Upcoming Tire Management Technology (unfinished)

The purpose of this page is simply to provide our opinion about the tire technologies that are upcoming, where we see benefits or not.  The opinions we share are simply for informational purposes.  Please feel free to share your point of view with us.  We appreciate all comments, suggestions and constructive criticism!

Radio Chips!

I can't believe the time to write this article arrived.  I've been meaning to do this for years and finally experience has met with opportunity to dish this out to anyone whom may be interested.

"This is a beautiful dream!" my father would say.  Just put chips in all the tires and you don't have to worry about them anymore!  The expectation that has been in the air of the tire industry for almost two decades about chips in tires reminds me of an old James Bond movie.  All that technology could do wonders, if only it was only real... ...and now it is! 

I could not count how many times in the last 15 years I've visited fleets, tire companies, tire dealers, or been in a trade-show where there was a tremendous interest in the RFID solution for tires; but mostly fleets have been pushing for this.

Tire companies and technology companies have spent a tremendous amount of time and money trying to get this to work.  Of course, the potential market for an RFID chip manufacturer is tremendous, if they can put an RFID chip in every tire... ...wow, that would be a HUGE new market for radio chips, perhaps even bigger than cell phones or computers! Well, maybe not that big, but you get the picture why technology companies want this badly.

For many years, just trying to make an RFID chip stay in the tire was a huge problem.  Than making it survive the harsh environment with heat, centrifugal force, road impact, various retreading processes throughout the entire life of a tire was also a huge challenge. Initially chips were bigger and more fragile, just like any other electronic device.  The chip industry at first tried to adapt solutions from other industries in tires.  For the most part, it didn't work.  Today chips are smaller, cheaper and more robust than ever. After that it was the complex, heavy, unpractical and disconnected equipment to read the RFID that needed improvement.  Luckily RFID has already been implemented as a solution in many industries, so the reading equipment is quite advanced.  But this long road of developing a capable RFID chip has come to an end.  Nowadays there are RFID chips that can withstand the harsh environment tires are exposed to.

Now it is very important to state that it the midst of this new technology, it is easy to confuse TPMS and RFID for Tire Identifications purposes.  Although both technologies use Radio Frequency (RF) and their functions are sometimes the same, they remain two different subjects.  TPMS stands for Tire Pressure Monitoring System.  Tire ID, well, means tire identification.   The key difference is that a TPMS device is usually mounted on part of the vehicle that involves the tire, such as the rim or the valve stem, but it usually not attached to the tire itself.  Meaning, if the tire is removed from the vehicle, the device does not go with the tire, thus, it is not necessarily a unique tire identification method.  There is more about TPMS below, and how Budini views it from a tire management perspective.

So now that this beautiful dream is practically a reality, here's a reality check:

1. What is the RFID good for?  What can it do for my fleet?
2. How much does it cost?
3. How do I implement it in my fleet?
4. How much will it cost me to implement?
5. What are the benefits I'll get out of it?

These are real questions and here we hope to provide some real answers and insight.

First lets learn a little bit about the key differences in RFID chips out there:

  1. Source of Energy
  2. Frequency of Operation
  3. Method of Application
  4. Read/Write Capability
  5. Storage Capacity

1. Source of energy.  This can get pretty technical, but pretty much there are two categories: Chips that have their own power (battery) and chips that don't. Some of the issues that arise here are the cost difference, and if it has a battery the longevity of the battery, disposal method, and environmental impact.  From the ones that I have seem, manufacturers claim that the battery outlasts the life of the tire.  Budini has no real case study about this, and it is not our goal here to judge, only to inform.

2. Frequency of operation. 

From a tire management's perspective, the frequency of operation makes no difference, all we care about of course is if it works or not.  But from a technical perspective it may make a big difference.  Since we're just tire managers we are not sure what frequency is more technically inclined for tires.  For us, RF simply means Radio Frequency, and all that we know is that like your car stereo, depending on the frequency you're tuned to is the radio station you'll hear.  Bringing it to a practical level, some frequencies have longer range than others, some are less subject interference than others, some cause less interference than others and some consume more energy than others. 

