Aperia Technologies announced a new tread diagnostics system for fleets using its new Halo Connect i3 tire management and inflation system that it introduced earlier this year.

Halo Connect i3 now includes a tire tread diagnostics suite that not only helps fleets diagnose treadwear issues such as underinflation, overinflation, mismatched duals or alignment problems – it also allows them to change inflation setpoints remotely to help address some of those problems.

“Everyone knows how valuable tread is,” said Ralph Dimenna, CCO at Aperia Technologies, in a news briefing at the American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition in Nashville. 

Aperia has been telling customers that the Halo system can offer a 15 to 20 percent improvement in tread life, he said, and now fleets’ own data can confirm it.

How Aperia’s New Tread Diagnostics Works

The system accepts multiple sources of tread depth data inputs. It can use data from drive-over readers, even digitizing scans of manual tread depth measurements taken by technicians.

Using this data, the tread diagnostics program can forecast tire wear and recommend service when approaching specified pull points.

Aperia also offers a premium option via a laser-based handheld 3D tread scanner that enables advanced tire service recommendations and maintenance insights. With the 3D scanner, the system can detect irregular and excessive tire wear, mismatched tires, and alignment issues to help fleets optimize their maintenance programs and maximize miles per 32nd.

With the new digital scanner, the system can capture actual tread depth for the different grooves in the tire.

“Even if you’re running a really good tire program, manually measuring you’re still probably running 10 percent underinflated,” Dimenna said. “We’ve verified that with a number of large fleets.”

Tools At Technicians’ Fingertips

Dimenna said the new system can save time and reduce frustration for technicians. 

“We tell techs which tire needs to be touched and when, in real time," he said.

“We’ve redesigned our halo tech app for the technicians so when they walk into the yard they know which truck needs to be fixed and what’s wrong. We worked with technicians to redesign the app to understand their pain points, and one of the biggest one is getting a list of trucks to check and walking out in the yard and just trying to find the right truck.”

Not One Size Fits All

Advanced analytics detect issues and recommend actions.

“Maybe you had a roadside event and someone put a different brand of tire on the truck, and now you have mismatched duals,” Dimenna said. The system can identify that based on what the tread wear is saying. It can tell whether there’s a wheel alignment issue, or over- or under-inflation. 

“We’re starting to be able to predict the tire replacement date,” Dimenna said. “We know how much these tires are wearing over 10,000 miles and can tell you, this tire’s probably going to wear out in December. 

"This gives the fleet the option of budgeting intelligently, talking the information to their tire provider, giving them much more actionable information.”

Fleets may discover that different lanes, for instance, need different tires or different inflation levels for optimum treadwear.In one lane you may have light loads and should be running 95 psi instead of the typical 100 psi to get much more even wear. 

The new treadwear diagnostics system can make truck by truck, lane by lane, or depot by depot recommendations.

“It’s not one size fits all," Dimenna says. "This becomes much more precise.”

Adjusting Tire Pressure Set Points On the Fly

Aperia’s tread diagnostics suite is even more powerful with the new Halo Connect i3 capability for fleet managers to remotely adjust tire pressure set points over the air for equipped vehicles. 

“We’ve brought the first close the loop system together here,” Dimenna said. “We can do the diagnostics, tell you what’s wrong, how to fix it, and change the settings on the device at that exact time, making remote set point adjustments.

“Because we can change the set point over the air, we can tell you, ‘You have an under inflation issue, why don’t you pump up the psi for this lane,” Dimenna said.

Fleets can set optimum settings for each lane they’re running. “And if that truck moves from one lane to another you can change that pressure over the air remotely. Within 3 or 4 days it will be exactly where you want it to be.

This capability allows tire owners to remotely optimize tire performance in a variety of conditions, such as:

● Adapting to Seasonal Temperature Fluctuations: Ambient temperature variations can significantly impact tire pressure. With over-the-air adjustability, fleet managers can proactively modify set points to compensate for seasonal or regional temperature changes. 

● Tailoring Setpoint Selections by Truck Application: The weight a truck carries is a significant factor in choosing an ideal target tire pressure, yet most fleets run the same pressure across all trucks/applications. Halo Connect i3 allows fleet managers to select and tune target set points across the fleet based on varying load weights in different regions or applications.

● Simplifying After-Tire-Change Adjustments: Set point adjustability within Halo Connect i3 empowers fleet managers to also remotely certify and tune the inflation pressures for newly installed tires, ensuring post-maintenance performance.

More About the New Halo i3 Tire Monitoring and Inflation Hardware

The Halo i3 introduced in March is smaller and simpler to install than its predecessor, Dimenna said. 

You don’t have to remove it when doing tire or wheel maintenance. It now fits on all fleet applications, both medium and heavy duty as well as trailers.

All the sensors are housed inside the device, Dimenna said. “No more external sensors where things can fall off.”

When Will Aperia’s New Tread Analysis Be Available?

The tread diagnostic suite is available now for select pilot customers. It will be available to all Halo Connect customers in December via the Halo Tech App on Google Play and the Apple App Store. 

The Halo Tech app design streamlines the technician experience, allowing them to easily analyze up-to-date tire health data, including pressure and temperature readings, directly on their mobile devices or remotely through a web browser.