Non-pneumatic tyre technology seems to be on a bit of a roll (ahem) at the moment, but while. Bridgestone recently demonstrated its sophisticated solution at the Tokyo Motor Show, other companies have been working on similar car wheels for some time.
The US Army is currently evaluating a non-pneumatic wheel from US company Resilient Technologies for use on the Humvee — the appeal obviously being that it cannot be punctured by gunfire or shrapnel.
There’s scant information available at the moment, but Resilient Technologies has published a couple of short video clips that show its wheel in use on a Humvee and ordinary pickup truck.
The Britek Energy Return Wheel is another non-pneumatic wheel with a somewhat different design, but for good reason.
In addition to offering complete puncture resistance, this wheel returns energy absorbed from the road surface back to the wheel itself, improving fuel efficiency in the process — or so Britek claims.
The Energy Return Wheel is designed to be fitted to vehicles of any age, but despite Britek first demonstrating its patented technology in 2008, it still appears to be looking for a manufacturer to licence it for production.
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[via Core77]