RFID makes it easier and more efficient to track and perform regular tyre maintenance. It identifies potential problems or failures before they cause a breakdown. Confidex has come out with a tyre tag, smaller than its peers and with an omni directional antenna

As the global tyre industry is witnessing rapid changes in manufacturing, distribution and usage to end of life of tyres, Radio Frequency  Identification (RFID) will play a significant role in tackling many challenges posed by the growing complexity in the sector.

Demand for data collection is growing, calling for intelligent decisions and fast actions. Data on tyres helps tyre companies to improve their production efficiency, reduce rejections and even help in addressing in legal disputes, while fleet companies can manage lifecycle of tyres and operations cost.

In February this year, Confidex, a leading designer and supplier of short-range wireless identification solutions, launched the new Confidex tyre tag, which is designed for tyre traceability through the lifecycle of tyres. The tags are based on RAIN RFID/EPC global Gen2v2 RFID technology, which has global certification for passive RFID tag.

Highlights

The highlight of the Confidex tyre tag is that it is smaller than its peers and has an omni-directional antenna. “Initially, we had enquiries from two Chinese tyre manufacturers - Jiangsu General Science Technology Co and Hodo Tyres. They were looking for solutions for an embedded tyre tag technology that is different from all the other solutions available in the markets. We took two years to design, develop, and release this embedded tyre tags commercially. Our RFID tag is a bit smaller than the existing tags available in the market, having an Omni directional antenna.

Now these two Chinese companies are ready to release the mini truck tyres with our embedded RFID tags,” said Paul Broekhuizen, Executive Vice President Smart Industries at Confidex Ltd. By integrating RFID tags within the tyre during the manufacturing process, fleet operators and other end users can track tyre wear and usage. This can help to control ongoing tyre costs. RFID makes it easier and more efficient
to track and perform regular tyre maintenance, as well as identify potential problems or failures before they cause breakdown, says the company.

According to the company, its tyre tag can be fitted with a flexible position within the tyre and is 40 mm smaller than other comparable tags on the market. Its omni directional antenna provides greater flexibility for both warehouse and yard management applications. The Confidex tags offer a read range up to 3 metres or 9 feet from all directions and are compliant with the ISO 20909 and ISO 20910 standards. “The main advantage that the omni directional RFID tags provide is that you can take readings from any direction by a handled reader. You can even have a fixed reading tool in your workshop, and you need to take your vehicle near to or pass by the reader. The ratings are accurately taken. That was the key requirement of the Chinese customers too,” said Broekhuizen.

Confidex is also in discussions with major European tyre companies to test its tyre tags. Positioning Tyres come with different designs and materials, compositions and thickness, so the challenge is to fit an
RFID tag at an ideal position. Since the Confidex tyre tag is installed before the vulcanisation process, it can be placed in any position. “Customer can embed a tag at any position. But, better to check with Confidex, we can simulate how it performs in the new position,” Broekhuizen pointed out. Since the Confidex RFID tag is smaller in size compared to the other tags available in the market, with minor changes,
it can be easily fitted in the tyres that have already been into production. During the vulcanisation process, tags o through very high heat and pressure for hours and sometimes, the antenna may get damaged.

The Confidex tyre tag has a spring type of the antenna - not a typical 3D spring, but more like flexible folded wire antenna, which is 2D structure. This is more flexible and provides benefits during the vulcanisation. “Due to the spring-like design, air bubbles cannot form around the antenna, making it more flexible and sustainable during bending and stretching in the vulcanisation process,” said Broekhuizen. The tags are IP68 rated against liquids and dust and provide resistance to common chemicals and UV exposure.

The company’s RFID tyre tags have already been tested in-house and now they are being tested by European tyre companies with specific requirements. Since the embedded tyre RFID tags cannot be taken out without damaging the tyre, they are ideal for identifying counterfeit products and lifecycle monitoring. “So basically, an embedded RF ID tag helps to monitor lifecycle of tyres. This is the most ideal and complex RFID tag solution,” added Broekhuizen.

The other solution is the label type of tag, which is used for after-sales solutions. It looks like a simple label, but has an antenna too. These labels have different additives which are meant for the different materials, and the antenna design is based on the materials. Broekhuizen explained: “The rubber and steel of the tyres are very complex substances. There are always chemical reactions when you stick anything on rubber. There are chances of them peeling off and permanently bond, so we need a special kind of adhesive which are best with the rubber composites.”

During the tyre manufacturing processes, RFID labels are applied to different bags or containers of the chemicals and other ingredients. With the help of the labels and the reader on the loader, the mixing process is strictly monitored and controlled.

