Method for monitoring the condition of a tyre.

• US 20120010776A1
• Filed: 03/18/2010
• Published: 01/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Compagnie générale des établissements Michelin
• Original Assignee: Michelin Recherche et Technique SA (Compagnie Generale DES Etablissements Michelin SCA), Societe De Technologie Michelin (Compagnie Generale DES Etablissements Michelin SCA)
• Inventors: Paturle, Antoine
• Granted Patent: US 8,731,767 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/31.5
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/0306 Patterns comprising block rows or discontinuous ribs
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/032 Patterns comprising isolated recesses
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/04 in which the raised area of the pattern consists only of continuous circumferential ribs, e.g. zig-zag B60C11/12, B60C11/13 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/13 characterised by the groove cross-section, e.g. for buttressing or preventing stone-trapping
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/1369 Tie bars for linking block elements and bridging the groove
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/24 Wear-indicating arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/246 Tread wear monitoring systems

Abstract

The tyre includes a tyre tread configured so that, beyond a predetermined radial wear threshold, the tyre tread has a set of at least one wear indicator, including a so-called “sound” cavity arranged in a circumferential groove of the tyre tread. During the monitoring method, an acoustic signal that is able to include an acoustic footprint noise produced by the set during the running of the tyre on a ground beyond the predetermined threshold is detected by an acoustic sensor mounted on the vehicle, and information relating to the acoustic signal is emitted to a remote server not mounted on the motor vehicle.

Claims

1-19. -19. (canceled)

20. A method for monitoring at least one tyre of at least one motor vehicle comprising a tyre tread, wherein the tyre tread is configured so that, beyond a predetermined radial wear threshold, the tyre tread has a set of at least one sound wear indicator, the method comprising the following steps:

detection by an acoustic sensor mounted on the vehicle of an acoustic signal able to comprise an acoustic footprint noise produced by the set during the running of the tyre on a ground beyond the predetermined radial wear threshold,

emission, to a distant server not mounted on the motor vehicle, of information relating to the acoustic signal.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein each sound wear indicator comprises a so-called “

sound”

cavity arranged in a circumferential groove of the tyre tread, each cavity opening out radially towards the outside of the tyre and being configured so as to be sealed by the ground in a leaktight manner when it passes into the area of contact of the tyre with the ground.

22. The method according to claim 20, in which, beyond the predetermined radial wear threshold, each indicator comprises at least one pair of first and second sound cavities and a so-called “

sound”

channel linking each sound cavity of the pair to one another, each first and second sound cavity being respectively arranged in a first and second circumferential groove of the tyre tread, the channel being formed in the tyre tread, each cavity of the pair and the associated channel;

opening out radially towards the outside of the tyre,

being configured so as to be sealed by the ground in a leaktight manner when they pass into the area of contact of the tyre with the ground.

23. The method according to claim 22, in which, as each first and second groove has a predetermined depth when the tyre is new, the tyre tread has at least two ribs formed transversely at the bottom of each first and second groove, of predetermined height when the tyre is new, equal to the difference between the predetermined depth of each first and second groove and the predetermined radial wear threshold, in which the distance separating the two ribs is less than a predetermined distance so that, beyond the predetermined radial wear threshold, each cavity formed by each first and second groove and delimited by the two ribs produces sound.

24. The method according to claim 20, in which the acoustic sensor belongs to a telephone mounted in the passenger compartment of the vehicle.

25. The method according to claim 20, in which the acoustic sensor belongs to an electronic module mounted in the vehicle, for example a geolocation electronic module.

26. The method according to claim 20, also comprising a pre-processing of the acoustic signal intended to extract therefrom the acoustic footprint noise.

27. The method according to claim 26, in which the pre-processing is implemented by a system mounted on the motor vehicle, before the emission step.

28. The method according to claim 26, in which the pre-processing is implemented by the remote server after the emission step.

29. The method according to claim 26, the acoustic footprint noise comprising several individual acoustic footprint frequency components and the acoustic signal comprising several individual frequency components, in which method, during the pre-processing:

several series of individual frequency components are enumerated, each enumerated series being able to form at least one part of the individual acoustic footprint frequency components;

a series, called acoustic footprint series, is selected from the enumerated series;

a so-called local reliability index is determined from the acoustic footprint series.

30. The method according to claim 26, also comprising a post-processing during which the remote server establishes a diagnosis of the condition of the tyre and its past trend over time according to the result of the pre-processing.

31. The method according to claim 30, in which:

several acoustic signals that are successive in time and able to comprise the acoustic footprint noise are required, each acoustic signal comprising several individual frequency components,

for each acoustic signal, an acoustic footprint series is selected and a local reliability index is determined for the selected acoustic footprint series, and

during the post-processing;

a so-called global reliability index is determined on the basis of the local reliability indices of the acoustic footprint series,

if the global reliability index is, as an absolute value, greater than or less than a predetermined threshold associated with this global reliability index, an alert concerning the wear of the tyre is emitted.

32. The method according to claim 30, in which:

several acoustic signals that are successive in time and able to comprise the acoustic footprint noise are acquired, each acoustic signal comprising several individual frequency components,

for each acoustic signal, an acoustic footprint series is selected, and

during the post-processing;

a so-called global reliability index is determined from a continuity in time between the individual frequency components of each selected acoustic footprint series,

if the global reliability index is, as an absolute value, greater than or less than a predetermined threshold associated with this global reliability index, an alert concerning the wear of the tyre is emitted.

33. The method according to claim 30, for the monitoring of the tyres of a plurality of motor vehicles, in which a diagnosis is established for all the tyres of the plurality of vehicles.

34. The method according to claim 30, in which the remote server, according to the diagnosis, transmits to a user a tyre usage recommendation.

35. The method according to claim 34, in which the recommendation is transmitted by SMS or electronic message to the user.

36. A computer program product embodying computer code that, when executed by a computer, implements a method for monitoring at least one tyre of at least one motor vehicle comprising a tyre tread, wherein the tyre tread is configured so that, beyond a predetermined radial wear threshold, the tyre tread has a set of at least one sound wear indicator, the method comprising:

detecting, by an acoustic sensor mounted on the vehicle, an acoustic signal able to include an acoustic footprint noise produced by the set during the running of the tyre on a ground beyond the predetermined radial wear threshold,

emitting, to a distant server not mounted on the motor vehicle, information relating to the acoustic signal.

37. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable code instructions that, when executed by a computer, implements a method for monitoring at least one tyre of at least one motor vehicle comprising a tyre tread, wherein the tyre tread is configured so that, beyond a predetermined radial wear threshold, the tyre tread has a set of at least one sound wear indicator, the method comprising:

detecting, by an acoustic sensor mounted on the vehicle, an acoustic signal able to include an acoustic footprint noise produced by the set during the running of the tyre on a ground beyond the predetermined radial wear threshold,

emitting, to a distant server not mounted on the motor vehicle, information relating to the acoustic signal.

38. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 37, wherein the storage medium is accessible on a telecommunication network such that the code instructions can be downloaded.