A new collaboration between Sensata Technologies and Nira Dynamics aims to deliver a robust and accurate tire tread depth monitoring (TDM) virtual sensor system to vehicle OEMs.
The system is expected to optimize tire health while improving the safety, efficiency and uptime of vehicles. Powered by Nira Dynamics tread wear estimation software, the solution will provide drivers, fleets and OEMs with alerts when tires need to be changed due to low levels of tread.
The virtual sensor works by collecting and combining the data from multiple existing vehicle sensors – including Sensata’s tire pressure sensors – to deliver accurate tire wear information. By utilizing a complex algorithm, the software-based system is capable of monitoring decreasing tread depth while compensating for real-world environmental challenges.
The TDM solution can be integrated into existing vehicle ECUs and has been developed to work with a multitude of tire and vehicle designs. This will enable OEMs to implement the software without custom software development.
By combining Sensata Technologies’ knowledge of automotive sensors and the embedded software and cloud services development of Nira Dynamics, the partnership hopes the latest TDM system will add further safety and maintenance capabilities to Sensata’s existing tire safety products.
“Sensata has developed tire technologies for more than 20 years, and we believe that this new virtual sensor builds on this experience and takes it to the next level,” commented
Eric Sorret, vice president of automotive at Sensata Technologies. “Using and analyzing data already being captured by other sensors, this solution provides accurate and useful information to our customers.”
“By combining our decades of experience in vehicle data cloud services with Sensata’s tire pressure monitoring system, infrastructure and extensive customer base, we can offer vehicle manufacturers additional insights and information for customers without the need to fit additional hardware on the vehicle,” said Lisa Åbom, the CEO of Nira Dynamics. “This solution will improve safety, creating more driver awareness about the quality of their tires to decrease the number of tire-related accidents.”
