Tire manufacturing method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9975304-B2
Application number	US-201414784522-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 25, 2014
Priority date	May 1, 2013
Publication date	May 22, 2018
Grant date	May 22, 2018

Abstract

A tire manufacturing method in which a vulcanizing mold ( 20 ) is provided with a tire molding portion ( 21 ) defining an outer surface shape of a tire ( 1 ), an extrusion preparing portion ( 22 ) in which an unvulcanized rubber member ( 5 ) that forms a tread portion ( 2 ) can be disposed, and a rubber inflow path ( 23 ) communicating between the tire molding portion ( 21 ) and the extrusion preparing portion ( 22 ), wherein vulcanization molding includes: loading a casing member ( 4 ) in the tire molding portion ( 21 ) and loading the unvulcanized rubber member ( 5 ) in the extrusion preparing portion ( 22 ); extruding the unvulcanized rubber member ( 5 ) to tread molding portions ( 21 c ), ( 21 d ) through the rubber inflow path ( 23 ), the tread molding portions formed in the tire molding portion ( 21 ) and defining an outer surface shape of a land portion of the tire; and vulcanizing the unvulcanized rubber member ( 5 ) and casing member ( 4 ) together.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A tire manufacturing method in which a vulcanizing mold is used for vulcanization molding to manufacture a tire including a tread portion provided with a land portion,
the vulcanizing mold comprising:
a tire molding portion in which a casing member constituting a tire body is disposed, and which is configured to define an outer surface shape of the tire;
an extrusion preparing portion in which an unvulcanized rubber member for forming a tread portion can be disposed;
a pressing member disposed movably toward the extrusion preparing portion; and
a rubber inflow path communicating between the tire molding portion and the extrusion preparing portion,

wherein the vulcanizing mold consists of a lower mold and an upper mold, and a lower tire molding portion and an upper tire molding portion provided by dividing the tire molding portion into two are formed inside of the lower mold and the upper mold, respectively,
wherein the extrusion preparing portion is arranged in the lower mold outward of the lower tire molding portion in the tire radial direction, and the pressing member is arranged in the upper mold at a position outward of the upper tire molding portion and corresponding to the extrusion preparing portion in the tire radial direction,
wherein the vulcanization molding includes:
loading the casing member in the tire molding portion and loading the unvulcanized rubber member in the extrusion preparing portion;
subsequently, extruding the unvulcanized rubber member to a tread molding portion through the rubber inflow path by moving the pressing member relative to the unvulcanized rubber member in the extrusion preparing portion, the tread molding portion being formed in the tire molding portion and configured to define an outer surface shape of the land portion; and
subsequently, vulcanizing the extruded unvulcanized rubber member and the casing member together.

2. The tire manufacturing method according to claim 1 ,
wherein a rigid core comprising a plurality of core segments is provided inside the vulcanizing mold, the plurality of core segments being disposed movably outward and inward in the tire radial direction, and
wherein the unvulcanized rubber member is extruded after moving the core segments outward in the tire radial direction to expand a diameter of the casing member.

3. The tire manufacturing method according to claim 1 ,
wherein a rigid core comprising a plurality of core segments is provided inside the vulcanizing mold, the plurality of core segments being disposed movably outward and inward in the tire radial direction, and
wherein the unvulcanized rubber member is extruded after moving the core segments outward in the tire radial direction to expand a diameter of the casing member.

4. The tire manufacturing method according to claim 1 , wherein the vulcanizing mold comprises a plurality of the extrusion preparing portions and a plurality of the press members in the tire circumferential direction, and only a part of the pressing members are moved toward the extrusion preparing portions, then the rest of the pressing members are moved, in order.

Assignees

• Bridgestone Corp

Inventors

• Irie Kohei

Classifications

• B29K2021/00

  Use of unspecified rubbers as moulding material · CPC title

• B29D30/0681

  Parts of pneumatic tyres; accessories, auxiliary operations · CPC title

• B29D2030/0682

  Inner liners · CPC title

• B29D30/66

  Moulding treads on to tyre casings, e.g. non-skid treads with spikes · CPC title

• B29D30/0678

  Injection moulding specially adapted for tyres or parts thereof (injection moulding in general B29C45/00) · CPC title