SELF INFLATING TYRES

A SEMINAR REPORT
Submitted By

AKSHAYKUMAR E H
REG NO: TCR16ME017
to
the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the Degree
of
Bachelor of Technology
in
Mechanical Engineering

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Government Engineering College Thrissur

November 2019
 DECLARATION

I undersigned hereby declare that the seminar report “Self Inflating Tyres”, submitted for
partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the degree of Master of Technology
of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Kerala is a bonafide work done by me
under supervision of Dr A R Soman and C N Devanand. This submission represents my
ideas in my own words and where ideas or words of others have been included; I have
adequately and accurately cited and referenced the original sources. I also declare that I
have adhered to ethics of academic honesty and integrity and have not misrepresented or
fabricated any data or idea or fact or source in my submission. I understand that any
violation of the above will be a cause for disciplinary action by the institute and/or the
University and can also evoke penal action from the sources which have thus not been
properly cited or from whom proper permission has not been obtained. This report has not
been previously formed the basis for the award of any degree, diploma or similar title of any
other University.

Thrissur
Date: …………….

AKSHAYKUMAR E H
 DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
GOVERNMENT ENGINEERING COLLEGE THRISSUR

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the report entitled, “Self Inflating Tyres” submitted by,
AKSHAYKUMAR E H to the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Technology in
Mechanical Engineering is a bonafide record of the project work carried out by him under
my guidance and supervision. This report in any form has not been submitted to any other
University or Institute for any purpose.

Seminar Guide Head of Department

Thrissur
Date………………….
 CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEGEMENT…………………………………………… ……….1
ABSTRACT………………………………………………………................2
LIST OF TABLES ………………………………………………………….3

LIST OF FIGURES ………………………………………………..3

ABBREVIATIONS ………………………………………………...............4
1. INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………….5

2. HOW TYRES WORK….………………………………………...............5

2.1 HOW TYRES ARE MADE….………………………………....6

3. HOW TYRES SUPPORT A CAR……….……………………….………7

4. TYRE INFLATING BASICS………….………..……………………….10

4.1 PROBLE,S WITH TYRES…………….…………….................10

5. HOW TYRE PRESSURE GAUGES WORK…………………... ………12

6. SELF INFLATING TYRES. …………………………………………….15

6.1 PARTS OF ANY SELF INFLATIG SYSTEM ………………15
7. CTIS ……………………………………………………………...............16
7.1 CTIS: INSIDE…………………………………………..............16
8. TIRE MAINTENANCE SYSTEM...…………………………………….18
9. ADVANTAGE…..………………………………………………….……20
10. FUTURE OF SELF INFLATING SYSTEM……………………………20
11. CONCLUSION ……………………………….………………………23
REFERENCES …………………………………………………….……….24
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

With immense pleasure, I, Mr. AKSHAYKUMAR E H, present “Self Inflating Tyres”

seminar report as part of the curriculum of mechanical engineering. I wish to thank all the
people who gave me unending support.

I express my profound thanks to Mr.Crouse Anglin, author of book Automotive Mechanics

for an in-depth review of self inflating tyres which helped me to complete this report. I am
immensely indebted to my seminar guides Dr A R Soman, C N Devanand, Arjun Mohan
and all those who have indirectly guided and helped me in preparation for this seminar.

AKSHAYKUMAR E H

1 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 ABSTRACT

The mode of transport is one of the most important criterions these days. The
vehicles safety is thus essential. Accidents are also increasing at a quick pace. There are
several factors which causes these accidents. The improper inflation of tyres is one among
them. Tyres lose air through normal driving (especially after hitting pot holes or curbs),
permeation and seasonal changes in temperature. When tyres are under inflated, the tread
wears more quickly. Under inflated tyres get damaged quickly due to overheating as
compared to properly inflated tyres. The under inflation also causes a small depreciation in
the mileage as well. Above all the vehicles running with under inflated tyres can cause
accidents
The Self inflating Tyres is designed to inflate or deflate tyres automatically. SIT uses the
energy of the wheel to self-inflate the tyre as needed, keeping the tyre always at its
optimum pressure level. The system integrates a peristaltic tube chamber into the tyre
wall. When a vehicle equipped with SIT tyres is put in motion, under-inflated tyres will
automatically re-inflate to their optimal operation pressure, which the system constantly
maintains while the tyres are in use. The source of air is taken from the vehicles air
braking system or from the pneumatic systems. Thus, it helps in re-inflation of the tyres to
proper pressure conditions.The important point is that inflation is activated only when the
tyre pressure falls below its optimal level.
When the optimal tyre pressure is reached, the automatic pressure regulator
disables the intake of atmospheric air and activates continuous internal air circulation
between the tyre and the peristaltic chamber. As a result, SIT tyres will always operate at
optimal pressure. Driving for 1 km will compensate for typical monthly leakage of 2-3%.

