Tire pressure monitoring systems aren’t new to the automobile industry. They deliver real time pressure information by employing  physical pressure sensors inside each tire or the rim and then sending the information wirelessly via RF signals. Tire major, Pirelli is all set to take the next big step in tire telemetry by launching a smart tire which uses embedded microchip to report crucial tire information.

The tire dubbed Cyber Tire will have a self powered microchip based system that will report temperature, pressure and load information wirelessly to a car’s computer system. The tyre will debut in 2010.

The system involves a piezoelectric power generation system and microchip applied to the inside of the tire’s carcass. The rolling motion of the tire will generate electricity that the system needs to function, hence as long as the car is rolling the tire can report its information.

Source: The Auto Channel

The Radio Frequency Indentification underlying the system will let the tire store its production date, site and the tire type. It is expected that with providing more information about a tire’s ‘current’ condition the car safety system like ABS and Stability Control will be able to function more percisely which will help improve traction and safety in a variety of conditions and situations.

In addition to pressure and temperature sensors, a tri-axial accelerometer is also embedded in the tireswhich gives full 3D data to relate tire’s angle to the car’s thrust angle, slip angle and relative friction co-efficients of each tire in extremelt fine grained detail. With such ground level detailed information being fed to car’s computer continuously, it will allow various safety systems like traction control and ABS to work more effectively and respond even before the driver is aware of a problem and even before the current computer controlled systems currently in use.

A similar product for motorcycles is also under development and will be called the Cyber Tire Lean. The motorcycle tire will come into the market first in early 2010 and the Cyber Tire will enter into production later in the same year.