The idea and concept of airless tires/wheels (Such as the Tweel) is not new, and the military has expressed interest in them in the past. We have also discussed them in some Car Cha threads. But Michelin appears to be the first tire-manufacturer to actually test them in public for general use outside the military. Perhaps it is not surprising that Michelin is the first.....they have long been known as tire-experts.


https://www.freethink.com/hard-tech/...lic-test-drive

Airless tires get their public test drive

The tires are puncture-proof and more environmentally friendly.
By B. David Zarley
October 24, 2021
Fields
CARS

Credit: Michelin The electric Mini Cooper that rolled around Munich’s auto show this past September on airless tires may have big implications for you — in the next few years, the French manufacturer Michelin is hoping these tires will be on your car.

Michelin’s airless tires have been in the works for over a decade. Their unusual design — they look a bit like toy car wheels — drew some stares at the autoshow, but overall passengers seemed pleased with the new technology. The airless tires have been in development for over a decade.

“It was an exceptional experience for us, and our greatest satisfaction came at the end of the demonstration when our passengers, who were admittedly a little wary at first, said they felt no difference compared with conventional tires,” technical and scientific communications director Cyrille Roget said in a release
Why it matters: The company considers the tires — dubbed UPTIS, which stands for Unique Puncture Proof Tire System — an important step on the road to sustainability. As the name suggests, the airless tires don’t puncture, so they should last longer — which means less tires will need to be produced, helping limit waste.

Michelin claims millions of tires end up in landfills early because of puncture damage. There, they are joined by legions of more tires that are simply too old and worn out. Disposed tires can become fire hazards, releasing gases, heavy metals, and oil into the environment. The US alone produced over 260 million scrapped tires in 2019.
Airless tires don’t puncture, so they should last longer — which means less tires will need to be produced, helping to limit wasteThe manufacturer claims that around 18% of tires scrapped per year are due to damage; that’s where they hope UPTIS comes in.

Furthering the green mission, the tires can also be made from recycled plastic waste. Right now, they only contain some recycled waste, but Michelin plans to eventually make them entirely from recycled material, according to Interesting Engineering.

Michelin believes the airless tires will lead to safer, worry-free driving, as road conditions will be less damaging to the tires. This has the knock on effect of lower costs for vehicle fleets, like buses or rental cars, as well. Goodyear announced this past July that the Jacksonville Transportation Authority will be piloting the company’s own version of an airless tire on the JTA’s fleet of autonomous vehicles.

How they’re made: Drivers at the autoshow reported not noticing a difference between the airless tires and conventional ones. But feeling aside, the airless tires are designed quite differently. (Air is, like, a big part of how your car tires work.) UPTIS combines an aluminum wheel with a special “tire” around it. Made with a plastic matrix laced with — and reinforced by — glass fibers. This outer tire is designed to be flexible while strong enough to support the car.



Credit: Michelin And as New Atlas reports, the airless tires can also be adjusted to change their performance. Stiffness can be changed to impact how the car feels while braking, cornering, or accelerating, while holes punched in the tires can help reduce the likelihood of sliding dangerously in the rain.

UPTIS has been in development for roughly 21 years, Michelin senior principal product engineer Steve Cron told Roadshow; the breakthrough came when the materials the tires are made of were finally developed. The airless tires build off what the tire company has learned from its already-available airless Tweel system, which is meant for off-road vehicles.

No price point on UPTIS yet, but Michelin is aiming to get them on your car by 2024, most likely on GM vehicles, Roadshow reports. The companies have been using the Chevrolet Bolt as a test platform.

 

As you note, I had seen this a few years ago for industrial or military vehicle applications.

The landscapers who cut the grass at my office building have these on their riding mowers. I'm sure that's the ride standard I want for my car - "Rides like a zero turn mower!"

 

Uh what happens in winter when ice gets into the open areas and they become unbalanced?

 

Inertia and force is going to break that ice and it's going to fall right out of the tire.

 

According to the article, the test-subjects did not notice much difference in ride quality from conventional air-filled tires. Of course, these civil-versions were not built to military standards....the military spec versions, of course, can be expected to be harder, more durable, and less-forgiving over bumps.

 

That's probably one of the things that they are testing.

 

Tire tread get clogged with pebbles at it is that design will be far worse, rocks will go into the open areas and never come out.

 

My guess is that once these come to market they will have closed sidewalls.

 

Perhaps, but that may (?) depend on how much heat buildup one gets in them from normal operation. Closing up the sidewalls, without air circulation, may make them run hotter. We saw with the Ford-Explorer/Wilderness-tire fiasco what can happen when tires overheat....although, of course, these test-tires don't have any air in them to escape through a puncture if they do get too hot.

 

Current tires are all closed sidewall with large air mass, I don't think that would be an issue at all

 

True, but I won't second-guess the engineers. They can decide what will be needed, and what won't be needed, for airless tires/wheels. They have the actual test-data front of them.

Run-flat tires also don't have any air in them....and they have been in use for years, although I'm not much of a fan of them because of their road-manners and lack of a spare should one fail.

 

Didn’t know that.

Yeah. I agree.

 

OK, my bad...I misspoke. I'll take at least part of that back. ​​​Run-flat tires usually DO have air in them under normal circumstances....but they can only go about 50 miles or so, at 50 MPH, without air should it leak out. And, of course, there is usually no spare with run-flats, so you'll probably need a tow if it's more than 50 miles to the nearest tire shop.

 

Run flat tires absolutely have air in them. I have them on my BMW. If they go to 0 air pressure, you can't drive more than 50 miles on them just like a donut spare.

 

Well if you are more than 50 miles from a tire shop, you probably have bigger problems. The bigger issue with RFTs is if you have a complete blowout with the sidewalk compromised - then you definitely need a tow. Whereas a donut spare would get going without a tow.