2 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 LIST OF TABLES

NO TITLE PAGE NO

TABLE 3.1 CRF for different types of tyres 9

LIST OF FIGURES

NO TITLE PAGE NO

FIG 2.1 Parts of tyre 6

FIG 3.1 Tyre conditions 8

FIG 4.1 Tyre conditions 11

FIG 5.1 Pressure gauge parts 12

FIG 5.2 Pressure gauge: inside 13

FIG 5.3 Pressure gauge: inside 13

FIG 5.4 Pressure gauge: inside 14

FIG 7.1 CTIS : inside 17

FIG 8.1 TMS 18

FIG 9.1 Peristaltic pump 20

3 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

ABBREVIATIONS

BE-4 BLUE ENGINE 4

CRF COEFFICIENT OF ROLLING FRICTION

CTIS CENTRAL TYRE INFLATION SYSTEM

TPCS TYRE PRESSURE CONTROL SYSTEM

ECU ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT

TMS TYRE MAINTENANCE SYSTEM

TIPM TYRE INTELLIGENT PRESSURE MANAGEMENT

4 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

1. INTRODUCTION
The mode of transport is one of the most important criterions these days. The vehicles
safety is thus essential. Accidents are also increasing at a quick pace. There are several
factors which causes these accidents. The improper inflation of tyres is one among them.
Tyres lose air through normal driving (especially after hitting pot holes or curbs),
permeation and seasonal changes in temperature. When tyres are under inflated, the tread
wears more quickly. Under inflated tyres get damaged quickly due to overheating as
compared to properly inflated tyres. The under inflation also causes a small depreciation
in the mileage as well. Above all the vehicles running with under inflated tyres can cause
accidents.

Thus to rectify all these defects we are using self inflating systems. The pressure
monitoring systems in such systems helps in monitoring the tyre pressure constantly. The
system which contains sensors feed the information to a display panel which the driver
can operate manually. The electronic unit controls all the information. The source of air is
taken from the vehicles air braking system or from the pneumatic systems. Thus it helps
in re-inflation of the tyres to proper pressure conditions.

2. HOW TYRES WORK

If you're in the market for new tyres, all of the variables in tyre
specifications and the confusing jargon you might hear from tyre salesmen or "experts"
might make your purchase rather stressful. Or maybe you just want to fully understand
the tyres you already have, the concepts at work, the significance of all of those sidewall
markings. What does all this stuff mean in regular terms?

5 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 In this article, we will explore how tyres are built and see what's in a tyre. We'll find out
what all the numbers and markings on the sidewall of a tyre mean, and we'll decipher
some of that tyre jargon. By the end of this article, you'll understand how a tyre supports
your car, and you'll know why heat can build up in your tyres, especially if the pressure is
low. You'll also be able to adjust your tyre pressure correctly and diagnose some common
tyre problems!

2.1 HOW TYRE ARE MADE

As illustrated below, a tyre is made up of several different components.

FIG : 2.1

The Bead Bundle

The bead is a loop of high-strength steel cable coated with rubber. It gives the
tyre the strength it needs to stay seated on the wheel rim and to handle the forces applied
by tyre mounting machines when the tyres are installed on rims.

The Body

6 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 The body is made up of several layers of different fabrics, called plies. The most
common ply fabric is polyester cord. The cords in a radial tyre run perpendicular to the
tread. Some older tyres used diagonal bias tyres, tyres in which the fabric ran at an angle
to the tread. The plies are coated with rubber to help them bond with the other
components and to seal in the air. A tyre's strength is often described by the number of
plies it has. Most car tyres have two body plies. By comparison, large commercial
jetliners often have tyres with 30 or more plies.

The Belts
In steel-belted radial tyres, belts made from steel are used to reinforce the area
under the tread. These belts provide puncture resistance and help the tyre stay flat so that
it makes the best contact with the road.

Cap Plies
Some tyres have cap plies, an extra layer or two of polyester fabric to help
hold everything in place. These cap plies are not found on all tyres; they are mostly used
on tyres with higher speed ratings to help all the components stay in place at high speeds.

