Pirelli is investing in Federico II's RIDEsense to strengthen the Cyber Tyre ecosystem

An agreement has been signed between the University of Naples Federico II and Pirelli. RIDEsense, a spin-off of the University’s Department of Industrial Engineering and the MegaRide group—incubated at Campania New Steel and specializing in the development of advanced mobility technologies—will collaborate on the development of new software to be integrated into the Pirelli CyberTM Tyre ecosystem. This agreement, which grants Pirelli a license to use RIDEsense’s virtual sensors and includes specific protections regarding the granting of rights to third parties, provides for Pirelli to acquire a 24.99% stake in RIDEsense, with an option to increase its stake to up to 100% of the capital.

The integration of the physical sensors of the Pirelli Cyber Tyre system with RIDEsense’s virtual sensors—algorithms that process information provided by sensors already present in vehicles—will further expand the contribution of CyberTM Tyre to automotive electronic safety systems. It will also make it possible to enhance certain features, such as aquaplaning detection, and to develop new ones related to tire diagnostics and, more generally, vehicle diagnostics.

RIDEsense technology, based on physical algorithms related to vehicle and tire behavior, is available in both software versions—which implement virtual sensors within standard vehicle control units—and hardware versions, through the development of the dedicated Kymes platform designed for direct access to the testing and motorsport markets.

Meanwhile, the Pirelli CyberTM Tyre system, already installed as original equipment on certain models on the market, is the world’s first system—combining hardware and software— capable of collecting data and information from sensors in the tires and processing it using Pirelli’s proprietary software and algorithms; this data, provided in real time to the vehicle’s electronics, enables the implementation of new features integrated with driving and control systems, including ABS, ESP, and traction control.

The goal of Pirelli’s technology is to enhance vehicle safety, performance, and efficiency. Furthermore, it can also be used to monitor the condition of road infrastructure, with the aim of detecting situations that pose a potential risk to traffic; trials for this application are already underway in collaboration with several public agencies.