Tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) are

electronic systems that monitor the tire

pressures on individual wheels on a vehicle,
and alert the driver when the pressure goes
below a warning limit. There are several types
of designs to monitor tire pressure. Some
actually measure the air pressure, and some
make indirect measurements, such as
gauging when the relative size of the tire
changes due to lower air pressure.
TPMS can be divided into two different types:

The dTPMS or Direct Tire Pressure Monitoring
System and the

iTPMS or Indirect Tire Pressure Monitoring
System
Indirect TPMS do not use physical pressure
sensors but measure air pressures by
monitoring individual wheel rotational speeds
and other signals available outside of the tire
itself. First generation indirect tire pressure
monitoring systems utilize the effect that an
under-inflated tire has a slightly smaller
diameter (and hence lower tangential velocity)
than a correctly inflated one. These
differences are measurable through the wheel
speed sensors of ABS/ESC systems.

Direct TPMS employ pressure sensors on each
tire, either internal or external. The sensors
physically measure the tire pressure in each tire
and report it to the vehicle's instrument cluster
or a corresponding monitor. Some units also
measure and alert temperatures of the tire as
well.
These systems can identify under-inflation in any
combination, be it one tire or all, simultaneously.
Although the systems vary in transmitting
options, many TPMS products (both OEM and
aftermarket solutions) can display real time tire
pressures at each location monitored whether the
vehicle is moving or parked. There are many
different solutions but all of them have to face
the problems of limited battery lifetime and
exposure to tough environments.


If the sensors are mounted on the outside of
the wheel, which is the case for some
aftermarket systems, they are in danger of
mechanical damage, aggressive fluids and
other substances as well as theft. If they are
mounted on the inside of the rim, they are no
longer easily accessible for service like
battery change.


A direct TPMS sensor consists of the
following:

Pressure Sensor
Radio Frequency Transmitter
Low Frequency Receiver
Voltage Regulator (for battery management)
Monitor

Most originally fitted dTPMS have the sensors
mounted on the inside of the rims and the
batteries are not exchangeable. With a battery
change then meaning that the whole sensor
will have to be replaced and the exchange
being possible only with the tires
dismounted. To save energy and prolong
battery life, many dTPMS sensors do not
transmit information when not rotating
which also keeps the spare tire from being
monitored.
Tires are specified by the vehicle
manufacturer with a recommended inflation
pressure, which permits safe operation within
the specified load rating and vehicle loading.
Most tires are stamped with a maximum
pressure rating. For passenger vehicles and
light trucks, the tires should be inflated to
what the vehicle manufacturer recommends,
which is usually located on a decal just inside
the driver's door or in the vehicle owners
handbook.
Many pressure gauges available at fuel stations
have been de-calibrated by manhandling and the
effect of time, and it is for this reason that
vehicle owners should keep a personal pressure
gauge with them to validate the correct tire
pressure.
Tires are not completely impermeable to air, and
so lose pressure over time naturally. Some
drivers inflate tires with nitrogen, instead of
atmospheric air, which is already 78% nitrogen, in
an attempt to keep the tires at the proper
inflation pressure longer, though the
effectiveness of this is debatable.



Most tires are filled with compressed air,
which when dry consists of about 78 percent
nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and 1 percent
other gases by volume. Water vapour
(humidity) can make up as much as 5 percent
of the volume of air under worst-case
conditions.

High performance and dynamic drivers often
increase the tire pressure to near the
maximum pressure as printed on the
sidewall. This is done to sacrifice comfort for
performance and safety. A tire at higher
pressure is more inclined to keep its shape
during any encounter, and will thus transmit
the forces of the road to the suspension,
rather than being damaged itself.
It is dangerous to allow tire pressure to drop
below the specification recommended. Low
pressure increases the amount of tire wall
movement resulting from forces.

Furthermore, the tire will absorb more of the
irregular forces of normal driving. With this
constant bending of the side wall as it
absorbs the contours of the road, it heats up
the tire wall to possibly dangerous
temperatures. Additionally, this flexing
degrades the steel wire reinforcement; this
often leads to side wall blow-outs.




Tires are specified by the manufacturer with a
maximum load rating. Loads exceeding the
rating can result in unsafe conditions that can
lead to steering instability and even rupture.
Standard Load Table



The speed rating denotes the maximum
speed at which a tire is designed to be
operated. For passenger vehicles these
ratings range from 99 to 186 miles per hour
(159 to 299 km/h).

The speed symbol is made up of a single
letter or an A with one number. It indicates
the maximum speed at which the tire can
carry a load corresponding to its Load Index
Speed Rating


The Treadwear Grade of a tire is the numeric
portion of the Uniform Tire Quality Grade
(UTQG) Standards that are printed on the
sidewall of a tire. These standards were
enacted by the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA), which is part
of the United States Department of
Transportation. Higher treadwear numbers
indicate that the tread of a tire, and hence the
tire itself, should last longer.
The wear on tires that are being tested
("candidate tires") is compared to the wear of
Course Monitoring Tires (CMT), which are
sold by the NHTSA at its UTQG test facility in
Texas. Both types of tires are mounted on
vehicles that will be driven in a convoy during
the test, thus ensuring that the candidate
tires and the CMT tires experience the same
road conditions. The convoy, typically one of
four or fewer vehicles, will drive 7200 miles
on public roads in West Texas. Candidate tire
wear will be checked during and after the
test, and compared to the wear on the CMT
tires from the same convoy.


Tire rotation or rotating tires is the practice
of moving automobile wheels and tires from
one position on the car, to another, to ensure
even tire wear. Tire wear is uneven for any
number of reasons. Even tire wear is desirable
to maintain consistent performance in the
vehicle and to extend the overall life of a set
of tires.
Turning the vehicle will cause uneven tire
wear. Car manufacturers will recommend tire
rotation frequency and pattern. Depending on
the specifics of the vehicle, tire rotation may
be recommended every 8,000 km (5,000 mi).
The rotation pattern is typically moving the
back wheels to the front, and the front to the
back, but crossing them when moving to the
back. If the tires are unidirectional, the
rotation can only be rotated front to back on
the same side of the vehicle to preserve the
rotational direction of the tires
Tires that are fully worn can be re-
manufactured to replace the worn tread. This
is known as retreading or recapping, a
process of buffing away the worn tread and
applying a new tread.

Retreading is
economical for truck tires because the cost of
replacing the tread is less than the price of a
new tire. Retreading passenger tires is less
economical because the cost of retreading is
high compared to the price of new cheap
tires, but favourable compared to high-end
brands.
Worn tires can be retreaded by two methods,
the mold or hot cure method and the pre-
cure or cold method. The mold cure method
involves the application of raw rubber on the
previously buffed and prepared casing, which
is later cured in matrices. During the curing
period, vulcanization takes place and the raw
rubber bonds to the casing, taking the tread
shape of the matrix. On the other hand, the
pre-cure method involves the application of a
ready-made tread band on the buffed and
prepared casing, which later is cured in an
autoclave so that vulcanization can occur.
In most situations, retread tires can be driven
under the same conditions and at the same
speeds as new tires with no loss in safety or
comfort.

The percentage of retread failures
should be about the same as for new tire
failures, but many drivers, including truckers,
are guilty of not maintaining proper air
pressure on a regular basis, and, if a tire is
abused (overloaded, underinflated, or
mismatched to the other tire), then that tire
(new or recapped) will fail.