Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. is pleased to announce a significant licensing agreement with Michelin, Europe’s premier automobile tire manufacturer.
This agreement will allow for the integration of cutting-edge RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tire tags into automotive tires, helping to further advance tire management, sustainability, security, and traceability until the end of life within the transportation and wider automotive industry.
For 80 years now, Murata has been a leading company in the electronics market. With a major component for innovation and technology, Murata contributes to the improvement of society. With emerging environmental and societal challenges, Murata is investing more and more in the interconnectivity and traceability of products, giving life to the objects around us, particularly through RFID technology.
In the future, more and more objects will be connected, in order to better trace their origins and recycling. Europe is already implementing the ESPR (Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation) improving the circularity of products, each of them will be issued a digital product passport (DPP) allowing their life cycle to be traced.
This will also affect tires which must contain an RFID, an essential component to obtain a DPP. This RFID, in addition to guaranteeing compatibility with new European standards, will make it possible to improve all logistical aspects affecting the tire and automobile industry and mobility more generally.
Michelin and Murata have enjoyed a successful working relationship for many years. This partnership has contributed to advancing RFID tag technology in tires. Thanks to this new agreement, Murata will be able to produce generation 4 RFID tire tags. Through this agreement, Murata will also have the possibility of offering the integration of RFID Tag in tires, patented by Michelin. In the future, tire manufacturers around the world will have access to this cutting-edge solution scheduled to enter mass production.
In addition to offering innovative RFID tire tags, Murata is committed to helping tire manufacturers evaluate and implement these tags into their products. By leveraging its deep understanding of communications technologies, Murata can provide tailored solutions that improve tire traceability and management for various applications, encompassing high-performance motorsport, passenger vehicles, and networks for global transport. Additionally, to facilitate uniform adoption of RFID technology within the tire industry, Murata will continue to provide tire manufacturers with access to solutions based on Murata’s RFID software, id-Bridge.
“RFID technology is a key element, in improving the efficiency and optimization of tire operations. This RFID tag is the unique way to identify tires, from cradle to grave, in a consistent manner, thus responding to the ecological challenges of our time.
Through this license, Murata and Michelin, hand in hand, are revolutionizing the tire industry, by allowing stakeholders to benefit from this technology, this agreement will open up new perspectives for the future of mobility.” said Laurent Couturier, RFID system designer at Michelin.
“Michelin is one of the world’s leading tire manufacturers and this partnership will help to produce solutions capable of overcoming significant challenges that exist within the global tire market, allowing for further advancements in operation efficiency and supply chain reliability,” said Tetsuo Kawakatsu, Director of RFID Business Department at Murata.
Mass production of these innovative tire tags is slated to commence after Jan 2025, further solidifying Murata’s commitment to delivering state-of-the-art solutions to the global tire industry.
