Goodyear has been at the forefront of tyre technology and the company has been showcasing a whole bunch of concepts over the years . It's come out with one more and it was introduced at the 2018 Geneva International Motor Show and with this one, the company literally brings the future of mobility to life as a visionary solution for cleaner, more convenient, safer and more sustainable urban mobility.
The concept is called Oxygene and has a unique structure that features living moss growing within the sidewall. This open structure and the tyre's tread design absorb and circulate moisture and water from the road surface, allowing photosynthesis to occur and therefore releasing oxygen into the air.
"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."
Inspired by the principles of the circular economy, with emphasis on reducing material waste, emissions, and energy loss, Goodyear's Oxygene concept is designed to integrate into future cityscapes, featuring several performance solutions. Oxygene absorbs moisture from the road through its unique tread and inhales CO2 from the air to feed the moss in its sidewall and release oxygen via photosynthesis. In a city similar in size to greater Paris with about 2.5 million vehicles, this would mean generating nearly 3,000 tons of oxygen and absorbing more than 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year.
According to the company, the Oxygene tyres feature a non-pneumatic construction that is 3D-printed with rubber powder from recycled tyres. The lightweight, shock-absorbing structure provides a long-lasting, puncture-free solution. Additional safety is ensured by the tire's open structure, which improves wet grip by helping absorb water from the tread. It also, harvests the energy generated during photosynthesis to power its embedded electronics, including on-board sensors, an artificial intelligence processing unit, and a customizable light strip in the tire's sidewall that switches colours, warning both road users and pedestrians of upcoming manoeuvres, such as lane changes or braking.
Oxygene uses a visible light communications system, or LiFi, for high-capacity mobile connectivity at the speed of light. LiFi enables the tire to connect to the Internet of Things, allowing vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) data exchange, which is critical to smart mobility management systems.
Yes, quite a few of this might be a little farfetched for production right away. However, we're just glad that this technology is being worked on and yes, as far as tyres are concerned, Goodyear is certainly moving to greener pastures with Oxygene