The third solution is barcoding, which comes with an RFID ag which is for regulatory compliance. The embedded RFID tags also help to monitor the tyres in the recycling business. “Tyres go to different countries, so it is difficult for the recyclers to understand or have data on the lifecycle. With an embedded tag, recyclers can get info on the manufacturers, location, and date of manufacturing and
other info. And with all such info, recyclers can manage their business more efficiently,” said Broekhuizen. The information on the Confidex tyre tags come up with the extended memory so additional information can be stored. “There is always fixed information on the RFID and then there is an EPC memory which can have more information.”

Broekhuizen sees growing demand for embedded RIFD tags in both developed and developing markets for different reasons. According to him, a more substantial challenge is to tackle counterfeit cases in the tyre industry, and such cases can be avoided by using RFID tags. In the developed markets, RFID will help to reduce labour costs and improve efficiency.

The company also plans to explore the penetration of its RFID tags in the OTR segment, where the total cost of ownership and lifecycle are the main drivers of the business. Tyre companies are also exploring tyre leasing business. According to Broekhuizen, huge business opportunities lie before the company as the tyre rental business model needs embedded RFID tags. With the lease model, fleet operators can bring down the operating cost by almost 50%. “Fleet companies have to use as per the usage of the tyres or per kilometre. With RFID tags, all data and monitoring can be done accurately,” he said.

Hankook Tire revealed the Design Innovation 2020 project, which defines a vision for the future driving and innovation in mobility.

Launched in 2012, the Design Innovation is Hankook’s R&D project held every two years, in collaboration with one of the world’s leading design universities.

Under the theme ‘Urban Reshaping’, professors and students from the Department of Industrial Design at the University of Cincinnati in the U.S. focused on the transformation of cities geared by reconfiguring mobility as part of living spaces rather than stand-alone purpose in the future with augmented automation infrastructure and cutting-edge technologies such as eco-friendly technology, autonomous driving and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Throughout the project, modular platform of mobility concept named ‘Hankook Platform System (HPS)-Cell’ was proposed with tyre representing the root of mobility. It is applied with ‘Hankook Electric Mobility Technology (H.E.M.)’ which represents Hankook’s passion for future technological breakthroughs. Then a scenario was created which distinguishes mobility as a moving platform and its function as a pod (space), clearly elaborating that tire indeed sits at the center of the mobility.

The tyre of HPS-Cell embodied an airless tyres’ double-layered unit-cell structure to acquire complex rigidity. It is a concept tyre that uses sensor technology to not only identify tire treads and road conditions in real time, but also to respond to wear-out risks and change tread patterns according to the road condition utilizing variable wheels and optimized infrastructure.

The scenario was brought into reality in a concept film and a mock-up. The productions suggest that in 2040 urban population will be able to use this mobility platform combined with pods of various forms to each meet a specific purpose. The modular platform can also be combined with commercial pods such as urban farming to maximize the scalability and efficiency of movement within smart cities of future generation.

The unveiled productions will be exhibited at various global channels and will represent Hankook’s capabilities in design innovation globally.

Jimmy Kwon, Vice President of Hankook Tire Brand Lab said, “Hankook Tire is incorporating new ideas with our cutting-edge technology to explore design concepts for the next generation, as Hankook believes creativity is the first step towards bringing the imagination into the reality. We are more than excited to present this year’s works as they speak for the essence of the future mobility that Hankook envisions.”

TATNEFT has announced the development of a new line of ATV tyres called the KAMA Quadro ATM. The first model has been made in 25x8-12 standard size at its Nizhnekamskshina factory in Russia.

The ATV tyre, which is developed by Kama Scientific and Technical Center, has been specially designed for off-road driving, providing excellent cross-country ability in mud and snow. The tyre’s special rubber composition ensures high reliability and traction performance.

The first batch of tyres will go for pilot testing to TATNEFT subdivisions that operate off-road special vehicles.

The KAMA Quadro ATM range is currently being developed in nine tyre sizes covering 12 to 14 inches diameter, with nine more sizes coming up over the next year. The factory will begin production of 25x10 tyres for the rear axle in addition to the already manufactured  25x8 tyres intended for the front axle.

The KAMA Quadro ATM will meet the needs of the TATNEFT Group’s all-terrain vehicles used in oil fields and will also be used to equip Russian ATV manufacturers and the secondary market. (TT)

Kumho tyres have outperformed 52 rival manufacturers to ace the Auto Bild magazine’s summer tyre test with its ECSTA HS51 high-performance pattern tyre.

The annual test is among the most comprehensive of its type, the results of which are regarded as highly significant by both the European tyre trade and its consumers.

