Hendrickson launching tire pressure control system for trailers

Hendrickson says the Tiremaax Pro-LB helps to eliminate the guesswork of tire pressure management. Photo: Hendrickson

Hendrickson Trailer Commercial Vehicle Systems unveiled its next-generation tire pressure control system in the Tiremaax Pro-LB.

According to Hendrickson, this system builds on the technology of Tiremaax Pro that inflates, relieves and equalizes tire pressures across all wheel positions, with the added benefit of load-based pressure adjustments.

“The consensus in the market is that most trailer tires are inflated to a pressure greater than necessary for the typical load,” says Matt Wilson, general manager of Hendrickson’s trailer controls business unit. “The cold tire target pressure setting is often selected based on a maximum expected load, which may only occur occasionally.”

“A load-based tire pressure control system will allow for an optimal tire pressure, providing the opportunity to reduce tire wear without negatively affecting fuel economy,” Wilson adds.

Unlike a passenger car, Hendrickson says commercial vehicles experience significant changes in overall vehicle weight between the loaded and unloaded condition. The change is so significant that the optimum air pressure for the tires is different for laden versus unladen vehicles.

According to Hendrickson, tire manufacturers provide complex charts to calculate the tire pressure required for a specific axle load. Hendrickson’s Tiremaax Pro-LB helps to eliminate the guesswork of tire pressure management by monitoring the pressure in the air springs and reacting to changing loads automatically, the company says.

The Tiremaax Pro-LB will be available sometime in the second half of 2021, Hendrickson adds.