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Smart Tires Tell You When They're About to Blow

by Will Safer on December 20, 2007 at 08:53 AM

New tire warns of impending blowout.


What if your car's tires could do more than hug those turns, but also tell you when they might be about to blow? Researchers at Purdue University have created just such a round tube, full of sensors and a chip that they claim will warn drivers ahead of time if the rubber starts to shred. Hey, even a few seconds advance warning could save a big blowout from being a big car wreck, right?

Though they still haven't secured a patent on the new technology, researchers say race cars will be the first to use it. Of course, that would put an end to exciting videos like this.

In the meantime, drive safely.

(In the photo above are Gary Krutz, director of Purdue's Electrohydraulic Center, and graduate research assistants Timu Gallien and Alyssa Brune, with one of the experimental tires. Photo courtesy of Purdue News Service.)

From Reuters.


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Tags: car safety auto Purdue research drive blowout, CarSafetyAutoPurdueResearchDriveBlowout, Smart Tires, SmartTires

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