The XSENSOR Blog

Tire Testing in the Elements (Heat, Rain, Snow, and Ice)

Written by XSENSOR Marketing | Oct 31, 2024 5:11:00 PM

Tires must perform anywhere a human intends to drive a vehicle. If both the person and the car are game to take a drive through the Canadian Rockies or the deserts in Arizona, but the tires are not up to the task, then disaster and tragedy can strike. Of course, the tires themselves do not actually have a choice in the matter, but their manufacturers absolutely do.

That is why it is so important to test tires in the elements. While certain products may be designed for specific terrain, all tires should withstand various conditions, temperatures, and weather patterns. Otherwise, the vehicle will not be as safe as possible.

We will discuss the importance of tire testing, the most critical tire testing data for performance and safety, the range of conditions for which you should test, the challenges of testing, and how to create the best possible protocol.

Critical Tire Testing Data: Performance and Safety

Tire tests can take multiple forms, including:

  • Static testing: Static tire testing occurs in test labs using presses. It includes measurement of the tire’s weight and balance, stiffness and footprint, and bruising and fracturing potential.
  • Dynamic testing: Vehicles, of course, do not usually just sit still. That’s where dynamic tire testing comes in, helping designers and testers visualize what happens to the tire’s surface and pressure when the vehicle is in motion.
  • Footprint analysis: Tire footprint analysis typically refers to understanding how the tire interacts with the road and how the road wears down the tire. This information is critical for creating safe, effective, and well-handling products.

The goals of each of these tests look essentially the same. You want to look better to consumers, grab more market share, maximize your safety ratings, impress investors, attract talented resources to work for your company, and see more of your cars on the road.

On the flip side, all testing types also share challenges. The most common of these are inconsistent test results, high upfront investments in new systems, specialty equipment dedicated to one test, short obsolescence times for new systems, and the need for additional expensive testing to fill the gaps in your current understanding.

In this blog post, we will discuss a solution for this. First, though, what does testing in different elements entail?

Testing in Different Elements

Not only do a vast range of temperature zones, climates, weather patterns, and terrain exist, but these can change dramatically within a short time span. Think of the Australian Outback, which can go from oven-searing heat to thundering rainfall within minutes, or the Colorado mountainsides in summer, which start below freezing in the morning and require tank tops by afternoon.

Tires, like people and cars, must be able to withstand both dramatic climates and dramatic shifts within them. And that, in turn, means you must be able to evaluate them in a vast range of conditions, mainly heat, rain, snow, and ice. Let us take a quick look at each.

Heat

Elevated temperatures are a normal occurrence in much of the world, especially around the equatorial belt and in temperature summertime locales. Depending on the time of year, even sub-polar regions can get quite hot. While normal, though, elevated temperatures can create significant changes in how tires behave.

For one, heat impacts tire pressure. When air heats up, it expands. The air molecules move more quickly, increasing pressure along with temperature. The exact amount of air in the same tire can exert more force on a tire from the inside when it is hot versus cold. Even differences such as being in a garage or in the shade versus being on the road can change a tire’s reality, and tire manufacturers need to be prepared for this with testing.

Then there’s wear and tear. While higher temperatures alone do not necessarily decrease the shelf life of a tire (though they may, depending on other factors), heating and cooling cycles can diminish lifespan. Tests should also account for this.

Rain

Gripping wet surfaces is different from stocking to dry ones. Therefore, a comprehensive evaluation of tire performances in rainy conditions is critical.

Rain can make the road slicker, causing tires to drift. Puddles build up during downpours and even drizzles, causing dangerous hydroplaning, where the car has reduced (or, in some cases, zero) friction, helping it adhere to the road. In this case, drivers may lose control completely.

Designing safe tires for damp conditions requires specialty testing procedures that mimic rainy days.

Snow and Ice

While not necessarily more dangerous than rain, snow presents its own set of challenges. Snow can significantly limit traction, reducing the driver’s control over road placement, acceleration, and braking. This can be dangerous in a wide variety of situations, from exposed shoulders to merging and beyond.

Icy situations are even more dangerous. The polished nature of icy roads can create a nearly frictionless environment in which the driver has no control whatsoever, equivalent to hydroplaning, but typically for much longer stretches. Black ice is invisible, increasing the risks to drivers and passengers further.

Luckily, some tests can mimic such conditions. You can artificially ice tracks, place snow, or bring vehicles to areas with such conditions. With the use of sensors, you can gather data on how such conditions affect tire traction and their role in accelerating and decelerating.

Choosing suitable sensors is important, though. While there is a lot of great equipment on the market today, it often does not offer enough coverage of what is happening. That is where XSENSOR comes in.

How XSENSOR Can Help

If you want the highest level of data from your tire design and performance testing, it’s time to work with XSENSOR. Our industry-renowned systems provide higher frame rates, greater sensor resolution and coverage, and better data analysis than you have likely ever seen, all in one place.

Our hardware-software package comes ready to use, with little setup and no calibration required. Et voilà: you can work with optimized testing performance and AI-powered analysis to reveal hidden data. If you are ready to get started, get in touch today.