Tire manufacturing apparatus and tire manufacturing method

Abstract

In order to provide a tire manufacturing device and a tire manufacturing method that reduce energy loss, the risk of device failure or material breakage accidents and can increase the stacking speed of the strips, the structure is set as follows: a tire manufacturing device, which includes: a supply device that supplies strips formed into strips as components constituting the tire; and a tire forming device that sticks the strips to the outer periphery of the drum while rotating a drum having the inner peripheral shape of the product tire as its outer shape, the supply device having a pasting position for pasting the strips to the outer periphery of the drum, the tire forming device including: a drum, which is arranged so that the rotating axis is horizontal; a turntable, which rotates the drum around an axis that vertically passes through the pasting position while maintaining the horizontal state of the rotating axis of the drum; and a parallel movement mechanism, which is arranged on the turntable and moves the drum parallel to a horizontal plane set on the turntable, and the rotating axis extends along the tangent direction of a circle centered on the axis of rotation of the turntable.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a tire manufacturing apparatus and a tire manufacturing method, and more particularly to a tire manufacturing apparatus and a tire manufacturing method for manufacturing a tire using a mold (core) whose inner peripheral surface shape is the same as the outer shape of the tire. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, one of the methods for manufacturing tires is the metal core method (or mold core method). In the metal core method, different types of rubber raw materials, which will become the inner liner, carcass, belt, sidewall, and tread of the finished tire, are formed into strips, wound and layered sequentially around the outer circumference of a mold core whose outer shape is the inner circumference of the finished tire, thereby forming a green tire. The mold core is then transported to a vulcanization molding apparatus, where it is sandwiched between a vulcanization mold, serving as an outer mold, and vulcanized to produce the finished tire.

[0003] As for the winding of the strip onto the core, for example, the winding is performed by moving a device that supplies the strip to the periphery of the rotating core along the radial direction or width direction of the core as shown in patent document 1, or by rotating or moving the core relative to the device that supplies the strip with the center of the core as the rotation center as shown in patent document 2.

[0004] Prior art literature

[0005] Patent Literature

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-153536

[0007] Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-069559 Summary of the Invention

[0008] Problems to be solved by the invention

[0009] However, if the device for supplying the strip is constructed from an extruder and is moved relative to the core, as shown in Patent Document 1, the device is heavy and may become a major cause of energy loss, risk of failure, breakage, and other accidents. Furthermore, as shown in Patent Document 2, the device for supplying the strip to the core is fixed so that the core can rotate about a centerline perpendicularly passing through the center of the width of the core and the intersection of the rotation axis, and the core is moved along an X-Y axis defined on the rotational surface of the core to wind and stack the strip. In this case, when changing the angle of the strip stacking, the core needs to be moved at high speed along the X-Y axis, resulting in problems such as speed restrictions.

[0010] The present invention has been completed in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a tire manufacturing device and a tire manufacturing method that reduce energy loss, the risk of device failure or material breakage accidents and can increase the stacking speed of the strips.

[0011] Solutions for solving problems

[0012] As a structure for solving the above-mentioned problems, a tire manufacturing device is provided with the following structure: a tire manufacturing device comprising: a supply device which supplies a strip formed into a strip shape as a component constituting the tire; and a tire forming device which adheres the strip to the outer periphery of the drum while rotating a drum having the inner peripheral shape of the product tire as its outer shape, the supply device having a pasting position for pasting the strip to the outer periphery of the drum, the tire forming device comprising: a drum which is arranged so that its rotation axis is horizontal; a turntable which rotates the drum around an axis which vertically passes through the pasting position while maintaining the horizontal state of the rotation axis of the drum; and a parallel movement mechanism which is provided on the turntable so that the drum moves parallel to a horizontal plane set on the turntable, the rotation axis extending in the direction of a tangent to a circle centered on the axis of rotation of the turntable.

[0013] This structure allows the supply device to be fixed, reducing energy losses, malfunction risks, and material breakage accidents caused by moving the heavy extruder that constitutes the supply device. Specifically, by aligning the drum's rotational axis with the location where the tape is applied to the drum, the drum can be rotated at high speed, increasing the degree of freedom in the tape stacking method.

[0014] In addition, the above summary of the invention does not list all the essential features of the present invention, and each structure constituting a feature group may also constitute an invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the tire manufacturing device.

[0016] Figure 2 It is a perspective view showing the structure of a tire forming apparatus.

[0017] Figure 3 It is a diagram showing the operation of the tire manufacturing apparatus.

[0018] Figure 4 It is a diagram showing the operation of the tire manufacturing apparatus.

[0019] Figure 5 This is another structural diagram of the tire manufacturing device.

[0020] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail by way of embodiments of the invention. However, the following embodiments do not limit the invention of the claims, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] Figure 1 It is a schematic configuration diagram of the tire manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. Figure 2 It is a perspective view showing the structure of the tire forming apparatus 2 .

