I have seen the future of off-road vehicles and they will be using the technology from DARPA. DARPA, the U.S. government agency that invents a lot of military tech stuff that turn into global game changers in civilian applications is at again. They just demonstrated their new tires that reconfigure into triangular tank tacks in two seconds without having to slow down, allowing it to adapt to the terrain easily rather than just remaining on roads.

DARPA calls it the Reconfigurable Wheel-Track (RWT):

Wheels permit fast travel on hard surfaces while tracks perform better on soft surfaces. A team from Carnegie Mellon University National Robotics Engineering Center (CMU NREC) demonstrated shape-shifting wheel-track mechanisms that transition from a round wheel to a triangular track and back again while the vehicle is on the move, for instant improvements to tactical mobility and maneuverability on diverse terrains.

The RWT is part of DARPA’s Ground X-Vehicle Technologies (GXV-T) program which the agency says “aims to improve mobility, survivability, safety, and effectiveness of future combat vehicles without piling on armor.” This allows military vehicles to move quickly in open roads when the RWT is in the wheel mode and be able to get off the road quickly to outflank the enemy even in rough terrain but morphing the wheels into track mode.

It is not yet a mature technology yet as it is being tested and improved at DARPA. But we are excited about this development as there are a lot of uses besides its military applications. Farms can use the RWT for tractors and bring produce to market without getting another vehicle. First responders are able to cope with rough terrain to reach areas that wheeled vehicles will find it difficult.  For those who love off-roading then the RWT is something that they wish the vehicle manufacturers will look into when developing future off-road vehicles.

Now, we just hope that DARPA takes this tech to next level or have it improved upon by the private sector so it will reach the market even faster.