Sumitomo trialling ‘Sensing core’ on autonomous buses

Hyogo, Japan - Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI) has announced a trial of its 'Sensing core' tire technology on self-driving buses in China.

For the trial started in May in Suzhou city, Jiangsu province, the sensing system is providing data on road surface conditions to a cloud system operated by fleet managers.

The programme supports Suzhou’s Xiangcheng district’s efforts towards becoming a “smart city”, with the use of self-driving taxis, buses and unmanned delivery vehicles, SRI said 16 Oct.

SRI's technology analyses wheel speed signals - generated by tire rotation - to detect information on road conditions, such as 'slipperiness'.

Road surface conditions are reported to the operation manager in the form of a “slippery road map” towards ensuring safe and secure operation.

SRI said it plans to further expand the functionality of the service to include tire load-detection and tire-wear detection, to streamline operations and to improve tire life-cycle.

Furthermore, the Japanese group said it has now adopted a ‘smart city concept’ for tire development and peripheral services, with 'Sensing core' at the heart of it.

The concept, it expects, will “greatly contribute” to the evolution and development of mobility in the self-driving society.