The Sidewall
The sidewall provides lateral stability for the tyre, protects the body plies and
helps keep the air from escaping. It may contain additional components to help increase
the lateral stability.

The Tread
The tread is made from a mixture of many different kinds of natural and
synthetic rubbers. The tread and the sidewalls are extruded and cut to length. The tread is
just smooth rubber at this point; it does not have the tread patterns that give the tyre
traction.

Assembly
All of these components are assembled in the tyre-building machine. This
machine ensures that all of the components are in the correct location and then forms the
tyre into a shape and size fairly close to its finished dimensions.

7 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

3. HOW TYRES SUPPORT A CAR

You may have wondered how a car tyre with 30 pounds per square inch ( psi ) of
pressure can support a car. This is an interesting question, and it is related to several other
issues, such as how much force it takes to push a tyre down the road and why tyres get
hot when you drive (and how this can lead to problems). The next time you get in your
car, take a close look at the tyres. You will notice that they are not really round. There is a
flat spot on the bottom where the tyre meets the road. This flat spot is called the contact
patch.
If you were looking up at a car through a glass road, you could measure the size of the
contact patch. You could also make a pretty good estimate of the weight of your car, if
you measured the area of the contact patches of each tyre, added them together and then
multiplied the sum by the tyre pressure. Since there is a certain amount of pressure per
square inch in the tyre, say 30 psi, then you need quite a few square inches of contact
patch to carry the weight of the car. If you add more weight or decrease the pressure, then
you need even more square inches of contact patch, so the flat spot gets bigger.

FIG 3.1 - A properly inflated tyre and an under inflated or

overloaded tyre

8 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 You can see that the under inflated/overloaded tyre is less round than the properly
inflated, properly loaded tyre. When the tyre is spinning, the contact patch must move
around the tyre to stay in contact with the road. At the spot where the tyre meets the road,
the rubber is bent out. It takes force to bend that tyre, and the more it has to bend, the
more force it takes. The tyre is not perfectly elastic, so when it returns to its original
shape, it does not return all of the force that it took to bend it. Some of that force is
converted to heat in the tyre by the friction and work of bending all of the rubber and
steel in the tyre. Since an under inflated or overloaded tyre needs to bend more, it takes
more force to push it down the road, so it generates more heat.
Tyre manufacturers sometimes publish a coefficient of rolling friction (CRF) for their
tyres. You can use this number to calculate how much force it takes to push a tyre down
the road. The CRF has nothing to do with how much traction the tyre has; it is used to
calculate the amount of drag or rolling resistance caused by the tyres. The CRF is just like
any other coefficient of rolling friction: The force required to overcome the friction is
equal to the CRF multiplied by the weight on the tyre. This table lists typical CRF for
several different types of wheels.
Table 3.1

Coefficient of Rolling
Tyre Type
Friction

Low rolling resistance

0.006 - 0.01
car tyre

Ordinary car tyre 0.015

Truck tyre 0.006 - 0.01

Train wheel 0.001

9 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 Let's figure out how much force a typical car might use to push its tyres
down the road. Let's say our car weighs 4,000 pounds (1814.369 kg), and the tyres have a
CRF of 0.015. The force is equal to 4,000 x 0.015, which equals 60 pounds (27.215 kg).
Now let's figure out how much power that is. We know that power is equal to force times
speed. So the amount of power used by the tyres depends on how fast the car is going. At
75 mph (120.7 kph), the tyres are using 12hp, and at 55 mph (88.513 kph) they use 8.8
horsepower. All of that power is turning into heat. Most of it goes into the tyres, but some
of it goes into the road (the road actually bends a little when the car drives over it).
From these calculations you can see that the three things that affect how much force it
takes to push the tyre down the road (and therefore how much heat builds up in the tyres)
are the weight on the tyres, the speed you drive and the CRF (which increases if pressure
is decreased). If you drive on softer surfaces, such as sand, more of the heat goes into the
ground, and less goes into the tyres, but the CRF goes way up.

4. TYRE-INFLATION BASICS

About 80 percent of the cars on the road are driving with one or more tyres
underinflated. Tyres lose air through normal driving (especially after hitting pot holes or
curbs), permeation and seasonal changes in temperature. They can lose one or two psi
(pounds per square inch) each month in the winter and even more in the summer. And,
you can't tell if they're properly inflated just by looking at them. You have to use a tyre-
pressure guage. Not only is underinflation bad for your tyres, but it's also bad for your gas
mileage, affects the way your car handles and is generally unsafe.

