UPTIS (buses without air)

2019: Announcement

At the beginning of June, 2019 the producer of the buses Michelin and General Motors carmaker provided airless buses which cannot be punctured.

Michelin develops the bus under the name UPTIS ("The unique system of buses steady against punctures") which does not require to be pumped up maintenance of sufficient rigidity. Instead of this UPTIS uses an internal system of flexible needles with adding of corporate fiber glass pitch. UPTIS already exists in the form of a working prototype which tests will begin on some Chevy Bolt models in 2019 in Michigan. By 2024 the companies hope to put UPTIS on the market.

Airless buses - not the new idea. They are already used in the world of cycling, and even the company Michelin sells not pumped up buses Tweel for lawn-mowers. Tweel in many respects reminds the mini-version of UPTIS with rubber needles in the bus. These needles work as mini-shock-absorbers, being deformed under the influence of roughnesses of the road to provide smoother driving, than inflatable buses.

General Motors and Michelin provided buses without air. They cannot be punctured

Nevertheless, automotive industry does not hurry to pass to airless buses, at the correct use air is ideal material – it is almost weightless, does not influence performance and efficiency of the car and also does not lose structural integrity as a result of blows. However the buses UPTIS can longer serve, than normal, the Michelin company claims.

Of course, they wear out, as well as any material, but normal buses it is regularly required to pump up, and excessive or insufficient pressure can cost to the driver of several months of service. Besides, the unusual design and airless technology allow to raise the security level and to reduce amount of the raw materials used for creation of buses.^[1]

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