At the 2018 Geneva International Motor Show, Goodyear showcased its new concept tire and the latest advances on its intelligent tire prototype.

The concept tire, named Oxygene, features an open structure with living moss growing within the sidewall. The tire’s smart tread design absorbs and circulates moisture and water from the road surface, allowing photosynthesis to occur and therefore releasing oxygen into the air, Goodyear said in a press release.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 80% of people who live in air pollution-measured urban areas are exposed to air quality levels that exceed WHO limits.

“With more than two-thirds of the world population expected to live in cities by 2050, the demands on transport networks in urban environments will increase substantially,” said Chris Delaney, president of Goodyear Europe, Middle East and Africa. “Smarter, greener infrastructure and transport will be crucial in addressing the most pressing challenges of urban mobility and development.”

With an emphasis on reducing material waste, emissions and energy loss, Goodyear’s Oxygene concept is designed to integrate into future cityscapes and features performance solutions including:

• Cleaning the air: It absorbs moisture from the road through its tread and takes in CO2 from the air to feed the moss in its sidewall and release oxygen via photosynthesis.
• Recycling worn tires: Oxygene features a non-pneumatic construction that is 3D-printed with rubber powder from recycled tires. The lightweight, shock-absorbing structure allows for a puncture-free solution to extend the life of the tire and minimize service issues.
• Generating its own electricity: Oxygene harvests the energy generated during photosynthesis to power its embedded electronics, including onboard sensors, an artificial intelligence processing unit,and a customizable light strip in the tire’s sidewall that switches colors, warning road users and pedestrians of upcoming maneuvers, such as lane changes or braking.
• Communicating fast: Oxygene uses a visible light communications system, or LiFi, for high-capacity mobile connectivity. LiFi enables the tire to connect to the internet, allowing vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) data exchange, which is critical to smart mobility management systems.

In other technology, Goodyear’s intelligent tire prototype is a complete tire information system that includes a tire, sensors and cloud-based algorithms that all work together to communicate in real-time with fleet operators via a mobile app. It allows for continuous connectivity and real-time data sharing for safer and more cost-efficient mobility and maximized uptime. The sensors in Goodyear’s intelligent tire, together with the vehicle and third-party information, provide real-time data on tire ID and status including wear, temperature and pressure.

“As shared mobility continues to grow in popularity, we are seeing applications where kilometers driven per vehicle will increase substantially in the years ahead,” Delaney said. “For shared fleet operators, proactively managing tire service issues is critical to both the customer experience and the business model.”