Bridgestone has marked a significant advancement in its pursuit of digital mobility solutions with the activation of a cutting-edge driving simulator at its European R&D facility near Rome. The VI-grade DiM500 Driver-in-the-Loop (DiL) simulator represents a major step forward in the company’s virtual tyre development capabilities, allowing for the evaluation of tyre performance without the need for physical track testing.

The simulator is built around a large, mobile platform capable of moving up to five metres, enabling it to replicate the dynamic forces experienced in real-world driving. Housed within a carbon-fibre cockpit, the driver is immersed in a hyper-realistic virtual environment, and the system’s extensive range of motion ensures that the forces simulated are comparable to those measured during physical trials. This setup allows for highly accurate assessments of tyre behaviour.

By combining high-fidelity simulation with live driver feedback, historical data and artificial intelligence, Bridgestone can now explore a much wider array of tyre specifications earlier in the design phase. This approach accelerates design decisions and reduces the reliance on physical prototyping. Consequently, traditional track testing can be reserved for the final validation stages. This shift is expected to deliver substantial environmental benefits, with a projected annual saving of up to 12,000 experimental tyres. It builds on the company’s existing Virtual Tyre Development technology, which has already reduced raw material use and CO2 emissions in the original equipment development phase by as much as 60 percent.

Beyond environmental gains, the technology shortens development timelines by enabling simultaneous tyre and vehicle engineering. This parallel process fosters closer collaboration with automotive manufacturers, allowing Bridgestone to tailor tyres more precisely to the performance characteristics of specific vehicle models. While the simulator is currently focused on dry handling scenarios, its capabilities are being extended to cover a broader spectrum of driving conditions. Supported by continued investment in global research and development, this initiative reinforces Bridgestone’s capacity to adapt to the evolving demands of both manufacturers and drivers.

Mattia Giustiniano, Senior Vice President – R&D, Bridgestone West, said, “Bridgestone is already considered a pioneer in digital tyre development – leveraging Virtual Tyre Development for more than a decade. By integrating the driver into the digital development cycle, this investment adds a crucial new piece to our evolving ecosystem. The simulator’s introduction marks a significant step in enhancing the efficiency and sustainability of our R&D processes while unlocking unprecedented opportunities to foster innovation.”

VMI will showcase its latest tyre manufacturing technologies at Tire Technology Expo 2026, scheduled for 3–5 March 2026 in Hannover, Germany. The company will operate from booth 8064 in Hall 21, featuring the return of its Innovations Theater for a second consecutive year.

Specialists from VMI will deliver a series of 15-minute presentations at the theatre, covering recent product developments and technological advancements. Topics include the AMC on MAXX system, new features for the VMI MILEXX and the Batch Off Closed Air Circulation technology. Representatives from the VMI Services team will also discuss offerings such as VPC, VMS+, remote guidance, training programmes and retrofits. No advance registration is required for these sessions.

For conference attendees, Marzieh Salehi will present on the laboratory perspective for tyre and road wear particle (TRWP) collection and detection. The presentation is scheduled for Wednesday, 4 March, at 16:10 in the Five Continents conference room.

VMI, a company with a longstanding focus on tyre industry innovation, develops advanced machinery and services aimed at supporting customer operations and shaping the future of tyre production. Its participation in the expo reflects a commitment to providing cutting-edge solutions designed to meet industry challenges and drive progress in tyre manufacturing.

When the tyre industry speaks today about digitalisation, virtual validation and sustainability, it often does so in abstract terms – models, data sets, algorithms and computing power. Yet, at its core, tyre development remains an intrinsically human endeavour. Grip, stability, steering feel and ride comfort are ultimately experienced by people, not machines. Bridging that divide between digital precision and human perception has become one of the defining challenges of modern tyre R&D.

Few companies sit more squarely at that intersection than Ansible Motion. Known globally for its high-fidelity Driver-in-the-Loop (DIL) simulators, the company has, over the past decade and a half, quietly reshaped how vehicle manufacturers, motorsport teams and – most notably – tyre makers think about simulation-led development.

At the centre of this evolution is Salman Safdar, Executive Director at Ansible Motion, whose perspective is shaped not only by technological ambition but also by a deep understanding of how tyres influence the driving experience in ways that no other vehicle component can.

