Since 1967, NASA has been developing groundbreaking tire technologies for driving on the Moon, Mars, and now…
Photo credit: Superelastic tire, NASA Glenn Research Center
The SMART Tire Company is bringing NASA technology back down to Earth.
Introducing Shape Memory Alloy Radial Technology (SMART), a revolutionary new technology for the $300B tire industry. This space-age tire changes the way vehicles perform on and off road, enabling new transportation possibilities around the globe. Originally developed by NASA and now commercialized for terrestrial use by The SMART Tire Company, these superelastic tires are airless, durable and will never go flat. Made from a special advanced material, NiTinol+ (nickel titanium), a shape memory alloy (SMA) that’s elastic like rubber, yet strong like titanium.
This superelastic tire was born out of the extreme challenges NASA faces on Mars, where there are no roads, temperatures can reach -100C and tire performance is mission critical. Today, The SMART Tire Company is Reimagining the Wheel™ again, by bringing this tire technology to new applications here on Earth.
Ride into the future.
Selected as one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2023, our award-winning SMART Tire has a patented load-bearing design that takes advantage of the unique properties of shape memory alloys. These special metals can expand, contract, bend or unbend at a very rapid rate (like rubber) and with so much force that it can move heavy objects. Even with extreme deformation, the tire regains 100% of its shape through phase transitions at the molecular level.
Our first commercial product will be a new kind of airless bicycle tire, METL™, with re-treadable rubber treads (50% less rubber than standard bike tires). Soon, tires will become a permanent part of vehicles, outlasting other equipment without the need for regular maintenance. A lightweight, flexible, sustainable, space-age metal that never goes flat, but still rides smooth, will be a critical component in the future of transportation (i.e. electric & autonomous vehicles).
Our METL airless bike tire won two CES 2023 Innovation Awards as Honorees in two different categories, Vehicle Tech & Advanced Mobility and Sustainability, Eco-Design & Smart Energy. We are also nominated for the internationally prestigious GREEN AWARDS 2023 for Mobility.
The METL™ bicycle tire will be competitively priced as a premium tire and an integrated high-end wheelset. We will also offer a new kind of subscription model that will have a much lower price point. METL airless tires will be available to order Q4 2024, sign up today for our wait list.
Out-of-this-world technology.
Since the original Apollo missions, aluminum and steel tires have taken a beating from the terrain involved with space exploration. Soon, shape memory alloy tires will empower the next generation of Mars rovers, Lunar Terrain Vehicles (LTVs) and other Space Exploration Vehicles, to carry heavier loads and humans over longer distances.
The SMART Tire Company is further developing this space-age, tire technology and will be making it available to the world. With a tire that is comparable to the average pneumatic tire (common, air-filled tire), we plan to revolutionize the global tire industry with a new way of thinking for all vehicles, from bicycles and electric scooters, to automobiles, trucking and aerospace.
The greater good.
We are building smarter, more sustainable tires for the circular economy. Tire manufacturing is a legacy industry consisting of applications from scooters to automobiles, trucking and aerospace. Many major problems with pneumatic tires are addressable by our technology. These include lower weight, less rubber, higher load not governed by tire pressure, fuel efficiency, zero flats, and a significant reduction in waste.
Over a billion tires per year reach their end-of-life due to wear and tear. More than half are burned for fuel, and billions of pounds of waste go into landfills. Perhaps worst of all, tires are the source of 20-30% of all ocean microplastics. Developing a longer-lasting tire that uses 50% less rubber for the circular economy is a core goal for our company, to make a positive, more socially-conscious global footprint. This is all possible with our shape memory alloy tire technology.
We are currently working on a car tire concept which will be integrated with a special polymer and rubber treads for grip. (photo: SMA skeleton tire fitted to a jeep for testing purposes at NASA)
SMART Applications
“Shape memory alloys look extremely promising in revolutionizing the entire terrestrial tire industry, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
— Materials Science Engineer, PhD.
Contact us.
The SMART Tire Company, Inc.
Los Angeles, CA
(323) 380-0887
Akron, OH
(216) 352-3233