Toss the penny: Tread-scanning tech floods market

AKRON — Is the "penny check" about to go the way of the buggy whip?

Based on a bevy of automated and digital tread-depth measuring devices and technologies launched recently that might be more than a hypothetical question.

In the past few weeks, Tire Business has monitored at least seven product launches in this field, both from tire companies and third-party tech companies servicing the aftermarket.

Two of the innovations — from Sumitomo Rubber Industries and Israeli tech firm Tactile Mobility Ltd. — are software developments that use a vehicle's existing array of dynamic sensors to calculate the tires' tread condition on a real-time basis.

Others — such as those from E-Solutions Professionals Pty Ltd. (ESP), Snap-on Inc., Tire Profiles Inc. and Zebra Technologies — employ the imaging capabilities of hand-held devices and smartphones to read a tire's tread and determine "tire health."

Most recently, Group Michelin disclosed it has adapted its QuickScan roll-over tread-measuring system — developed originally for the commercial sector — to the consumer area in partnership with a French vehicle inspection systems developer.

Regardless of which process takes hold, the days of sticking a penny into the tread to determine depth appear to be waning.

Here's a look at some of new technologies:

Snap-on: TreadReader

Snap-on Inc. has begun marketing a handheld mobile tread scanner, the Total Shop Solutions (TSS) TreadReader, that the company says does not require an internet connection to perform a complete tire scan.

The TreadReader measures a tire's surface and generates a 3D image of the tread showing details such as tread depth and information about the tire's condition, according to Conway, Ark.-based Snap-on.

The device is designed to read tires even when they are dirty and to ignore anomalies — such as wear bars or stones that could lead to false readings. It can be used in workshops, service centers, inspection lanes, vehicle depots, mobile tire fitters and roadside inspections, both in open areas and confined workshops, Snap-on said.

The TreadReader can read tires on passenger vehicles, light-duty trucks and utility trailers and provide a scan report for readings of one to six tires, Snap-on said.

To operate the device, users enter a vehicle's license plate or VIN number, scan each tire and view the scan details. The mobile app provides instructions through the process. Once the scan is complete, a summary screen shows the 3D details of the tires.

"Our new TreadReader handheld scanner is a rugged, compact and lightweight mobile device that can help shops provide thorough tire inspection services with reliable accuracy," Leandro Camargo, product manager for Snap-on, said.

The system — developed originally by British technology company Sigmavision Ltd. — also can generate an alignment assessment based on the tire-wear measurements, Snap-on said, and alert the technician to misalignment issues it perceives.

Snap-on purchased the assets related to TreadReader from Sigmavision in January 2020. The TreadReader suite of products comprises handheld devices and drive-over ramps that read 3D images of tire treads to an accuracy level sufficient to determine the need for new tires or tire alignments (accuracy of

The cost of the TreadReader varies throughout the U.S. and Canada. Interested parties are asked to contact a Snap-on representative for more information.

Readings are saved to the TreadManager cloud software and are available to view when an internet connection is made. Multiple results can be stored until there is a connection.

E-Solution Professionals: Monocular Tread Depth Reader

Australian web development software company E-Solution Professionals Pty Ltd. (ESP) developed technology it claims will allow consumers to calculate tire tread depth by using the camera on their smartphones.

ESP said its Monocular Tread Depth Reader uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to allow the phone's computer to perceive and record depth accurately and easily.

The tool is expected to become available for use commercially for wholesalers and retailers in May.

According to the company, the tool was developed with help from Precision Automotive Equipment Australia and Hunter Engineering Co.'s Quick Tread Edge drive-over scanner with an integrated license-plate recognition camera.

ESP said the technology has been "extensively tested" at a Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia workshop.

Kevin Marley, managing director of E-Solution Professionals in Dubuque, Iowa, said the company researched how vehicle owners determined whether their tires needed to be replaced.

"At best, people would say that they would look at the tires and hazard a guess and they would take the vehicle to a tire shop if they were concerned," he said.

"We also found people had a high resistance to calling into a tire store in person. They much preferred to go to the store's online website. If the store did not have an online website, they would typically look for one that did," Mr. Marley said.

Mr. Marley said eventually the technology will be refined to detect tire defects and low tread depth, and potentially, flat tires and bad alignment.

ESP's flagship product is Tireweb, a B2B e-commerce application that transacts more than $2 billion in sales for customers of the tire industry.

Tire Profiles: Traxtion

Tire Profiles L.L.C. (TPI) brings a laser focus to what the company does. In more ways than one.

The Irving, Texas-based firm provides a suite of three products to measure tire tread depth and wear patterns for both service shops and automotive dealerships.

With an ever-growing field in electronic tread measurement, TPI has developed a keen eye for providing a service not only to assess tires but also to help show customers the need to replace tires, CEO David Boyle said.

TPI's initial product was stationary drive-over measuring equipment marketed under the TreadSpec name. The company then followed with creation of a Groove Glove hand-held portable unit for smaller shops with more limited space. Both rely on lasers to read a tire's tread depth and condition.

Even with the success of developing both approaches, Mr. Boyle ultimately realized his company had to evolve from an equipment seller to a service provider.

So now TPI focuses on selling subscription software called Traxtion that allows for a whole host of measurements and analysis of tires. Using the software with both the stationary and portable units, TPI looks to make money through the monthly subscription fees instead of equipment sales.

