Method and installation for predicting the maximum running distance, in degraded mode, of a mounted assembly

A method of predicting the maximum running distance without substantial deterioration in the running conditions, at a reduced or zero inflation pressure, of a mounted assembly, comprising a wheel rim, a safety support mounted on the rim and a tire cover mounted on the rim around the support, the support supporting the tread of the tire cover during the running, wherein said method comprises running on at least one running surface either (1) the mounted assembly at a reduced or zero inflation pressure or (2) the support mounted on the rim, from a time t0, at a given temperature, at a given load and with a constant speed V, so that the center of the rim is a point which is substantially invariant during said running, monitoring the variation in a variable R representing the radial loading of the support as a function of the reduced or zero pressure running time t, and wherein the method comprises, during said running, implementing the following sequence of steps:

• (i) determining a value R1 attained by said variable R at the end of a predetermined stabilization time t1 which is such that the direction of variation of said variable R represents a radial loading of said support increasing overall beyond the stabilization time t1, then
• (ii) determining a critical running time t2 (t2>t1) at the end of which said variable R reaches a critical value R2 such that R2=R1+ΔR, ΔR being a value representing a critical increase in the loading of the support with respect to the value R1 at the end of the stabilization time t1, and then
• (iii) making the running time t2 correspond to a distance d2, with d2=V(t2−t0), representing a prediction of the maximum running distance without substantial deterioration in the running conditions of the mounted assembly.