Goodyear's AERO Concept Is Both A Tire And A Propeller For Future Flying Cars

The future for transportation is filled with vehicles that drive themselves and flying cars. At least that is the case if researchers, concept artists, and automakers can be believed. Goodyear has unveiled a new concept tire that it is aiming at the flying cars of the future. This concept acts as both a propeller for flight and a tire when on the ground.AERO concept has many innovative features according to Goodyear. The features include a multimodal tilt-rotor concept. The tire could absorb forces to and from the road in traditional tire orientation, and in another orientation provide propulsion for the aircraft.

The AERO concept has a non-pneumatic construction with no chance of flats. The spokes of the tire design act as a wheel to carry the weight of the car and act as fan blades to provide lift when tilted. The concept tire uses magnetic propulsion to generate frictionless thrust.

Goodyear says that allows the high rotating speeds required to drive the vehicle on the ground and when tilted to lift the vehicle into the air. Light-based fiber optic sensors could monitor road conditions, tire wear, and structural integrity of the tire itself.

An embedded AI processor combines data from the tire sensors and data from vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication systems. The AI would analyze the data and then identify and resolve potential tire-related issues.