From Cats’ Paws to Elephant Legs

Continental reports that it is constantly seeking to improve tread pattern design on both passenger tyres and truck tyre products. What you may not know is that many of their new developments are based on a bionic approach. Don’t worry this doesn’t have anything to do with the $6 million dollar man – instead it is all about applying the “perfect methods and systems found in nature…to modern technology.” The design of the ContiPremiumContact, for example, is based on the principle of the cat’s paw. It has a narrow contour when rolling, and a wider contour when braking which is said to give it better grip on the road.

“You have to head down new paths in the tyre industry in order to stand out from the competition”, says Manfred Wennemer, chairman of Conti’s Executive Board and responsible for the Passenger and Light Truck Tires division (PLT). “And yet technology must not become an end in itself. Technology is right when there are concrete requirements for it on the market, now or in the future.”

This is why the PLT and Commercial Vehicle Tires divisions have launched an innovation management system geared to actively seeking new business fields and motivating staff to incorporate their new ideas. Two successful “Innovation Days” with workshops and forums have already helped to generate more than 100 ideas which are now being pursued in the respective development departments. Products created in the Commercial Vehicle Tires division included a long distance tyre that incorporates elements with low damping and high stiffness properties. This led to a reduction of the rolling resistance, energy savings, and a longer tyre life. Compared to conventional regional traffic tyres, the savings potential for a 40-ton truck amounts to 4.4 per cent. “The right choice of tyre can reduce the operating costs for a truck-trailer combination by up to 30 per cent”, confirms Dr. Christian Lerner, head of Commercial Tire Technology. An improvement that ultimately brings benefits to the consumer due to the reduction in overall cost.

An elephant can weigh up to five tons, and yet it carries its great weight effortlessly along on cushioned feet. The surface pressure of its feet is much lower than the inside pressure of a car tyre. Bionics experts at Continental are drawing their conclusions and may be able to channel their findings into tyre engineering so as to improve tyre performance.