A recent Consumer Advisory from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on the dangers of aged tires is being applauded by executives at Advanced ID Corp., which focuses on using supply chain radio frequency identification (RFID) technology for tire management systems. On June 2, NHTSA kicked off the summer driving season with a warning to motorists to check their tires – including the spare – for signs of wear, under-inflation and age. The season’s heat, especially in hot climates, can take its toll on worn, old or improperly inflated tires leading to tread separations, crashes and rollovers, the advisory said. “We believe that NHTSA’s consumer advisory on tire safety is going to have a significant effect on the rubber manufacturers – this is the first time the U.S. government has taken a public position on the issue,” says Dan Finch, Advanced ID’s president and CEO. “We have been actively supporting tire safety by consulting with and encouraging the tire industry to adopt the RFID as a solution to identifying, tracking and measuring tires from manufacture to scrap,” he adds. “Our global partners around the world are poised to begin implementation of tire tags for its many benefits, including the means to identify tires in case of failure,” Finch notes. “All the tire tag tests being conducted in numerous markets around the world – from Asia to Europe to Latin America – have been concluded or are near conclusion and, hopefully, the U.S. will follow suit quickly before failures result in loss of life,” he says. NHTSA’s advisory on the effect of age on tires – even if they have never been used – follows warnings by automakers and some tire manufacturers against using older tires. Tires age through oxidation – air passing through the tire, breaking down the bonds between the rubber and steel components and rendering the rubber more brittle and prone to cracks. While the consumer advisory did not define any tire age limit, research shows that tires six years or older have a much higher likelihood of failure. As the aged tires message takes hold, tire retailers, service providers and manufacturers will have to raise their standards and pursue solutions to track and record tire age, condition, performance and manufacturer recalls, according to Finch. A recent investigation into the dangers of aged tires by the ABC News magazine program 20/20 showed how easy it was to buy “new” tires at major retailers that had actually been constructed a decade ago. The report also underscored the inefficiencies and difficulties in managing the nation’s tire inventory without RFID technology, Finch observes. A previous Tire Topics story on the aged tire issue is available here. RFID is an automated technology that uses radio-frequency waves to transfer data between an electronic reader and a movable item such as a tire. Currently, RFID tags are used to identify, categorize and track inventory as it moves along the supply chain. RFID tags, either active or passive, use high-frequency radio waves that are read by a hand-held reader. Embedded in a tire or affixed to the sidewall, an RFID tag is a powerful tire tracking tool, already used by the commercial trucking industry and NASCAR. The tire tag solution from Finch’s firm is based on proprietary RFID tag readers developed by the company and RFID tag technology obtained through a third party license for a 915 MHz tire tag for the transportation industry. Advanced ID provides both the tire tag that is embedded in the tire during the curing (manufacturing) process and also the tire patch, which is cold-vulcanized on the tire after manufacture or for replacement tires already in the field. Both applications provide a life-of-tire, unique ID for the tire which can be used for inventory purposes, tire maintenance with the company’s Pneu-Logic tire inspection tools division, theft prevention, and as a resource in tire recall situations, Finch explains. For more information, visit www.advancedidcorp.com, www.safecar.gov or www.nhtsa.dot.gov. | 