[0022] like Figure 1 As shown, the tire manufacturing device 1 is a device for manufacturing product tires using a metal core manufacturing method, including a tire forming device 2 having a drum 10 that functions as an inner mold (core mold) during vulcanization molding of the tire and a component supply device 6 that supplies tire constituent components such as the inner liner, sidewall, tread, etc. of the product tire using rubber as raw material to the periphery of the drum 10.

[0023] First, the component supply device 6 will be described. The component supply device 6 forms and supplies the rubber raw materials that constitute various components of the finished tire, such as the tread rubber and sidewall rubber, into strips. Specifically, the component supply device 6 supplies strips of rubber (hereinafter referred to as strips) having properties suitable for the aforementioned components.

[0024] The component supply device 6 includes, for example, an extruder (hereinafter referred to as an extruder) 60 and a bonding unit 70. The extruder 60 heats and kneads unvulcanized rubber fed as a raw material and continuously supplies a strip 64 formed into a predetermined cross-sectional shape by a die 62 installed at the front end.

[0025] The tape 64 formed by the extruder 60 is conveyed to the attaching member 70 by a conveying member (not shown) composed of a plurality of rollers or the like.

[0026] The attachment member 70 includes, for example, a pair of rollers 72 and 74 and a rotational drive member (not shown) that drives the rollers 72 and 74. The rollers 72 and 74 are, for example, cylindrical and supported by a support member (not shown) with axes C72 and C74 oriented horizontally and parallel to each other. As indicated by the arrows in the figure, the rollers 72 and 74 are driven by the rotational drive member to rotate synchronously in opposite directions. The rotational speed of the rollers 72 and 74 is set according to the extrusion speed of the strip 64 extruded from the extruder 60.

[0027] The rollers 72 and 74 are configured to have different outer diameters, for example. Figure 1 In the illustrated configuration, the large-diameter roller 72 is positioned at the bottom, and the small-diameter roller 74 is positioned at the top. The outer circumference of the large-diameter roller 72 is positioned forward of the outer circumference of the small-diameter roller 74 in the conveying direction of the strip 64. The rollers 72 and 74 are positioned so that their outer circumferences are separated by a predetermined distance. The strip 64 extruded from the die 62 is sandwiched between the rollers 72 and 74, and the rotation of the roller 72 guides the strip 64 toward the attachment position P where the strip 64 is attached to the drum 10.

[0028] In this embodiment, as described later, the axis of the drum 10 (axis C44 of the drum shaft 44) and the axis C72 of the roller 72 are set at the same height. Therefore, the portion of the outer peripheral surface of the roller 72 that is located closest to the tire forming device 2 is close to the outer peripheral surface of the drum 10. Therefore, this position is set as the attachment position P of the strip 64 to the drum 10 (refer to FIG. Figure 1 ) In addition, the sticking position P may be appropriately set within a range of a thickness from the outer peripheral surface of the roller 72 in consideration of the thickness of the tape 64 .

[0029] Furthermore, the tape 64 passes through the center of the roller 72 in the width direction, and the center position of the roller 72 in the width direction is set as the attachment position P.

[0030] The tire forming device 2 is arranged opposite to the supply direction of the tape 64 supplied from the component supply device 6. The tire forming device 2 includes a drum 10 to which the tape 64 is applied and a base 20 that allows the position of the drum 10 relative to the component supply device 6 to be variable. The base 20 is configured so that the position of the drum 10 facing the component supply device 6 can be changed.

[0031] The base 20 is movable on the ground in a tire manufacturing plant, for example, and includes a pedestal 22, a turntable 24, a movable platform 26, and a drum stand 28. The base 20 is constructed by stacking the base 22, the turntable 24, the movable platform 26, and the drum stand 28 in this order from the ground side.

[0032] The base 22 forms the foundation of the chassis 20 and includes wheels for movement on a track (not shown) laid on the ground. The base 22 includes a horizontal surface 22a, a portion of the upper surface of which is flat. When the chassis 20 is placed on the track, this flat portion is horizontal.

[0033] Furthermore, the base 22 is provided with a rotation support mechanism having a rotation shaft 30 that can rotate the turntable 24 relative to the base 22 and a rotation drive mechanism 32 .

[0034] The rotation support mechanism can be composed of, for example, a rotating shaft 30 and various bearings (not shown). The rotating shaft 30 is rotatably mounted on the base 22 via bearings, etc., with the axis C oriented in the vertical direction, extending through the horizontal surface 22a of the base 22. The tire forming apparatus 2 is positioned relative to the component supply apparatus 6 such that the axis C of the rotating shaft 30 passes through the attachment position P of the tape 64.

[0035] The turntable 24 is fixed to the upper end of a rotating shaft 30 that extends through the horizontal surface 22a of the base 22. A rotation drive mechanism for rotating the rotating shaft 30 is connected to the lower end of the rotating shaft 30. The rotation drive mechanism can be composed of, for example, a motor serving as a drive source and a transmission mechanism that transmits the motor's rotational force to the turntable. The transmission mechanism can be a chain or belt and a pair of sprockets. One sprocket is attached to the rotating shaft, the other sprocket is attached to the motor, and a chain or belt is looped around the two sprockets.