4.1 PROBLEMS WITH TYRES

When tyres are under-inflated, the tread wears more quickly. According to
Goodyear, this equates to 15 percent fewer miles you can drive on them for every 20
percent that they're underinflated. Underinflated tyres also overheat more quickly than

10 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

properly inflated tyres, which cause more tyre damage. The faded areas below indicate
areas of excessive tread wear.

FIG 4.1

Because tyres are flexible, they flatten at the bottom when they roll. This contact
patch rebounds to its original shape once it is no longer in contact with the ground. This
rebound creates a wave of motion along with some friction. When there is less air in the
tyre, that wave is larger and the friction created is greater and friction creates heat. If
enough heat is generated, the rubber that holds the tyre's cords together begin to melt and
the tyre fails. Because of the extra resistance an underinflated tyre has when it rolls, your
car's engine has to work harder. A statistics show that tyres that are underinflated by as
little as 2 psi reduce fuel efficiency by 10 percent. Over a year of driving, that can amount
to several hundred dollars in extra gas purchases.

11 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

5. HOW TYRE PRESSURE GAUGES WORK

Under inflation can cause tyres to wear more on the outside than the inside. It also
causes reduced fuel efficiency and increased heat buildup in the tyres. It is important to
check the tyre pressure with a guage at least once a month. so it is essential to have a tyre
pressure monitoring system in our vehicles.

Inside the Pressure Gauge the parts of a typical pressure gauge look like this:

FIG 5.1

There are three simple steps involved in measuring a tyre's pressure with a pressure
gauge: Get in a steady position to apply the pressure gauge to the valve stem.

 Apply the gauge, forming a good seal between the gauge and the stem and
releasing air from the tyre into the gauge. Note how the pin inside the gauge
presses against the valve pin inside the valve stem to release air from the tyre.
 Read the pressure from the gauge.

12 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 FIG 5.2

Inside the tube that makes up the body of the pressure gauge, there is a small,
tight-sealing piston much like the piston inside a bicycle pump. The inside of the tube is
polished smooth. The piston is made of soft rubber so it seals nicely against the tube, and
the inside of the tube is lubricated with a light oil to improve the seal. In the picture
below, you can see that the piston is at one end of the tube and the stop is at the other. A
spring runs the length of the tube between the piston and the stop, and this compressed
spring pushes the piston toward the left-hand side of the tube.

FIG 5.3

The funny spherical thing on the left end of the gauge is hollow. The opening in the
sphere is designed to engage a tyre's valve stem. If you look in the opening, you will be
able to see a rubber seal and a small fixed pin. The rubber seal presses against the lip of

13 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

the valve stem to prevent air from leaking during the measurement, and the pin depresses
the valve pin in the valve stem to let air flow into the gauge. The air will flow around the
pin, through the hollow passage inside the sphere and into the piston chamber. When the
pressure gauge is applied to the valve stem of a tyre, the pressurized air from the tyre
rushes in and pushes the piston toward the right. The distance the piston travels is relative
to the pressure in the tyre. The pressurized air is pushing the piston to the right, and the
spring is pushing back. The gauge is designed to have some maximum pressure, and for
the sake of example let's say it is 60 psi. The spring has been calibrated so that 60-psi air
will move the piston to the far-right of the tube, while 30 psi moves the piston half-way
along the tube, and so on. When you release the gauge from the valve stem, the flow of
pressurized air stops and the spring immediately pushes the piston back to the left. To
allow you to read the pressure, there is a calibrated rod inside the tube:

FIG 5.4

The spring is not shown in this figure, but the calibrated rod fits inside the spring. The
calibrated rod rides on top of the piston, but the rod and the piston are not connected and
there is a fairly tight fit between the rod and the stop. When the piston moves to the right,
it pushes the calibrated rod. When the pressure is released, the piston moves back to the
left but the rod stays in its maximum position to allow you to read the pressure.

14 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

6. SELF-INFLATING SYSTEMS

Tyre-inflation systems have three general goals:

 Detect when the air pressure in a particular tyre has dropped - This means
they have to constantly (or intermittently) monitor the air pressure in each
tyre.
 Notify the driver of the problem
 Inflate that tyre back to the proper level - This means there has to be an air
supply as well as a check valve that opens only when needed.

6.1 PARTS OF ANY SELF INFLATING SYSTEM

While the available tyre inflation systems vary in design, they share some common
elements.

