Future Ford AVs Could Get Tire Monitoring System

Ford Motor Company has filed a patent for a tire monitoring system that may be used in future Ford autonomous vehicles (AVs), Ford Authority has learned.

The patent was filed on August 1^st, 2022, published on February 18^th, 2025, and assigned serial number 12227039.

The Ford Authority Take

Ford has filed a few patents recently that are aimed at figuring out ways to better monitor thing like brake pad wear and even tire tread depth, which could prove useful for folks that aren’t exactly mechanically inclined. However, with autonomous vehicles starting to gain a foothold in the ride share market, it stands to reason that automakers may also need a way to keep tabs on maintenance items for those vehicles, which lack human drivers/caretakers, too. As such, it presents us with this newly published patent outlining an idea for a tire monitoring system that may be used in future Ford autonomous vehicles (AVs).

This particular idea would also keep tabs on the condition of tires using a pretty sophisticated method and an array of sensors. One of those sensors would be configured to receive light that’s reflected off various objects nearby, and then provide tire data indicating the distance between the sensor and the surface of the tire. When the tire reaches a certain threshold in terms of tread wear, the system would provide that information to the fleet manager, informing them that it’s time to swap those tires out for new ones. It’s a rather interesting idea, and could certainly prove useful in the event that AVs become more prevalent on our roads.

“Submitting patent applications is a normal part of any strong business as the process protects new ideas and helps us build a robust portfolio of intellectual property,” Ford said in a statement. “The ideas described within a patent application should not be viewed as an indication of our business or product plans. No matter what the patent application outlines, we will always put the customer first in the decision-making behind the development and marketing of new products and services.”