Pirelli's 5G tire warns other vehicles about dangerous road conditions

The future of cars is connectivity, with vehicles able to communicate with infrastructure like traffic lights and to share information about traffic conditions with other drivers and local authorities. Tire manufacturer Pirelli is bringing its own approach to connected car technology, debuting what it's describing as the worlds first intelligent tires that transmit data via 5G.

The Cyber Tire system works by collecting data from a vehicle as it drives, such as whether there is water on the road that could cause aquaplaning. This data is sent from the vehicle to a central hub via 5G, which enables low latency transmission. Then, data on current road conditions and aquaplanning risks can be sent to other cars in the nearby area, also via 5G.

The Pirelli tires come in to play as they are the only part of the car which is in direct contact with the road. That means the sensors in the Cyber Tire can collect information about road surfaces, and in the future they'll also be able to detect factors like the distance traveled on the tires and the dynamic load.

Pirelli debuted the connected tire at the "5G Path of Vehicle-to-Everything Communication" event in Turin, Italy this week, along with partner manufacturers Ericsson, Audi, Tim, Italdesign and KTH. The company has not yet announced when the tires will be generally available, but it has said that the new technology should improve both road safety and car performance.