Vehicles with worn-out tires are three times more likely to be involved in a crash than vehicles equipped with tires that have sufficient tread depth, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). 

Tire maintenance is crucial to improving road safety and spreading awareness is what National Tire Safety Week, which kicked off on June 26th and runs through July 3rd is all about. To that end, Anyline, a mobile data capture and data insights solution provider, has partnered with the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) to get the message out.

The initiative focuses on all aspects of tire safety. For example, the USTMA encourages drivers to play their “P.A.R.T.” in good tire health by maintaining the proper “pressure, alignment, rotation, and tread.” Meanwhile, Anyline is taking steps to remind drivers to stay current with tire recalls. 

“Each year during National Tire Safety Week, we remind drivers and fleet operators to check their tires and perform simple but important maintenance practices to protect themselves and the integrity of their tires,” said Anne Forristall Luke, president and CEO of USTMA. 

In the U.S., some 11,000 crashes and over 600 fatalities a year are linked to poor tires, according to NHTSA. Fleet operators need to be vigilant about tire safety — all year round — and technology can help. 

Holistic Digital View of Tire Health

In May, Anyline launched a Commercial Tire Tread Scanner that can be used on any camera-enabled smartphone or mobile device. The scanning solution allows fleet operators to improve tire performance and longevity, ensure driver safety, and reduce vehicle inspection time.

"Commercial and professional drivers are the backbone of the U.S. and global economy. Millions of goods are delivered every day by van and truck drivers, Amazon, UPS, FedEx, and others,” said Lukas Kinigadner, CEO and founder of Anyline. “Fleet operators have to be even more diligent in vehicle and tire health monitoring than average drivers because of the hours and miles that each vehicle logs.”  

Using state-of-the-art computer vision and AI, Anyline’s Commercial Tire Tread Scanner works by pointing the camera of any mobile device at the tire tread to be measured and creating a digital model of the tire. Essentially, it completes a holistic digital view of tire health for cars, trucks, and virtually any commercial vehicle. 

Typically, fleet operators use the solution for multiple data collection options like VIN and sidewall to ensure the right tire is still on the right vehicle or trailer. It can also be used as part of a driver safety checklist to document tire health and what driver is driving what vehicle by recording license plates. 

Scanning tire tread periodically lets fleet operators know the optimal pull time for a tire or a retread — minimizing overall tire costs, but it also captures a digital record for compliance.

“A bad tire can derail a road trip for a family, but it means lost revenue and reputational damage for a company, or worse, liability when avoidable accidents happen," said Kinigadner.