AS vehicle diagnostics and real-time safety advisories get smarter, there’s not much your car can’t tell you about what’s going on under the hood. Until now, however, there has been one element of vehicle maintenance that’s flown under the digital radar: tire damage. While there are systems in place to monitor tire pressure — and regular servicing can guard against wear and fatigue — tire damage can’t usually be detected without close, manual inspection. Now Microsoft and tire-manufacturer Bridgestone have come up with a solution.

The partnership’s tire damage monitoring system (TDMS) links to Microsoft’s Connected Vehicle Platform (MCVP) to identify tire damage in real time, and uses algorithms to detect events that affect the tire’s surface. The system uses MCVP’s cloud framework and sensor data from existing hardware that’s already installed, so it’ll work without any extra kit or necessary retrofitting.

As well as detecting damage as it happens, the system also identifies where the damage has happened, which gives road authorities the heads up on potholes and other hazards. And in the future, it could be a useful addition to autonomous vehicle technology, allowing vehicles to share information about nearby road hazards. (SD-Agencies)