Goodyear’s new wheel design is for all you technology and car fanatics out there! But mostly it’s for those who want to find convenience in terms of car parking. Because let’s be honest; Parallel parking is not a walk in the park.
The future of cars is not only fashionable and sophisticated; the design is also of use. Goodyear has decided that autonomous cars of the future will have a ball like wheel. And not just any ball. This will be a magnetically levitated ball. This concept tire is called the Eagle-360 and its’ completely round!
Image: Goodyear
I understand how this might be a little confusing. So, let’s look into the design first. The spherical tire is basically connected with the car by the help of magnetic levitation, which gives the tire a 360o free mobility; allowing it to rotate on any axis! Which basically means you don’t have to constantly turn your steering wheel in order to parallel park; it can even glide perpendicular to the direction of the car. Also, this 3-D printed wheel will be supposedly made from a bionic skin of sensors. This will allow the tire to navigate through any type of terrain without getting damaged. Not only that, if the skin gets damaged the sensors will detect it and automatically repair itself!
Image: Goodyear
But that’s not all this device can do. This smart wheel will also be able to detect the conditions on the road through its sensory system and send a signal to the vehicle which will then enable the coral-patterned tread to adapt to the road conditions; basically, softening as a response to wet weather and getting stiff when the weather is dry. This sensory system will also send a signal to other nearby cars. Thus, you’ll know of bad road conditions before you’ve even encountered them! This idea was conceptualized when a self-driving google car crashed with a public bus. Goodyear believes that having multi-oriented tires will aid in increasing the safety of fully autonomous cars in the future!
Image: Goodyear
The team hopes that by 2035, the sales of autonomous cars will increase rapidly. And they wish that their spherical wheels can revolutionize these cars with their free mobility, safety sensors and incredible connectivity. At this rate, our future in cars seems pretty advanced!
Reference Links: Goodyear, Daily Mail, Mashable