Hankook Tire has launched its new ultra high-performance tire, the Ventus S1 evo 3, for passenger cars and SUVs.
Designed to give a sporty but comfortable ride in both dry and wet conditions, the tread of the tire incorporates innovative new materials, including high-performance natural resins, which increase grip levels. The high-grip, full-silica compound is processed using a special mixing technology, which ensures better distribution of the polymers and the filler material. This increases braking performance in the wet and reduces the tire’s rolling resistance.
Furthermore, Hankook has revealed the winners of the 2018 Design Innovation project, which it holds every two years in collaboration with schools. This year the project was held in association with the UK’s Royal College of Art with a theme of ‘Extending future life beyond mobility’.
Participants were tasked with creating a new tire concept for autonomous vehicles. The entries were evaluated according to their attractiveness and implementation of persuasive engineering principles. The three selected winners were the Aeroflow, HLS 23 and Hexonic.
Aeroflow is a racing tire designed to provide maximum downforce.
Hexonic is a smart tire for shared autonomous vehicles, which scans the road in real time with the seven embedded sensors in tread.
The HLS 23 tires support unmanned transport carriers. With sensors on each side, the tire monitors the location of other HLS 23s, maintaining a consistent distance while delivering cargo. Depending on the size and weight of the deliverables, the tires can operate individually or in assembled groups.
“We are happy to be able to present such brilliant works, both for the present and the future,” said Klaus Krause, head of Hankook’s Europe Technical Center in Germany. “Hankook Tire will continue to develop new tires that can better complement automobiles and seek new visions that go far beyond the limitations of the tires and mobility that we know today.”