 They all use some type of valve to isolate individual tyres to prevent airflow
from all tyres when one is being checked or inflated.
 They have a method for sensing the tyre pressures. This is addressed in most
cases with central sensors that relay information to an electronic control unit
and then to the driver.
 They have an air source, which is usually an existing onboard source such as
braking or pneumatic systems. When using an existing system, however,
they have to ensure that they don't jeopardize its original function. For this
reason, there are safety checks to ensure that there is enough air pressure for
the source's primary use before pulling air for tyre inflation.
 There has to be a way to get the air from the air source to the tyres, which is
usually through the axle. Systems either use a sealed-hub axle with a hose
from the hub to the tyre valve or else they run tubes through the axle with
the axle acting as a conduit.
 There has to be a pressure relief vent to vent air from the tyre without
risking damage to the hub or rear-axle seals.

15 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

7. CENTRAL TYRE INFLATION SYSTEM (CTIS)

The idea behind the CTIS is to provide control over the air pressure in each
tyre as a way to improve performance on different surfaces. For example, lowering the air
pressure in a tyre creates a larger area of contact between the tyre and the ground and
makes driving on softer ground much easier. It also does less damage to the surface. This
is important on work sites and in agricultural fields. By giving the driver direct control
over the air pressure in each tyre, maneuverability is greatly improved.
Another function of the CTIS is to maintain pressure in the tyres if there is a slow leak or
puncture. In this case, the system controls inflation automatically based on the selected
pressure the driver has set. There are two main manufacturers of the CTIS: U.S.-based
Dana Corporation and France-based Syegon (a division of GIAT). Dana Corporation has
two versions, the CTIS for military use (developed by PSI) and the Tyre Pressure Control
System (TPCS) for commercial, heavy machinery use. In the next section, we'll take a
look at the inner workings of a basic CTIS setup.

7.1 CTIS: INSIDE

Here is a look at the overall system:

A wheel valve is located at each wheel end. For dual wheels, the valves are
typically connected only to the outer wheel so the pressure between the two tyres can be
balanced. Part of the wheel valve's job is to isolate the tyre from the system when it's not
in use in order to let the pressure off of the seal and extend its life. The wheel valve also
enables on-demand inflation and deflation of the tyres.

16 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 FIG 7.1

An electronic control unit (ECU) mounted behind the passenger seat is the brain of the
system. It processes driver commands, monitors all signals throughout the system and
tells the system to check tyre pressures every 10 minutes to make sure the selected
pressure is being maintained.
The ECU sends commands to the pneumatic control unit, which directly controls the
wheel valves and air system. The pneumatic control unit also contains a sensor that
transmits tyre-pressure readings to the ECU.
An operator control panel allows the driver to select tyre-pressure modes to match current
conditions. This dash-mounted panel displays current tyre pressures, selected modes and
system status. When the driver selects a tyre-pressure setting, signals from the control
panel travel to the electronic control unit to the pneumatic control unit to the wheel
valves. When vehicles are moving faster (like on a highway), tyre pressure should be
higher to prevent tyre damage. The CTIS includes a speed sensor that sends vehicle speed
information to the electronic control unit. If the vehicle continues moving at a higher

17 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

speed for a set period of time, the system automatically inflates the tyres to an appropriate
pressure for that speed.
This type of system uses air from the same compressor that supplies air to the brakes. A
pressure switch makes sure the brake system gets priority, preventing the CTIS from
taking air from the supply tank until the brake system is fully charged.

8. TYRE MAINTENANCE SYSTEM (TMS)

Dana Corporation's Tyre Maintenance System is a "smart" system for tractor trailers
that monitors tyre pressure and inflates tyres as necessary to keep pressure at the right level.
It uses air from the trailer's brake supply tank to inflate the tyres.

18 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 The system has three main components:
 The tyre hose assembly provides the air route to inflate the tyre and has check
valves so that the air lines and seals do not have to be pressurized when the
system is not checking or inflating the tyres. This cuts down on wear and tear on
the seals.
 The rotary joint is comprised of air and oil seals and bearings and connects the air
hose from the non-rotating axle to the rotating hubcap. Its air seals prevent
leakage, and the oil seal prevents contamination. The rotary hub also has a vent to
release air pressure in the hubcap.
 The manifold houses the pressure protection valve, which makes sure the system
doesn't pull air if the brakes' air supply is below 80 psi. It also houses an inlet
filter to keep the air clean, a pressure sensor to measure tyre pressures and
solenoids that control airflow to the tyres.

Like the CTIS, this system also has an electronic control unit that runs the entyre
system. It performs checks to make sure the system is operational, notifies the driver via a
warning light on the trailer (visible through the rear-view mirror) if a tyre's pressure drops
more than 10 percent below its normal pressure and performs system diagnostics.

