Goodyear, Gatik Integrate Tire Intelligence into Autonomous Vehicles

Goodyear and Gatik said they have integrated intelligent-tire technology into Gatik's autonomous driving system. Gatik is an autonomous middle-mile B2B logistics company.

Through extensive on-road testing in a wide variety of what Goodyear called challenging real-world driving scenarios, tire intelligence data regarding road conditions and tire health gave Gatik insights into accurate cornering and braking stiffness, rolling resistance, and tire load.

This data is communicated between Goodyear's SightLine technology and Gatik's autonomous driving system through a real-time feedback loop. That enabled Gatik to enhance performance, including the ability to adapt quickly to a variety of road conditions, even when the mass of the truck varies by delivery.

The technology was tested at Goodyear's San Angelo, Texas, Proving Grounds. That way Gatik could ensure its autonomous vehicles were tested in a safe, closed course environment for both common and unusual road scenarios, including traffic lights, road signs, evasive maneuvers, tight turns, collision avoidance, precise lane keeping, and minimum risk stopping distances.

Gatik Fleet

Gatik's autonomous fleet, consisting of Class 3–7 box trucks, has made significant strides in enhancing the safety, accuracy, and overall performance of autonomous vehicles, according to Goodyear, which invested in Gatik in 2021.

"Being the vehicle's only contact point to the road, the tire can play a pivotal role in enabling the vehicle to react like a driver would," said Chris Helsel, senior vice president, global operations and chief technology officer, Goodyear. "By providing real-time insights through intelligent tire data, we can support Gatik's autonomous driving system to become even more safe, reliable, and efficient."

Gatic equipped its fleet with Goodyear Endurance RSA tires with Goodyear SightLine technology. It plans to implement the intelligent tires into a significant portion of its autonomous fleet across the U.S. and Canada.

"The real-time data derived from intelligent tire technology not only enhances the safety and predictability of our autonomous vehicles, but also enables us to maintain high levels of efficiency, reliability, and delivery uptime throughout our operations," said Gautam Narang, Gatik CEO and co-founder.