment

Reply Share
Kyle>XenoSilvano9monthsago

Happytobeincluded.IwasunawarethatDisqusalloweduserstodeletetheirown
comments.
IusedtohavesomeissuesloggingintoDisquswithAdblockPlusenabled.Youmaywant
totinkeraroundwithacoupledifferentadblockersandseeifitpersists.

Reply Share
XenoSilvano>Kyle9monthsago

ThelistIpostedabovewasalistof30TopCommentersonExtremeTech(notice
how'I'didnotmakethatlist),Ipostedittotestifthingsworkbutnowdisquswill
notallowmetodeleteit.
Asyoualludedto,itwouldappearthat(Iwouldassume)thatoneoftheaddons
thatIhaveinstalledseemstobepreventingmefromloggingintodisqusfromthe
ExtremeTecharticlepage.Ihadtologintodisquswebsite,navigatethethe
ExtremeTechdiscussionpagefromthisarticlesothatIcouldtypeupthis
comment.
IuseuBlockOriginandGhostery,Itriedturningthembothofftonoavail...Icould
notcommentonExtremeTecharticlesthroughdisqusbutatleastnowIcanpost
commentsthroughthemethodmentionedabove.
DisqususedtologsinautomaticallywheneverIclicktheloginbutton,thelogin
windowclosesshortlyafterImakeanattempt(withoutloginmein),thisleadsme
tobelievethatitmayhavetodowithanerrorwiththesavedpasswordsinthe
browser(?)IguessIwillhavetouseDisqus'websiteuntilawaytoresolvethis
issuecanbefound(happenedtotallyoutoftheblue).
ohbytheway,HappyInternationalWomen'sDayoneandall!

Reply

 Reply Share
dozerman>XenoSilvano9monthsago

I'mstillin5thplace?IfiguredIwouldhavefallenatleastacoupleofplacesoverthelast
year...

Reply Share
sdmitch16>dozerman9monthsago

What'stherankings?

Reply Share
AndreiStroescu9monthsago

"IRobot"much?RememberAudiRSQ:)
2

Reply Share
MartianMonkey>AndreiStroescu9monthsago

beatmetoit.
ThismaybewhatAppleisgoingforinit'scar?Iftheyapplytoautomobileswhattheydid
tophones,wemightnothaveanyideawhatthefutureofcarslooklike.

Reply Share

philnolan3d9monthsago

Wasn'tthislikethecarsinMinorityReport?
4

Reply Share
FelixGill>philnolan3d9monthsago

yes,yesitwas
2

Reply Share

KIMS9monthsago

Ithinktownsandmunicipalitieswouldreactintherangeof"shrug,sowhat,wealreadyknewthat
stretchofroadisterrible"to"awesome,wedon'thavetocollectthisdataourselvesanymoreand
wecanquicklyandeasilyseewhatsectionsareabsolutelyworst,weighedbytrafficfrequency!
Thisisepic,nowwecanputourlimitedresourcestoworkatalltherightplaces!!"
Ifyouthinkaboutit,thosethatcanspendafarbitofmoneygatheringlimiteddatasetsfromkey
roadstocounthowmanyaxelspassbyandatwhattimes..Suchintelligentwheels(ifcommon
enough)wouldgivethemhighresolutiontrafficpatternandtrafficleveldatacombinedwithbaked
inroadstatedata!Suchtireswouldbeincrediblyusefultoanycitymunicipality!
Oh,andyouknowthosespotsofblackicethatyoucan'tseeuntilitstoolate?Well,withsuch
tiresandvehicletovehiclecommunications,acarupfrontwouldbeabletosignalbacktothe
followingcarsthat(black)icehasbeendetected...
Asfarasthemaglevwheels,yeah,I'vethoughtofthosemanytimessincewhatmoviewasit?
Minorityreportorsomething?Untilsuperconductorsatelevatedambienttemperaturesbecome
CHEAP,Ithinkwe'llhaverocketeerjetpacksbeforewehavethosewheels...
5

Reply Share
TomArthur>KIMS9monthsago

TomArthur>KIMS9monthsago

Wealreadyhavethoseblackicedetectorsyoucanseethemupsidedowninthe
medianorfreshlyattachedtotreesjustupahead!
1

Reply Share
KIMS>TomArthur9monthsago

Recognizingyourtongueincheektoneandcontinuingalongthesamevein:
Truebutthecurrentsystemisonlypartlyautomatedandreliesonthedriverof
followingcarstoa)noticeandb)giveadamn.Thesenewtireswouldfurther
automatethesystemthusmakingitmorereliable!
1

Reply Share

ScoobiJohn9monthsago

yourcarwouldbeflying:Djustacoupleofcmsabovethewheels

Reply Share
dozerman9monthsago

SomebodysawBB8inthenewstarwarsandwent"Iwantthatinacar".It'salmostasbadas
solarfreakinroadways.