Conducted on both wet and dry surfaces, it left Kumho in a fighting third place overall. However, while the further qualifications caused the two leaders to slide down the order, 33 of the 53 entries were eliminated by the initial braking test. Kumho’s highly competitive and consistent scores in almost every discipline ultimately left it as the sole test winner.

 Awarding the ECSTA HS51 their coveted ‘Exemplary’ badge, the Auto Bild testers commended it for its precise steering response, secure wet grip, well-balanced handling, short braking distance, low wear rate and affordable price.

Unlike some tyre tests, where the products are supplied by the manufacturers, those for the Auto Bild ones are covertly purchased by the magazine from regular retail outlets. The chosen size was 205/55R16, the direct fitment for the bulk of Volkswagen Golfs and Audi A3s etc., and therefore arguably the one most common within the European car market.

UK purchasers currently have the choice of 35 sizes of ECSTA HS51 for wheels of 15 to 18 inches in diameter. The qualification round of the test was carried out at ATP (Automotive Testing Papenburg) in Germany and the other tests were performed at the IDIADA facility in Spain. 

Thus, our newly developed "Tire Leap AI Analysis" utilises advanced AI-based analysis technology to analyse (for example) electron microscope imagery of tyre rubber compounds in order to achieve high-precision analysis that far exceeds human capabilities, thereby making it possible to derive accurate estimates of rubber properties from structural data found in this imagery.

Specifically, it is a technology that estimates rubber properties precise from combining data on the individual raw materials contained in a rubber compound with data on its internal structure. In the future, we will continue to develop this technology and develop technology to estimate the future rubber properties from electron microscope imagery of unused rubber.

■ Technology to Precisely Estimate Rubber Properties Based on Structures & Materials

Tire Leap AI Analysis utilises an AI-based image analysis system to analyse the internal structures of rubber in images captured by an electron microscope in order to infer information about the properties of the rubber based on its structural data (i.e. the results of image analysis). By combining this structural data with data about the materials that make up rubber compounds, this technology is then able to derive information about the physical properties of rubber with a high degree of precision.

■ Technology to Detect Changes in the Internal Structures of Rubber After Use & Estimate Resulting Changes in Rubber Properties

By comparing images of a tyre that has never been used (i.e. that is brand new) with images of a tyre that has been used (i.e. after wear over time), this AI-based image analysis system can determine where changes have occurred in the internal structures of the tyre’s rubber and then estimate the physical properties of the rubber in the areas that have undergone these changes. The practical application of this technology will facilitate the design of new rubber compounds that are less prone to performance degradation due to wear and tear, thus contributing to the development and advancement of Performance Sustaining Technology.

Dr. Miki Haseyama, Hokkaido University: We have developed a new AI technology that is able to estimate the extent of changes in the structures based on analysis of images of the internal structures of rubber. As compiling data for this kind of machine learning would otherwise be extremely time-consuming, one of the main merits of this new technology is the fact that this AI does not require prior field data from structural changes in rubber for machine learning. Rather, this AI uses deep learning to learn about the properties of new rubber (i.e. prior to undergoing structural changes) and then estimates the extent of changes in the structure by analysing how data from old rubber (i.e. after undergoing structural changes) compares to the data that it has previously learned about new data. This approach to machine learning allows the AI to automatically detect various types of changes in the structures of rubber.

Kiyoshige Muraoka, Senior Executive Officer, Sumitomo Rubber Industries: We have been working jointly with Hokkaido University to further advance the development of AI technology that can understand how the internal structures of tyre rubber change through use. We have already put this new technology to use in the development of our latest “ENASAVE NEXT III” fuel-efficient tyres, which not only achieve the highest possible “AAA-a” rating for fuel efficiency and wet grip performance (under Japan’s tyre labelling system), but also reduce changes in tyre performance that occur over time as a result of use by half. Moving forward, we will continue to advance our Tire Leap AI Analysis technology to find and analyse slight variations in the internal structures of rubber that human senses and knowhow have been unable to detect so that we can then use the resulting knowledge to develop new technologies that further enhance tyre performance and ensure that this high performance lasts longer. In this way, we will accelerate research and development toward producing high-performance tyres that provide greater safety and peace of mind with the aim of contributing to the realisation of a sustainable mobility society for future generations.

References:

Ren Togo, Naoki Saito, Takahiro Ogawa, Miki Haseyama, “Estimating regions of deterioration in electron microscope images of rubber materials via a transfer learning-based anomaly detection model,” IEEE Access, vol. 7, pp. 162395-162404, 2019.