It's a change in direction TPI took last January, just before COVID-19 took hold. "We could not have timed that more poorly," Mr. Boyle said .

"We don't believe it's a piece of equipment. We believe it's a technology," he said. "We don't believe that they are stand-alone equipment. … The intention is never to get pigeonholed as an equipment maker."

Traxtion software not only provides information to service technicians but also to consumers and allows for more informed decision making, Mr. Boyle said.

Sharing this more-detailed information, through an interactive report sent directly to a consumer's cell phone, aims to arm the buyer with specifics about their tires' condition and the potential need for an alignment.

The electronic report includes clickable options that allow consumers to drill down to learn more about their tires. Videos embedded in each report explain specifics to help educate customers, Mr. Boyle said.

TPI, Mr. Boyle explained, has mimicked the Amazon.com buying experience — one where consumers do not physically touch a product before a purchase but are still armed with details as well as interactive videos.

Measuring tires is only half of the solution, Mr. Boyle said. Helping sell more tires to their customers is the end game. "It really is a different approach," Mr. Boyle said.

With only three products in the company's portfolio, TPI must have a laser focus on making sure the offerings are as best as they can be.

"This is all we do. I tell people all the time I don't have a catalog of 10,000 part numbers. I have three. This makes us very, very good at what we do," Mr. Boyle said.

Zebra: Mobile reader

Technicians at Discount Tire/America's Tire stores throughout the U.S. have begun using a mobile tread-depth reading system developed by Zebra Technologies Corp. that Zebra claims will help increase the techs' productivity and improve the quality of information gathered.

The Zebra system uses an Android-based TC75x mobile computer, a laser-based tire tread-depth reader accessory and DOT-code scanning software from Anyline Inc., a Boston-based tech company focused on mobile data capture.

"We pride ourselves on delivering customers the highest quality tire service and products to help keep them safe on the road," Tom Williams, chief experience officer, Discount Tire, said.

"Our new tire inspection solution is a game-changer for our people and will help further our assurance to our customers that we are taking care of their safety by providing the best possible service and most accurate tire readings."

Prior to this, Zebra Technologies said, technicians manually measured as many as 12 different spots for tread depth and used a pen and paper to record each DOT code. With the mobile handheld solution, Discount Tire technicians can complete an assessment typically in under five seconds per tire.

Technicians swipe each tire to check for tread depth and scan the DOT code with the tool's camera in real-time, enabling them to assist more customers, reduce wait times and provide a more positive customer experience, Zebra Technologies said.

Using the TC75x's large display, Discount Tire technicians can show customers their tires' tread depth. A color-coded chart indicates the safety levels of the tread depth to indicate when new tires are needed.

The mobile solution also integrates with Discount Tire's store technology system to help eliminate other paper-based processes, such as automating the creation of customer profiles, Zebra Technologies said.

"Discount Tire is raising the bar with its commitment to customer safety through the use of innovative mobile computing solutions," Joe White, senior vice president and general manager of Enterprise Mobile Computing at Zebra Technologies, said.

"By using this new solution, Discount Tire is providing a performance edge to its technicians, enabling them to deliver better, faster service with visibility and actionable insights to their customers to help provide the safest driving experience."

Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Discount Tire has "limited exclusivity" to this technology, Zebra Technologies said, but "both companies are open to discussions and testing with other customers where it can make an impact."

Discount Tire also is exploring options to leverage Anyline's software to read other aspects of a vehicle, such as vehicle identification number (VIN), license plate and other tire-related information.

"Starting today, the most powerful tool in a Discount Tire technician's toolbox is this smart device," Anyline CEO and Co-Founder Lukas Kinigadner said.

"With this industry-first solution, Discount Tire is setting a new gold-standard for tire inspections, empowering their workforce to make smarter, data-driven decisions that ensure the highest level of driver safety, and an unrivaled customer experience."

From a technical standpoint, the wear data captured by the device could be leveraged to assess alignment, Zebra said, but Discount Tire is not availing itself of that option. Discount Tire does not offer alignments.

Discount Tire operates more than 1,070 retail tire stores in 36 states under the Discount Tire and America's Tire names.

Sumitomo Rubber: Sensing Core

Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. (SRI) has added treadwear detection to the range of tire performance parameters its "Sensing Core" technology can monitor.

SRI disclosed the development of Sensing Core in 2017, claiming the technology — which uses existing vehicle dynamics sensors — could detect road conditions, tire load and other information by analyzing wheel-speed signals generated by the rotation of the tires.

Sensing Core builds on another SRI proprietary technology, DWS (deflation warning system), which analyzes wheel-speed signals from the rotation of tires to detect and notify the driver of changes in tire air pressure.

Sensing Core detects tire wear by calculating tread rigidity based on wheel-speed signals, engine data and other vehicle information, Kobe, Japan-based SRI said, meaning it requires no additional sensor installation and thus is considered maintenance-free.

Sensing Core technology is based on SRI's "extensive" know-how related to the dynamic behavior of tires on vehicles and specialized digital-filtering technology that can analyze and interpret wheel-speed signals that are transmitted as tires rotate.

SRI said Sensing Core technology is part of its overall smart tire concept, the aim of which is to accelerate the development of tires and peripheral services to address the vehicle industry's focus on Connectivity, Autonomous, Sharing/Subscription and Electrification (CASE) and Mobility as a Service (MaaS).