ORIGINS ROOTED IN FIRST PRINCIPLES

Although Ansible Motion is frequently associated with motorsport and advanced vehicle simulation, its origin story is less about racing glamour and more about questioning inherited assumptions. When the company was founded in 2009, the dominant simulator architectures used in motorsport had been adapted from aerospace applications – an approach that Safdar and his colleagues believed was fundamentally flawed.

“When we started the company in 2009, it was to provide an alternative to aerospace-derived simulator architectures that were beginning to make their way into motorsport applications. At the time, many high-level racing teams were investing in technologies that were, from a first principles perspective, better suited to simulating aircraft than ground vehicles,” Safdar explains.

Aircraft and cars, after all, interact with their environments in profoundly different ways. Aerodynamic forces act over long distances and gentle arcs, while tyres generate immediate, localised forces through a constantly changing contact patch. Subtle road surface irregularities, rapid directional changes and short-range visual cues define the driving experience on the ground.“We intentionally departed from the popular, but limited, hexapod – or Stewart platform – and invented a novel, six-degree-of-freedom motion system built in logical layers corresponding to primary ground vehicle axes. The intention was that it would be linear, agile and highly dynamic – and that it would be much better suited to simulating ground vehicles than anything else,” Safdar explains.

Tyres, he notes, were central to that architectural rethink from the very beginning. “Tyres are one of the fundamental reasons why ground vehicle simulators need to be architecturally different from aerospace simulators. Directional changes are immediate with tyres… subtle disturbances that result from pavement irregularities are ever-present… human sensory experiences regarding vehicle control and stability are fundamentally different,” he says.

In that sense, tyre performance was embedded in Ansible Motion’s DNA long before the tyre industry itself became a direct customer.

FROM VEHICLE OEMS TO TYRE MANUFACTURERS

For much of its early life, Ansible Motion’s simulators were deployed primarily by vehicle manufacturers and elite motorsport teams. The tyre industry, traditionally more conservative in its adoption of immersive simulation, took longer to engage directly. That has now changed decisively.

“Today, the tyre industry is a core strategic pillar in our simulation R&D and sales pipeline, alongside OEM vehicle development, advanced mobility research programmes and motorsport. Currently, Michelin, Continental, Nexen, and most recently, Kumho Tire are trusting Ansible Motion driving simulators to develop their next generation of tyres,” Safdar says.

This shift reflects broader pressures reshaping tyre R&D. Development cycles are shortening, sustainability targets are tightening and the cost of physical testing – both financial and environmental – is under intense scrutiny. At the same time, the rise of electric vehicles has introduced new performance trade-offs, forcing tyre engineers to balance rolling resistance, noise, durability and grip in unfamiliar combinations.

Against this backdrop, Driver-in-the-Loop simulation has emerged as a powerful complement to conventional modelling and laboratory testing.

WHY DRIVER-IN-THE-LOOP MATTERS

At its simplest, DIL simulation places a human driver inside a virtual vehicle, interacting in real time with simulated tyres, roads and vehicle systems. For Safdar, the value lies precisely in that human presence.

“The key aspect of Driver-in-the-Loop simulation is the human element. Unlike other simulation and lab testing approaches, DIL simulation invites – in fact, it requires – human participation,” he says.

Modern tyre development depends on a complex interplay between objective metrics and subjective perception. Measurements of braking distance, lateral force or rolling resistance must ultimately align with how a tyre feels to a driver – how it communicates grip, how it responds on centre, how it rides over imperfect surfaces.

DIL simulators allow these subjective attributes to be explored much earlier in the development cycle and more frequently than is possible with physical prototypes alone. Crucially, this happens in parallel with traditional simulation and modelling work, not in isolation.

“This allows critical decisions to be made early enough to avoid delays and unexpected expenses in later stages of programmes. It also reduces costs and environmental impacts due to reduced prototyping,” Safdar notes.

Beyond efficiency gains, Safdar emphasises a less tangible but equally important benefit: collaboration. DIL simulators function as hubs where engineers, test drivers and decision-makers can converge around a shared experience.

“In a sense it enables tyre engineers to be engineers – so they can be more creative in a lower-risk environment,” he says.

THE KUMHO TIRE CASE STUDY

The partnership with Kumho Tire provides a clear illustration of how these principles translate into practice. Framed under the banner ‘Driving the Future with Digital Tyres’, the collaboration reflects a shared ambition to accelerate tyre development through digitalisation while embedding subjective assessment earlier in the design process.

