SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PREDICTING WEAR PROGRESSION FOR VEHICLE TIRES

A system and method are provided for estimating progression in vehicle tire wear. A tread depth is stored at a first (e.g., initial or unworn) stage for a given tire, along with a first set of modal frequencies for the tire. At a later (e.g., worn) stage, for example in concert with a controlled excitation of tire structural modes, a second set of corresponding modal frequencies are sensed for the tire, and a tire wear status of the tire is determined at the second stage based on a calculated frequency shift between at least one corresponding modal frequency from each of the first and second sets. In one example, an initial mass of the tire is stored, and a change in mass is calculated based on the calculated frequency shift. Alternatively, a correlation of modal frequency shift may be performed with respect to tread depth for a given tire.