Comments on: Honeycomb tire won’t go flat

By: Ziemines padangos

Ziemines padangos — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 17:22:14 +0000

Nice post. By the way i heard that in 2010 michelin plans to make some supper tires. Which saves energy and valid longer time then nowday tires, and this tires will be perfect for electorcars.

By: holbik wolff

holbik wolff — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 15:40:24 +0000

Though it is true that the “tweel” was affected by the force of the car over time and that this could become semiperminant or perminant, it wont happen. Why? These aren’t really meant for everyday people’s cars. They are meant for professional racers / military vehicles where they are used almost constantly, and also on small vehicles like motorcycles and wheelchairs where the load is not heavy enough to cause a perminant or semiperminant dent.

By: Thruddirico

Thruddirico — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 18:22:20 +0000

With the question of the open cells causing all sorts of auditory mayhem I have a possible solution.

Instead of solid elastomer covers why not use closed cell foam inserts as plugs for the cells. The nominal pneumatic pressure should not add to much of an effect. as an added bonus, if a cell plug blows out from normal use the whole wheel would not be compromised.

The cells blowing out from interaction with an IED would be the least of your worries when dealing with the aftereffects of an IED..

The possible cool factor for civilian use would be using translucence / transparent materials for the plugs and light sources embedded into the plugs.

By: Inventor

Inventor — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 03:32:54 +0000

Surely everyone has seen the latest ‘low profile’ wheels. A 24″ rim with barely an inch of rubber looks much like the Tweel [depending on rim design].
A wall solves the problem of liquids and solids invading the tyre space, but makes a problem due to trapped air. The rims would need a filtered valve to equalize the internal pressure.
The Honeycomb Wheel does look cool tho.

By: Sargun

Sargun — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 17:30:03 +0000

You could probably cover the sides in some sort of doughnut material with a high amount of elasticity. It’d significantly increase the size of the wheel, and break the aerodynamics, but you would still get the same movement in the wheel.

By: benjaminvallen1

benjaminvallen1 — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:44:59 +0000

can’t wait to see it on our humvees

By: administrator1

administrator1 — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 06:15:22 +0000

The only question I have, other than where can I get a set, is how do these twheels adhere to the rim? Looks as if you’d have to have a two-part rim or something. With any horsepower, it looks like the seal could be broken easily and the rim would spin inside the twheel.

By: Obama

Obama — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 14:21:56 +0000

I am barack obama and I approve this article

By: LaserJesus

LaserJesus — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 22:47:48 +0000

I have a great idea for this – what if they put rubber sidewalls on it, took the structure out of it and then filled it with some sort of pressurized gas?

By: nick

nick — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:36:11 +0000

davido is right, so is insipid melon and mike. i am too a mechanical/electrical engineer and both terms and arguments are both theoretically sound. The one thing i would like to see is how well they take pot holes, speed bumps, small mammals, and other debris without damaging the honeycomb structure at low speed and high speed. A good number of pneumatic tires will blow out if you hit a good sized pot hole above 40, *happened to me*, id like to know if these bad boys could handle a decent sized pot hole at high speed without severe consequences so i could continue to drive where i want and how i want.

By: mike

mike — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:36:59 +0000

In defense of davido, I think all he was getting at, is that the term “traction” wasn’t entirely accurate.

It stands to reason that deflating tires is going to give you an advantage off road, because of the increased contact area and ability to contour, even if the total friction is unchanged.

As for tanks, I think beyond a larger contact area, a tread gives you the ability to “bridge” irregularity in rough terrain, as well as reducing overall pressure exerted by gigantic heavily armored vehicles.

By: agentxq49

agentxq49 — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 10:10:42 +0000

Well, they can just use the same material and make a weblike structure over it. Besides, even if a rock went in, it shouldnt do any damage to the twheel.

By: JRad

JRad — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 03:14:29 +0000

You could insert light foam in the gaps to prevent rocks and grit getting in, and since it’s light, it’d have no extra impact on the structure of the wheel.

You’d probably have to glue it in, and watch out for vandals

By: Insipid Melon

Insipid Melon — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:46:40 +0000

Davido, simple intuition should demonstrate to you that your model is not realistic. What is the purpose of using continuous tracks on vehicles such as tanks? Is it not precisely because of their larger contact area?

The primary problem with off-roading is that you *do not have a fixed surface.* That means that everything you learned in physics 101 about coefficients of kinetic friction, etc., goes straight out the window.

Frequently, when you apply too much lateral force and not enough normal force, you end up propelling the surface instead of the vehicle. Furthermore, because the surface is deformable, you often rely treads on digging in and creating an interlocking substrate with the surface, rather than simple friction between the surface of the ground and the surface of the tire.

Your deduction is only valid for smooth, fixed surfaces. (and even then the event of significant heat transfer during braking can obliterate the expected coefficient of friction if there is not enough contact distribution)

By: Man On Fire

Man On Fire — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 20:08:02 +0000

I heard about these a few years ago, and they were having problems with air going through the honeycomb, and resonating like a musical instrument when it got to certain speeds. made them noisy as hell, and increased vibration. I’m sure they’ve fixed the problem though.