The previously humble black and round car tyre might never look the same again, after Bridgestone revealed its second generation ‘air free concept’ tyre for the first time.
The revolutionary non-pneumatic design represents a striking change of image for the product.
It features improved load-bearing capabilities, environmental design and driving performance.
The latest improvements to the ‘Air Free Concept Tyre’ brings Bridgestone one step closer to a viable, commercially available air free tire.
Motorists using the new tyre would benefit from not having to worry about punctures ever again, while the days of having to periodically check pressures would also be a distant memory.
A unique structure of spokes – made of thermoplastic resin *1 – stretch along the inner
sides of the tyres and support the weight of the vehicle.
Along with the rubber in the tread portion, the materials used in the tires are recyclable, contributing to the efficient use of resources.
Further, by pursuing extremely low rolling resistance and contributing to reductions in CO2 emissions through use of proprietary technologies, Bridgestone believes it is possible to achieve even higher levels of environmental friendliness and safety.
Bridgestone is pursuing this technological development with the aim of achieving a “cradle to cradle” process that proactively maximizes the cyclical use of resources from worn tires into new tires and the use of recyclable resources.
New technologies used in and special features of the second generation tires are as follows.
1.Increased Versatility Through Improved Load-Bearing Capabilities and Driving Performance
Bridgestone is further optimizing the spoke structure by using high-strength but flexible
high-performance resin as a material and employing finite element method (FEM) simulations in the design to reduce stress and deformation in the inner part of the tire. By doing so, the second generation of “Air Free Concept tire” has increased versatility through improved load-bearing capabilities and driving performance compared with the first generation *2. High-speed travel (maximum 60 km/h) in ultralight vehicles*3 has also become possible.
2.Pursuing Low Rolling Resistance to Reduce CO2 Emissions
About 90% of energy loss from tire rolling resistance comes from repeated changes in the shape of tires as they roll. In the second generation of airless tires, Bridgestone has succeeded in making a significant reduction in energy loss by using proprietary materials technologies and simplifying the structure of the tires. As a result, these “Air Free Concept tire” have achieved the same level of low rolling resistance as our pneumatic fuel-efficient tires, making possible a contribution to reductions in CO2 emissions.
*1 A synthetic resin that becomes flexible when heated, can be processed into a variety of shapes, and becomes hard when cooled. The changes from heating and cooling can generally be repeated, making it easy to both mold and recycle the material.
*2 Conditions for the first generation airless concept tire test vehicle: Vehicle weight of 100kg and maximum speed of 6 km/h
Conditions for the second generation airless concept tire test vehicle: Vehicle weight of 410kg and maximum speed of 60 km/h
*3 Vehicles for one or two people which are more compact than automobiles, have a small turning circle, are highly environmentally friendly, and allow easy local movement
(Note) The airless concept tire is one of Bridgestone’s initiatives aimed toward 100% use of sustainable materials and contributing to globally agreed CO2 emissions reduction targets (reduction of at least 50%) as part of the Company’s long-term vision.