“Both Kumho Tire and Ansible have a shared ambition to accelerate tyre development through digitalisation and to inject subjective assessments into earlier tyre design stages,” Safdar says.

Achieving that ambition requires more than just motion hardware. High-fidelity sensory cueing – perfect synchronisation between motion, visuals and steering feedback – is essential if drivers are to trust what they feel in the simulator. Equally important is process optimisation: a computational environment that integrates multiple modelling tools seamlessly and allows engineers to run tests efficiently and extract meaningful data.

Modern tyre development depends on a complex interplay between objective metrics and subjective perception. Measurements of braking distance, lateral force or rolling resistance must ultimately align with how a tyre feels to a driver – how it communicates grip, how it responds on centre, how it rides over imperfect surfaces.

Safdar believes Ansible Motion’s strength lies in precisely that integration capability. “We believe that Kumho Tire, in part, selected Ansible Motion due to our expertise in integrating advanced tyre models with other HIL, MIL, SIL software and hardware elements,” he explains, referencing hardware-, model- and software-in-the-loop methodologies. High-fidelity digital road surfaces, developed by Ansible Motion’s sister company rFpro, also play a key role.

There is also a market reality underpinning the partnership. “Within a highly competitive space, Ansible Motion supplies over 50 percent of engineering-grade DIL simulators to the marketplace. So perhaps there is some confidence in working with us,” Safdar notes.

FROM ASPIRATIONS TO MEASURABLE OUTCOMES

Digital transformation initiatives often falter at the point where aspiration meets execution. Safdar is candid about the need for clear targets and measurable outcomes if DIL simulation is to deliver real value.

“It’s important to have the aspirations in the first place. But it’s important to clearly identify targets and be able to measure achievements towards them,” he says.

He illustrates this using the concept of multi-attribute spider – or radar – charts, commonly used by tyre engineers to visualise trade-offs. For electric vehicle tyres, key attributes might include rolling resistance, durability, noise, wet and dry traction, load capacity and material sustainability. Improvements in one area often come at the expense of another.

“The end goal is to create a tyre that strikes an acceptable balance for a particular vehicle application,” Safdar explains.

The same logic applies to high-performance tyres, albeit with a different set of priorities: dry braking, wet handling, comfort, on-centre feel and tread wear, among others.

“Designing a tyre is a complex process. The utility of DIL simulation lies in its ability to keep real people involved with conceptual – digital – explorations of all the above trade-offs,” he says.

In practical terms, success can be measured in several ways. How much time was saved in reaching a design decision? How many prototype tyres were avoided? Did virtual prototyping improve alignment between objective data and subjective perception?

In some cases, entirely new metrics emerge, such as improved communication between tyre suppliers and vehicle OEMs during fitment programmes.

REPLICATING TYRE-ROAD INTERACTION

A recurring scepticism surrounding simulation is whether virtual environments can ever replicate the complexity of real-world tyre-road interaction with sufficient fidelity. Safdar’s response is clear: the fidelity depends less on the simulator itself and more on the quality of the models it integrates.

“DIL simulation – except for the human participant – is indeed a virtual environment. This means that human-experienced ‘tyres’ and ‘roadways’ and ‘vehicles’ are computer representations,” he says.

Ansible Motion does not develop tyre, road or vehicle models in-house. Instead, it provides an open, scalable co-simulation architecture – the Distributed Data Bus (DDB) – that connects industry-leading third-party models and customer-developed tools in real time.

“This gives our customers an engineering sandbox where they can use and combine different models that come from trusted third-party simulation providers as well as models that they might develop in-house,” Safdar explains.

The result is a test environment where subjective and objective assessments are conducted much as they would be on a proving ground – except that changes are made with keystrokes rather than tools, and hundreds of evaluations can be run without interrupting a driver’s mental state.

Safdar cites a recent example from Ansible Motion’s UK R&D centre, where a customer ran parallel DIL sessions on opposite sides of the globe. Within four hours, the teams gathered sufficient data to inform the next phase of tyre development. The equivalent physical testing, used as a correlation benchmark, had taken two weeks.

“Test drivers were scoring physical tyres against virtual tyres and seeking correlation within five percent – which they achieved,” he says.

