A study on the tire deformation sensor for intelligent tires

Tires are the most important components in driving safety. The necessity of the sensor mounted on the tire is gradually increasing. The purpose of this study is to design, fabricate, and install a deformation sensor inside the tire for getting the information from road. In order to achieve this, we focused on the design of a sensor structure and test of the sensor system with SAW (Surface Acoustic Wave) transponder mounted inside the tire. A deformation sensor has been proposed and analyzed for getting advanced structure. An analytic solution for a simple case has been obtained and compared with the results from computer simulation and then, a couple of improved models have been obtained from the analysis. With external loads in mind, the range of the pressure applied to the tire was between 0 and 58 psi (the normal pressure of tire = 30 psi). The system for a high rate signal telecommunication has been developed with the application for a wireless/batteryless deformation sensor. Finally, the fabricated sensor system has been installed in the tire of the real vehicle and tested for the feasibility to intelligent tires. This study concludes that the system is applicable after making minor improvements.