Scientist from Kerala develops airless tyre for American army

It is an airless tyre that has a little air in it that the driver will need only when he has a flat tyre.

Does not make sense? Well, it will once you learn about what one Abraham Pannikottu has done in his lab in the US.

There is air inside the tyre. But in case of a flat tyre, the carbon-fibre rings inserted inside the tyre, hold it up and the vehicle can run for up to 100 miles more, Abraham told The Indian Express. This is for the first time that such a tyre has been developed, he said.

Abraham, who is from Kerala, has developed the tyre for the US Army and also received a Pentagon honour for his unique scientific accomplishment.

The Pentagon awarded him with the prestigious Army SBIR and STTR Quality Award, which recognises exceptional performance in bringing innovative technologies to soldiers, the Pentagon said. Abraham is a manager at the Akron Rubber Development Laboratory and been working on the US Army-funded project for the past three years.

The airless tyre would be initially used by the Army for Stryker vehicles in about a year from now. Though developed for the US Army for potential use in wars, Abraham said the technology could be used for civilian purposes also, in passenger aircraft, for instance. It could also be used in anti-terror operations by governments across the world.

As of now, the tyre’s cost could be two to three times more than a conventional one’s, he said.

Heading a team of engineers at the Akron Lab, he is working on a few other interesting projects with the US Army, he said. The Lab has a branch in Cochin, which helps Indian rubber companies export goods to the US.