THE DELTA S3 ECOSYSTEM

Central to many of these applications is Ansible Motion’s Delta S3 class of DIL simulators, including variants such as the Delta S3 Spin and S3 Thrust. Safdar is careful to describe them not merely as platforms but as complete ecosystems.

“They are turn-key DIL ecosystems that include all aspects of sensory cueing, including high-fidelity motion, visuals, steering feedback, haptics and audio,” he says.

Correlation with real-world data, he argues, is primarily a function of model quality rather than simulator mechanics. The simulator’s role is to deliver sensory cues accurately and collect driver inputs faithfully, while the DDB ensures synchronised execution across all models.

“If a simulator session and its supporting models are set up correctly… correlation is typically not an issue,” Safdar says. Deviations, when they occur, are often treated as valuable insights that help refine the models themselves.

WHERE SIMULATION DELIVERS THE GREATEST VALUE

From a tyre engineer’s perspective, the greatest benefits of simulation-based validation emerge early in the development cycle, when design freedom is at its highest.

“Simulation allows quick sanity checks on the numerous models and directs attention towards focused refinements of the selected few that show promise. This allows significant cost and time saving,” Safdar explains.

Further downstream, DIL simulation can eliminate entire rounds of prototype iterations, particularly in OEM fitment programmes. The return on investment is often easy for tyre manufacturers to quantify. Safdar points to Continental’s estimate that its simulator usage eliminates around 10,000 sets of test tyres per year, along with roughly 100,000 kilometres of physical driving.

MEETING THE EV CHALLENGE

Electric vehicles have intensified the demands placed on tyres. Higher torque loads, increased vehicle mass, stricter noise requirements and heightened sensitivity to rolling resistance all converge in ways that challenge traditional development approaches.

“Ansible Motion simulators can replicate a wide range of EV-specific scenarios, enabling engineers to tune vehicle performance by testing high torque behaviour, instantaneous load changes, lane changes, high-speed cornering and braking, while also modelling NVH and cabin noise more accurately,” Safdar says.

With lightweight vehicle structures limiting the use of sound-deadening materials, tyres play an increasingly prominent role in overall NVH performance. DIL simulators also allow safe exploration of energy efficiency, regenerative braking strategies and charge-deplete cycles.

Crucially, they enable engineers to explore rolling resistance optimisation in the context of competing trade-offs, such as reinforced constructions required to handle battery weight and torque.

DEFINING THE DIGITAL TYRE

Safdar defines a digital tyre as “a validated virtual representation of a real tyre which considers material properties, compound, tread design, tyre profile, contact patch information, aerodynamic and thermodynamic properties.”

Commercial viability depends on establishing strong correlation between digital and physical tyres, often through close collaboration with vehicle OEMs. When implemented effectively, virtual validation reduces reliance on early prototypes – saving time, cost and environmental impact.

“DIL simulation, in particular by incorporating the test driver’s subjective feedback at the early design phase, can inject insights that would otherwise not be discovered, thus avoiding costly late changes,” Safdar notes.

EXPANDING THE GLOBAL FOOTPRINT

Beyond established partnerships with Kumho, Continental and Michelin, Ansible Motion sees growing demand for digital R&D infrastructure across regions, particularly in Asia. OEM-driven virtual development programmes are increasingly mandating simulator use among suppliers.

Emerging markets and new entrants, especially in China’s rapidly expanding EV sector, represent a further growth opportunity. For these companies, simulation offers a way to compete with established brands on speed, cost and measurable ROI.

“Speed, reasonable cost and measurable ROI are key to success. And we’re happy that this falls within the core competencies of Ansible Motion’s products and solutions,” Safdar says.

LOOKING AHEAD

Over the next 5–10 years, Safdar expects tyre development to be shaped increasingly by digital twins and AI-generated models incorporating new compounds and manufacturing processes. Validation demands will rise, as will regulatory scrutiny, making simulation indispensable not only for development but also for homologation.

“Subjective driver evaluation remains a critical cornerstone of the driving experience and brand identity,” he says. Sustainability pressures will further accelerate the shift towards virtual validation.

“If we can help reduce environmental impacts and reliance on physical prototypes, we are happy to be a part of it,” Safdar concludes. “We would like to think that Ansible Motion is positioned as a key enabler of digital, data-driven tyre innovations.”

