Mold for a tire with an annular insert made up of a plurality of portions

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9827727-B2
Application number	US-201414910200-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 26, 2014
Priority date	Aug 5, 2013
Publication date	Nov 28, 2017
Grant date	Nov 28, 2017

Abstract

A mold for vulcanizing and molding a tire is provided herein. The tire includes a tread delimited by two sidewalls, the mold including a ring for molding the tread of the tire and two shells for molding the sidewalls. The mold includes an annular groove extending in a recessed manner in one of the shells and an insert housed in the groove, this insert having tire marking elements and being formed from a plurality of insert parts that are positioned one after another in the annular groove.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A mold for vulcanizing and molding a tire,
the tire comprising a tread delimited by two sidewalls,
the mold, including:
a ring for molding the tread of the tire, and
two shells, separate from the ring, for molding the sidewalls,

the mold including
an annular groove that extends in a recessed manner in one of the shells, and
an insert housed in the annular groove, the insert including tire marking elements, the insert being defined by a plurality of insert parts positioned one after another in the annular groove,

wherein each of the plurality of insert parts has a plurality of dimensions including:
a circumferential length, a radial length, and a height, and at least the radial length of at least one of the insert parts vary from another one of the insert parts,
each of the plurality of insert parts has contact surfaces contactable with and adjacent to one of the plurality of insert parts, and
at least two of the plurality of insert parts are connected together in a region of a respective contact surface, the connection being breakable in order to separate the at least two of the plurality of insert parts.

2. A mold according to claim 1 , wherein
each of the plurality of insert parts has a molding surface contactable with the tire,
wherein in at least two of the plurality of insert parts include different molding surface features.

3. A mold according to claim 1 , wherein at least one insert part is produced by laser sintering, the one of the plurality of insert parts having all or part of the tire marking elements of the insert.

4. A mold according to claim 1 , wherein the mold has an equatorial plane,
one of the plurality of insert parts is offset with respect to another, and
an adjacent insert part of the one of plurality insert parts is in a direction of the equatorial plane of the mold.

5. A mold according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the shells comprises a through-opening extending between the insert and an outside of the at least one of the shells.

Assignees

• Michelin & Cie
• Michelin Rech Tech

Inventors

• Villeneuve Bernard
• Gomet Christian

Classifications

• B29D2030/726

  Decorating or marking the sidewalls before tyre vulcanization · CPC title

• B29C33/424

  Moulding surfaces provided with means for marking or patterning (for injection moulding B29C45/372) · CPC title

• B29D2030/0616

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

• B29D30/72 Primary

  Side-walls · 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