Tire vulcanization mold and manufacturing method for tire

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11931979-B2
Application number	US-202017597227-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 1, 2020
Priority date	Jul 3, 2019
Publication date	Mar 19, 2024
Grant date	Mar 19, 2024

Abstract

A tire vulcanization mold in which a surface roughness in the groove molding portion of the tread molding surface is made smaller than a surface roughness in the land portion molding portion, in which a surface roughness in the groove molding portion is minimized to 0.12 μm or less in a range including at least a main groove molding portion, and in which a surface roughness in the land portion molding portion is made to be 3.2 μm or more, is used to manufacture a tire, and when cleaning the tread molding surface, the tread molding surface is irradiated with a laser beam to remove contaminant adhered to the tread molding surface.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A tire vulcanization mold, comprising:
a tread molding surface comprising a groove molding portion and a land portion molding portion,
a surface roughness Ra in the groove molding portion being smaller than a surface roughness Ra in the land portion molding portion, the groove molding portion comprising a surface treated by a surface treatment configured to decrease the surface roughness Ra of the groove molding portion relative to the surface roughness Ra in the land portion molding portion,
in the groove molding portion, the surface roughness Ra being smallest at 0.12 μm or less in a range comprising at least a main groove molding portion, and
the surface roughness Ra in the land portion molding portion being 3.2 μm or more, and 4.8 μm or less.

2. The tire vulcanization mold according to claim 1 , wherein, in the groove molding portion, a surface roughness Ra is 0.12 μm or less in all ranges except a sipe molding portion.

3. The tire vulcanization mold according to claim 1 , wherein a surface roughness Ra in the groove molding portion is 0.12 μm or less in all ranges.

4. A method of manufacturing a tire, comprising:
vulcanizing a green tire by using the tire vulcanization mold according to claim 1 .

5. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 4 , wherein, when cleaning the tread molding surface, the tread molding surface is irradiated with a laser beam to remove a contaminant adhering to the tread molding surface.

6. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 5 , wherein, whenever irradiating with the laser beam, oxygen content per unit volume in a target region of the tread molding surface comprising an irradiation range to be irradiated with the laser beam is set to a preset reference value or less to put the target region in a low oxygen state.

7. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 6 , wherein the oxygen content per unit volume in the target region is set to the reference value or less by supplying an inert gas toward the target region.

8. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 5 , wherein the contaminant is a rubber component or a rubber compounding agent.

9. A method of manufacturing a tire, comprising:
vulcanizing a green tire by using the tire vulcanization mold according to claim 3 .

10. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 9 , wherein, when cleaning the tread molding surface, the tread molding surface is irradiated with a laser beam to remove a contaminant adhering to the tread molding surface.

11. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 10 , wherein, whenever irradiating with the laser beam, oxygen content per unit volume in a target region of the tread molding surface comprising an irradiation range to be irradiated with the laser beam is set to a preset reference value or less to put the target region in a low oxygen state.

12. The method of manufacturing a tire according to claim 11 , wherein the oxygen content per unit volume in the target region is set to the reference value or less by supplying an inert gas toward the target region.

13. A method of manufacturing a tire, comprising:
vulcanizing a green tire by using a tire vulcanization mold, comprising:
a tread molding surface comprising a groove molding portion and a land portion molding portion,
a surface roughness Ra in the groove molding portion being smaller than a surface roughness Ra in the land portion molding portion, the groove molding portion comprising a surface treated by a surface treatment configured to decrease the surface roughness Ra of the groove molding portion relative to the surface roughness Ra in the land portion molding portion,
in the groove molding portion, the surface roughness Ra being smallest at 0.12 μm or less in a range comprising at least a main groove molding portion, and
the surface roughness Ra in the land portion molding portion being 3.2 μm or more; wherein

when cleaning the tread molding surface, the tread molding surface is irradiated with a laser beam to remove a contaminant adhering to the tread molding surface, the laser beam is a Yb-YAG (Ytterbium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet) laser beam having a wavelength of 1030 nm or an Nd-YAG (Neodymium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet) laser beam having a wavelength of 1064 nm,
a light source output of the laser beam is 1 W or more and 5 kW or less,
a pulse width of the laser beam is 1 ns or more and 500 ns or less,
a pulse energy of the laser beam is 1 mJ or more and 0.1 J or less,
a pulse frequency of the laser beam is 1 kHz or more and 100 kHz or less,
a fluence of the laser beam is 0.5 J/m 2 and 4.0 J/m 2 or less, and
a beam diameter of the laser beam is 0.1 mm or more and 3 mm or less.

Assignees

• Yokohama Rubber Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kitahara Tsubasa
• Matsumoto Yoshiaki
• Nagashima Mika
• Tsuji Mitsuo
• Izumi Yoshinori
• Kushida Rinko
• Miyoshi Koichiro

Classifications

• B29D30/0606 Primary

  Vulcanising moulds not integral with vulcanising presses (for solid tyres B29D30/02) · CPC title

• B29D30/0633

  After-treatment specially adapted for vulcanising tyres · CPC title

• B29D2030/0612

  Means for forming recesses or protrusions in the tyres, e.g. grooves or ribs, to create the tread or sidewalls patterns · CPC title

• B29D2030/0616

  Surface structure of the mould, e.g. roughness, arrangement of slits, grooves or channels · CPC title

• B29D2030/0638

  Correcting by removing material, e.g. by grinding · CPC title