The system performs an initial pressure check and adds air to any tyre that needs it. The
check valves in each tyre hose ensure that the other tyres don't lose pressure while one
tyre is being inflated. After an initial pressure check, the system depressurizes to relieve
pressure from the seals. Every 10 minutes, the system pressurizes the lines and rechecks
tyre pressures.

The system measures tyre pressure using a series of air pulses in the air lines. If the target
pressure in the line is not reached after a certain amount of time, the system begins
inflating the tyres until the correct pressure is reached.

19 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

9. ADVANTAGES

 Improved Mobility: Increased traction, Higher Vehicle speeds,

Continuous vehicle operation in the presence of minor tire leaks, Longer
tyre life
 Reduced fuel consumption
 Protection against soil compaction
 Increased driving stability
 Enhanced productivity for field work
 Improved pulling performance
 Convenient push-button operation

10. THE FUTURE OF SELF-INFLATING TYRES

Michelin is working with several other companies to develop an active pressure-

management system called TIPM (Tyre Intelligent Pressure Management), due to be
available sometime in 2005. This system has a compressor that automatically adjusts the
pressure in each tyre while the vehicle is in operation to compensate for leaks and slow-leak
punctures. The driver will be able to adjust the pressure depending on the desired driving
mode: comfort, sporty, all-terrain or over-obstacle.

There are at least two other systems in the early development stages that are oriented
toward the consumer market the En-tyre system and the Cycloid Air Pump system.

20 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

The entire self inflating system uses a valve that pulls in air from the atmosphere. It then
pumps the air into the under-inflated tyre using a peristaltic-pump action. The goal is to
constantly maintain a specific pressure.

FIG 9.1

The En-tyre system is based on this type of peristaltic pump mechanism.

The Auto Pump tyre-inflator system has a small, wheel-hub-mounted pump

that is powered by the turning of the wheels. When the system's monitor detects a drop in
pressure of 2 to 3 psi, it pumps air into the underinflated tyre. Auto Pump has a warning
system that is activated when there is a puncture.

Self-inflating Tyres for Bicycles and Motorcycles

Now cyclists can also motor with the peace of mind that a flat tyre isn't
going to ruin their ride. Bridgestone Cycle of Japan has developed the Air Hub, which

21 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

 uses a rotating air pump that replenishes air in the tyre as you pedal. Like the En-tyre
method, it keeps the air in the tyres at a constant pressure level. The air pump is in the
hub and is run by the rotation of the wheel. A small tube runs compressed air to the
tyre's air valve to maintain the pressure. When the air pressure in the tyre is where it
should be, excess air is exhausted through a device in the middle of the hose.

Pirelli has also come up with a self-inflating tyre system for motorcycles and
scooters. The Pirelli Safety Wheel System uses a monitoring system along with a
special rim and an internal tube containing compressed air. It also has a valve to
regulate the pressure between the tube and the tyre. When the tyre deflates naturally,
the valve opens and pumps air into the tyre until it reaches the correct pressure. If there
is a puncture, the system warns the rider as it allows air to move into the tyre.

22 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

11. CONCLUSION

Thus self inflating tyres help us in attaining certain helpful criterions.

1. It helps in the monitoring of tyre pressure constantly
2. Thus it provides inflation or deflation of the tyre
3. It helps in attaining better mileage
4. It also helps in providing comfortable driving.

23 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur

REFERENCES
 Latha O. H.,Sadaq O. H., Junaidi M. A. R. (2014),” Solar Based Air Compressor for
Inflating Tyres”. IOSR Journal of Mechanical and Civil Engineering (IOSRJMCE),
Vol. 11(5), pp. 29-33.
 Ramesh G., Mallesha M. and Gangadhar V.” Effect of Tyre Overload and Inflation
Pressure on Rolling Loss in Cars”,Int. Journal of Engineering Research and
Applications, Vol. 5(8), pp.01-08.
 Vishnuram K., Dinesh R., Krishna S., Kumar D.,Chazhiyan. T. (2015),”Self-
InflatingTyres” International Journal on Applications in Mechanical and Production
Engineering, Vol.1(5), pp 5-6.
 Chandreshkumar L., Pranav J.,Hemra C., Bokade .(2013),” Tire Pressure
Monitoring System And Fuel Leak Detection”, International Journal of Engineering
Research and Applications (IJERA),Vol. 3(3), pp.345-34.

24 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Govt. Engineering College Thrissur