Goodyear Has Revealed A 360-Degree Tyre For Autonomous Cars

We’re used to seeing concept cars, but it’s not often we see a tyre manufacturer showing off a theoretical future for tyres. That’s exactly what Goodyear has done with its Eagle-360 tyres, though, which are spherical in shape.

If you’re wondering how on Earth a sphere is attached to a car, that’s where the exciting science comes in - it isn’t physically attached. Goodyear would utilise magnetic levitation to suspend the tyre from the car, offering a smoother ride, and allowing for infinite manoeuvrability. This system would also help smooth out direction changes since the body of the car would not need to turn in certain situation, such as overtaking other vehicles.

The Eagle-360 is 3D-printed, and its compound uses ‘biomimicry’ to act like a sponge, hardening when dry to offer greater grip, and softening when wet to increase the size of the water-dispersing grooves and increase the contact patch. Sensors in the tyre can also communicate with other cars to warn of unexpected surface changes such as puddles or ice.

The technology is some way off, though: “Goodyear’s concept tyres play a dual role in the future both as creative platforms to push the boundaries of conventional thinking and as testbeds for next-generation technologies,” says Joseph Zekoski, Goodyear’s senior vice president and chief technical officer. It’ll be fascinating to see how these technologies develop, as the super smooth MagLev-suspended ride would be perfect for a luxury car manufacturer like Rolls-Royce.

In the meantime, we’d expect that ‘biomimicry’ tech will trickle down to normal tyres first; a truly all-season tyre that’s just as effective in winter as it is on a summer track day would be mighty appealing, and would do away with the need to keep a spare set of seasonal tyres locked away at all times.