There are many different RFID chips in the market, and their frequencies vary.  And because of this reason we as tire managers have more concern.  That means the equipment necessary to read/write to these chips will also vary.  So once an RFID chip frequency is choses, and the the equipment to read/write to it is purchased, that means you're probably stuck with that frequency (technology) unless you change or reconfigure all your read/write equipment again or "somehow" get equipment that can work on multiple frequencies that you're using.  There has been much talk of an open standard frequency, but it's not just the frequency that differs, it is the type of chip itself and there doesn't seem to exist a one frequency fits all for all types of chips solution, at least that we've heard of.  This problem is further amplified below.

3. Method of application. 

From a tire management's perspective, the method of application is key because it will determine how long it will take for you to implement this technology in your company, and how much this solution will really cost.  For example, if you had to dismount all tires from your vehicles because you need to put the RFID inside, how much would that cost in labor?  How long would it take you to do each vehicle?  How long would it take to do every vehicle considering the operational logistics of your fleet?

So far we have identified 6 methods of RFID application:

  • Built-in to the new tire.  This is great, no work!  And it would be simple if the chip frequencies and communication protocols were was all the same for all the tire manufacturers and available for every tire model that has proven performance in your fleet.  Even if this was a reality, it would take time to implement as you'd have a complete cycle of tire changes.  Unless you're willing to spend the money to replace all your tires you'd have to wear out all of your current tires and replace them with these new tires.
  • In a patch inside the tire.  When considering only the method application point of view, it would be easier to apply to tires in inventory than to stop all vehicles, dismount and mount all tires in the fleet.  If this is done naturally, as tire changes occur it would take a pretty long tire to implement an entire fleet, and if you were to consider stopping all vehicles in order to perform this task the cost of implementation would be quite high, not just from the labor perspective, but from the down time perspective.
  • In a patch outside the tire. This method seems like the easiest, it doesn't require you to dismount the tire.  The major difference here is that there will be no way to have an air pressure reading.  We have tested this method ourselves and the biggest hurdle is to get the patch to stick to the outside of the tire, and stay there.  For it to be properly and permanently attached to the tire It requires a careful application a curing period that may be longer than a vehicle may be able to remain parked.  Nevertheless, for RFID (Tire Identification) implementation purposes it seems to be the best alternative.
  • Inside the tire, tied by a belt around the rim.  These are often TPMS devices, but since youre able to program and ID to them it is not impossible to use these with tire identification.  But in this case, the tire ID actually belongs to the tire, and it must be programmed to the device when the tire is involved with it.  This would require very disciplined and more complex organizational procedures to be followed anytime a tire changed occurred.  The chances of failure in maintaining a proper ID here would increase if your fleet's tires are handled at many locations and/or by different service providers.
  • As the valve stem.  This is more common in cars than in trucks because for trucks the valve stems are different.  This is a very similar situation to the previous chip, around the rim.  The stem is mounted on to the rim, and the rim is not part of the tire.  Thus there are many processes involved with each tire change.
  • On the valve stem.  Again, a very similar situation to the previous two.  Although this may be easier to install, it may be easier to steal or lose as well.  In some countries it is hard enough just to keep the valve cap from being stolen.

4. Read/Write capability

There are 3 types of chips in this aspect: 
  • Read only.  These are usually chips that only have an unique internal ID.  They are only good for identifying purposes.  The read only capacity will ensure that your tire id is really permanent, and no one can eventually erase or change your tire id.

  • Read/Write.  The ability to write to a chip means that you can record whatever information you desire on it, including a tire ID.  It is great that there are chips that can store whatever you desire, but that raises another question... what information should I store there?  And, if other people need to understand and read this information, how are they going to know what it means?  And, how can I prevent anyone from erasing or changing my information?  And, if that information is changed somehow, without my authorization, how will that impact my tire management procedures?

  • Read Only + Read/Write.  These are chips that have a part of its storage capacity as read-only (usually the ID part of it) and part of it you can read/write data to.  They have the best of both worlds, because you cannot change the tire id, so its protected, and you can add any other data desired to it. 
5. Storage capacity

The level of importance here is directly linked to the type of chip and how you pretend to use the storage capacity.  For this, we can consider two categories of chips.  Chips that can sense pressure and/or temperature and chips that cant.