The Global Data Service Organisation for Tyres and Automotive Components (GDSO) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the RAIN Alliance, a move designed to accelerate the harmonisation of electronic tyre identification and support broader digitalisation throughout the international tyre value chain. This agreement formalises a mutual commitment to advancing interoperable, scalable and globally consistent standards that can be adopted across the sector.

GDSO is responsible for establishing and promoting global data standards for tyres, enabling comprehensive lifecycle applications that serve a diverse group of stakeholders – from manufacturers and logistics providers to fleet managers, recyclers and regulatory bodies. The RAIN Alliance, in parallel, champions the widespread implementation of RAIN RFID technology within a framework that is open, standards-based and interoperable.

The growing importance of electronic tyre identification is underscored by its role in enabling traceability, meeting regulatory requirements, advancing circular economy goals and improving operational performance. Within existing standardisation frameworks, embedded RAIN RFID technology is currently the sole passive data carrier capable of supporting item-level traceability across the full lifespan of a tyre. This partnership seeks to align data standardisation efforts with the underlying identification technologies, thereby reinforcing the ecosystem necessary for reliable and scalable digital identification solutions worldwide.

Although GDSO acknowledges the established position and technical maturity of RAIN RFID, the organisation maintains a technology-agnostic stance. Its primary focus remains on developing robust and adaptable global data standards that foster an inclusive and resilient identification ecosystem. Such an approach supports ongoing innovation and ensures that all actors across the tyre value chain can participate effectively, regardless of future technological shifts.

Through this alliance, GDSO and the RAIN Alliance intend to drive globally aligned standards, enhance system interoperability, support digital use cases throughout the product lifecycle and contribute meaningfully to sustainability and circularity targets. This partnership reflects a shared strategic vision to strengthen the digital infrastructure underpinning the tyre industry.

Riccardo Giovannotti, Secretary General, GDSO, said, “I’m pleased to share that GDSO has signed a collaboration MoU with RAIN Alliance. The collaboration is grounded in a shared commitment to industry-wide standards and to advancing digitalisation across the tyre value chain. As the organisation leading the definition and deployment of global data standards for tyres, GDSO focuses on enabling cradle-to-grave use cases through interoperable and scalable solutions. Within today’s standardisation landscape, the embedded RAIN RFID (i.e. passive RFID) is currently the only data carrier standardised and technically capable of supporting item-level identification across the full tyre lifecycle, which makes this collaboration both relevant and timely.”

A new milestone in agricultural tyre technology has been achieved through the partnership of Titan International, Inc. and Cerebrum Sensor Technologies, Inc. Together, they have unveiled Titan Pressure Perfect (P2), a smart sensor system designed to transform how farm tyres perform and communicate. This system marks the emergence of a broader category known as Intelligent Tyre Solutions (iTS), developed jointly by the two companies.

At the core of Pressure Perfect (P2) is real-time monitoring of tyre pressure, temperature and load. This data enables continuous oversight and works seamlessly with onboard inflation systems, allowing automatic pressure adjustments while the vehicle is in motion. Whether shifting from roadway to field or responding to varying load demands, the system can reduce air pressure by as much as half. This flexibility helps lower soil compaction by up to 35 percent and has been linked to potential corn yield increases of four to six percent.

Pressure Perfect is compatible with all Titan and Goodyear Farm Tyre products and integrates with nearly all inflation management systems already in use. By supporting more precise tyre management, it contributes to longer tyre life, improved machine efficiency and reduced environmental impact through less ground disturbance.

The innovation draws on Cerebrum’s licensed portfolio of patented technologies, including advanced sensors, proprietary algorithms and sophisticated software capabilities. This technical foundation sets a new standard for intelligent tyre management in agriculture. While other industry players focus on replicating existing central tyre inflation and tyre pressure monitoring systems, Titan and Cerebrum are advancing a more comprehensive and forward-looking approach. Pressure Perfect reflects Titan’s longstanding engineering heritage and its continued commitment to leading the field through purposeful collaboration and applied innovation.

Dubbing it the ‘Holy Grail’ of innovations, Scott Sloan, Global Ag & LSW Product Manager for Titan, said, “This is the first system of its kind that delivers dynamic inflation management. Load, tyre pressure and temperature data are gathered by a single tyre-mounted sensor and integrated with tyre-industry load-inflation tables in real time. Imagine bringing together Central Tyre Inflation System (CTIS) and Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) technologies, and now they can work together and talk to each other – all without operator intervention."