Tyrata, tire sensor and data management company, introduced its Tyrata.io system in 2021. It is a comprehensive data portal for its IntelliTread tire tread monitoring products.

Now it has introduced a new feature to its IntelliTread Drive-Over System (DOS) and Tyrata.io platform — uneven tread wear detection and tire mismatch capability.

This significant, new feature creates digital tire profiles of every tire in the fleet and automatically alerts fleet managers when tires wear unevenly — which is a sign of misalignment or other mechanical problems.

The system can also alert users when tires within a dual or axle pair begin wearing at different rates, which is known as a mismatch. With the addition of uneven wear and mismatch information, fleets can make informed tire rotation decisions to extend the life of their tires and preserve tire casings for retreading.

Detect Uneven Tread Wear with IntelliTread DOS

Uneven wear is one of the most important indicators of emerging mechanical and safety problems in a vehicle. Unfortunately, with manual inspection, uneven wear on tires is often noticed much too late leading to increased tire costs, significant repair costs and serious safety violations that can lead to accidents.

Consequently, early identification of uneven or mismatched wear in tires is perhaps one of the best and cheapest techniques for a fleet to manage cost, reduce down-time and avoid CSA (compliance, safety, accountability) violations. 

Historically, detecting uneven tread wear and identifying problem tires requires a time-consuming manual inspection of every tire on the vehicle. In addition, the tread profile of inner tires on tandem axles are particularly difficult to measure due to their location, so irregular tread wear patterns of these tires are oftentimes missed in time for corrective action.

The Tyrata IntelliTread Drive-Over System is a tire tread monitoring system that automatically measures tire tread depth and tire wear patterns every time a vehicle passes through a service lane or fleet depot.

When a vehicle drives over the speed bump-like device, the DOS system takes tread depth measurements across the entire width of the tire. The system then uploads the data to the Tyrata.io cloud-based portal in real time where it creates a digital profile of every tire on the vehicle for analysis and viewing using a mobile device or computer monitor.

Automatically Monitor Tires with Tyrata.io

Over the life of each tire, Tyrata compiles hundreds of profile measurements and automatically monitors changes in the tire profiles. Tyrata.io will proactively alert users when tires are wearing unevenly and provides actionable insights to help the operator resolve the issues.

“Early detection of uneven wear in a tire is a game changer in fleet tire management,” said Tyrata VP of Engineering Dave Koester. “In our pilot trials with this new feature, we have demonstrated the ability to save tires and their casings, identify wheels that need alignment and even pinpoint serious mechanical compliance concerns. This has very significant implications on both cost and safety for the fleet.”

Beginning in October 2022, customers of the Drive-Over System will see the uneven wear detection feature in their Tyrata.io portal interface. Users can set thresholds for what they consider to be uneven wear in a tire, in a dual set, and across an axle. No additional setup is required.