In chips that do not sense pressure and/or temperature, storage capacity is not that big of an issue.  Most chips have more than enough space to store anything you may consider regarding a tire.  The more important issue here, and this seems to get completely overlooked, is what to store and how to manage all aspects of the data that gets stored.

In chips that sense air pressure and temperature, storage capacity may play a bigger role, as they save information in set intervals while the tire is running.  This enables the historical data to be analyzed and identify if the tire was ever subjected to any pressure or temperature conditions that fall outside of its regular operation.  But if the data is never downloaded to an external location it will begin to overwrite itself.  Some chips will keep the exceptional data such as lowest and highest pressure and temperature readings taken and only overwrite the remaining data that may be of no importance anyway.  Depending on the technology and the chip, the time period it will take to start overwriting may depend if the chips configuration of intervals to store data and its storage capacity.is active or not (tire is rolling or not) and how long it remains active.

In terms of storage, the main difference from chips that can read pressure and temperature, which are directly attached to the tire, and the ones common in the TPMS devices is that in TPMS devices it is usually transferred immediately to an on-board device that may or may not store data.  Some on-borad devices only display the data with minimal analysis.  Others may even transfer data through telematics.  Yes technology has gone that far.  Now we're talking James Bond reality.

OK, so now lets look at the real deal.  What does all this technology really mean to you?

1. What is the RFID good for?  What can it do?

Lets first consider that there are more than just one type of RFID tags out there.  But generally speaking in not so hi-tech lingo, here are the major differences in RFIDs.


Conclusion

There is always a conclusion to every story.  Keep in mind that this is the conclusion that we have arrived with what we have learned up to now.  It is by no means written in stone, which means that tomorrow more of the James Bond imagination can become reality and change all of this.

The conclusion here is that we as an industry (tire industry) are still very far from having an infrastructure that can handle RFID.  The nature of complexity for this infrastructure to become a reality will vary from one country to another.  The main reason is the operational logistics of fleets.  In the United States and Europe fleets are very large, with vehicles based on dozens if not hundreds of different locations serviced by an incredible number of different service suppliers.  Switching to RFID would imply that an RIFD infrastructure must exist eveywhere tires go - to a vehicle, to inventory, to a service provider, etc.  It would also imply that if there are many RFID technologies out there that the infrastructure would handle them all.  Get the picture?  It is certainly possible, everything is, but how soon?

Next we can't help but to think about the practical benefits of RFID in tires.  Well... well... well... Everything I wrote so far flowed right out of my head, but for this... I think we need a brainstorming session.
1. Would be quicker to identify which tire IDs are in inventory.
2. Would be

TPMS systems have an obvious safety benefit.  If the temperature of pressure changes dramatically the driver is immediately warned.  But again, this is directly linked to the tire for identification purposes, it can be considered a very nice vehicle safety device, related to tires.

In analyzing all of this I can't help but to notice that there is a tremendous focus on the technology itself and hardly any on how to apply it and benefit the most.

I've seen many times where the selling point is a vehicle crossing a gate a quickly a computer pointing out that there is a tire missing, compared to the tires that originally left the gate.  OK, here we can arrive at some conclusions: original tire was stolen. driver changed tire on the road. tire change was not informed. and so on.

What are some alternatives to RFID chips for unique tire identification?

Tire Branding - this is by far the most common and effective method of unique tire identification.  Has its good and bad sides.  The good is that it is simple, anyone can do it, anytime, anywhere, and tools to do this are readily available and cheap.

Numeric ID Labels - this is up and coming, in a slow but constant improvement.  The main problem is sticking it to the sidewall permanently.

The point is that there is so much more that fleets could spend their effort on that would dramatically reduce costs, improve safety and benefit the environment and we're looking for a one size fits all dream solution in an RFID chip.  We're a technology company, and we'd love to see a solution to the RFID situation so we can recommend it to our customers.  But until all of these issues have been clarified its hard to make any decisions unless you're just a technology fanatic and want it on your tires, period.

TPMS