Patent ID: 7587934

Claim:
A method of quantifying the utilization of a maximum grip potential of a tire running on the ground, comprising the steps of: determining at least two values for a differential extension of the tread of the tire or for a shear of the tread that is homogeneous with said differential extension, respectively at two distinct azimuth angles; and wherein the value of the differential extension or of the shear, as determined at a given azimuth angle θ is written Δ(θ), and said utilization is quantified with the help of a value S that is defined as follows: S = ( ( Δ ⁡ ( θ 1 ) - Δ ⁡ ( θ 2 ) ) - O - P slip · ( Δ ⁡ ( θ 1 ) + Δ ⁡ ( θ 2 ) ) ( P grip - P slip ) · ( Δ ⁡ ( θ 1 ) + Δ ⁡ ( θ 2 ) ) where P grip , P slip , and O are predetermined constants, and θ 1 and θ 2 are the two distinct azimuth angle values.