Reply Share
JoseFlores9monthsago

ThisremindsmeoftheAudifromIRobot
1

Reply Share
prankstare>JoseFlores9monthsago

Althoughthismightnotwork,forsomestrangereasonitremindsofsomethingmuch,
muchmoreancientthanthis...thegreat90'sSciFimovie,"Sphere".

Reply Share
ChrisRoberts9monthsago

ThereisatyreconceptinanovelbyIainBanks,UseofWeaponsiirc,wherethetyrechanges
widthatthecontactpatchtocopewithbothhardandsoft,wetsurfaces.Itisinamonowheel
vehicletoo.Idon'tthinkthatisanylesssciencefictionthanGoodyear'sconcept.

Reply Share
PeterBelanger9monthsago

Iforeseepeoplebecomingveryimpatientwithselfdrivingcarsnotgettingpeopleplacesfast
enough.Manywillnotwanttosurrendercontroloftheirvehicletothe"system".Itwillbelike
ridinganelevatoreverywhere,justwithcomfyseats.
Really,doyouallwanttobetakencareoflikebabiesbyyourrobotnannies?

Reply Share
prankstare>PeterBelanger9monthsago

Exactly.Solet'stakeamore"psychological"perspectiveintothistheveryideaofyour
ownlifebeingdrivenbysomeone/somethingelsesoundscrazy.Arewereallywillingto
putourlivesinthehandsofa"machine"?Ortomakeitworse,a"computeronthegrid"...
it'sinsanity!Andtheimplicationsofthisgobeyondjustprivacyconcerns,itistryingto
sendamessagethatweshouldtrustthe"system",whichiscontrolledbythemofcourse.

Soformepersonally,Idon'tseeithappeningunlessit'susedonlyforpublic
transportation,notpersonalcars.

Reply Share
Dias>PeterBelanger9monthsago

Yes.Idon'tlikedriving,butIwanttheconvenienceofhavingacar&beingabletotravel
wherever&wheneverIwant.ThefactthatIhavetocontrolitmanuallyisnotaplus,it'sa
compromise,sinceit'scheaperthanhavingmyownchauffeur.
1

Reply Share

Cyron43.>PeterBelanger8monthsago

Ihaveseenwaytoomanymoronsonthestreets.Soyes,Iwantit,forthesakeofmylife
andmyhealth.
1

Reply Share
FSOD>Cyron43.8monthsago

BythetimeIwas30Iknewatleast10peoplefrombestfriend,cousin,tofellow
collegiandieinanautoaccident.I'mstokedthatautonomouscarsmightbeon
theroadsinsubstantivenumberswithinadecade.Iftheycanusespheres,great,
ifthat'sversion3.0sobeit.

Thisistrulytransformativetechwe'reseeingcometolight.Oneminoraccidentso
farisprettydarngoodasfarasI'mconcerned.
1

Reply Share

O[b]ama9monthsago

Manhattan'sGroundZeroistheWorldTransportationCenter(WTC),theepicenterofAmerica's
newautonomouscarinfrastructure.

Reply Share
JohnConnor9monthsago

Howwouldyouturnyourcar?
There'ssomanyquestionsthatneedtobeanswered.

Reply Share
Cyron43.>JohnConnor9monthsago

Computercontrolledvectorizedmagneticfieldsappliedtothewheels.Thesame
vectorizedmagneticforceswhichaccelerateanddeceleratethecar,justwithdifferent
vectordirections.
1

Reply Share

ShailSiiqu8monthsago

wowiamwaitingforthistypeofvehicleiamveryexcitedtolookthatone
MALWAREBYTESANTIMALWARE2.2.0.1024SERIALKEY
1

Reply Share

maverick9098monthsago

ThisarticlehasmepicturingtrafficasdemonstratedinMinorityReportorI,Robot.Trafficfrom
StarWarsorTheFifthElementarefurtheroutinthefuture.

StarWarsorTheFifthElementarefurtheroutinthefuture.

Reply Share
UgetPC2monthsago

Wao...Iamveryimpress,Iamgoingtobuyacarlikethis.Itisbestcar.thanksadmin.andtry
kasperskytotalsecurity2016key
tokeepyourpcprotectedfromanymalware.

Reply Share
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