[0036] When the turntable 24 is attached to the rotation shaft 30 extending from the base 22, a portion of the lower surface 24b facing the horizontal surface 22a of the base 22 does not contact the horizontal surface 22a and is formed into a flat surface parallel to the horizontal surface 22a.

[0037] By forming the lower surface 24b of the turntable 24, which faces the horizontal surface 22a of the base 22, into a flat surface, a thrust bearing can be interposed between the horizontal surface 22a of the base 22 and the lower surface 24b of the turntable 24, forming part of the rotation support mechanism. The thrust bearing is positioned so that its center of rotation is coaxial with the axis of the rotating shaft 30. This allows the horizontal surface 22a of the base 22 to support the weight of the portion above the turntable 24. This allows the turntable 24 to rotate stably relative to the base 22.

[0038] A direct-acting mechanism 34 is provided on the upper surface 24a of the turntable 24. The direct-acting mechanism 34 may be composed of, for example, a linear rail 35 and a block 36 movably mounted on the linear rail 35. A pair of direct-acting mechanisms 34 are provided on the turntable 24, extending parallel to each other. The linear rails 35, 35, are fixed to the upper surface 24a of the turntable 24, extending tangentially to the direction of rotation of the turntable 24. The position of the block 36 on the linear rail 35 can be controlled using a drive mechanism composed of, for example, a ball screw mechanism and a motor.

[0039] The moving table 26 is composed of a plate having an upper surface 26 a and a lower surface 26 b formed as parallel planes. The lower surface 26 b is fixed to the blocks 36 , 36 of the pair of linear motion mechanisms 34 mounted on the turntable 24 .

[0040] A direct-acting mechanism 38 is provided on the upper surface 24a of the movable table 26. The direct-acting mechanism 38 may be composed of, for example, a linear rail 39 and a block 40 movably mounted on the linear rail 39. A pair of direct-acting mechanisms 38 are provided on the movable table 26, extending parallel to each other. The linear rail 39 of each direct-acting mechanism 38 is fixed to the upper surface 24a of the turntable 24, extending in a direction perpendicular to the linear rail 35 provided on the turntable 24. The position of the block 40 on the linear rail 39 can be controlled using a drive mechanism composed of, for example, a ball screw mechanism and a motor.

[0041] The drum base 28 includes, for example, a base plate 28A having a rectangular shape with an upper surface 28a and a lower surface 28b formed as parallel planes, and a rising wall 28B. The lower surface 28b of the base plate 28A is fixed to a pair of blocks 40, 40 of the linear motion mechanism 38 mounted on the movable base 26.

[0042] A drum drive device 42 is provided on the upper surface 28a of the drum base 28 for rotatably supporting the drum 10. The drum drive device 42 includes, for example, a motor serving as a drive source for rotating the drum 10, a drum shaft 44 on which the drum 10 is mounted, a transmission mechanism for transmitting the rotation of the motor to the drum shaft 44, and an attachment 46 for attaching and detaching the drum 10 to and from the drum shaft 44.

[0043] The motor and transmission mechanism are housed in a single housing, for example, as a mechanism portion 48, and are disposed on the base plate portion 28A. The drum shaft 44 extends horizontally from the mechanism portion 48 in a cantilevered manner, with one end connected to the transmission mechanism and the other end extending through the upright wall portion 28B of the drum base 28. In this embodiment, the height of the axis C44 of the drum shaft 44, the center axis of rotation, is set to coincide with the height of the axis C72 of the roller 72, for example.

[0044] The attachment 46 is attached to the outer periphery of the front end side of the drum shaft 44, which is the side of the drum shaft 44 that passes through the upright wall portion 28B. The attachment 46 includes an attachment and detachment mechanism for attaching and detaching the drum 10 to and from the drum shaft 44.

[0045] The drum 10 is formed, for example, so that its outer shape matches the inner circumferential shape of the product tire, and its inner circumferential side is detachably mounted on the attachment 46. Here, detachably mounted means that it is circumferentially immovable relative to the attachment 46, but rotates together with the attachment 46 and is axially movable.

[0046] According to the tire forming apparatus 2 having the above-described structure, the drum 10 can be rotated by rotating the turntable 24 relative to the base 22 .

[0047] Furthermore, the position of the drum 10 on the turntable 24 can be freely changed by moving the movable table 26 on the turntable 24 or by moving the drum table 28 on the movable table 26. That is, for example, the drum 10 can be moved on the planar upper surface 24a of the turntable 24 along orthogonal coordinate axes set such as the X-axis and the Y-axis, respectively, in the direction in which the linear motion mechanisms 34 and 34 extend.

[0048] Furthermore, by rotating the turntable 24 about the axis C, the angle of the web 64 that crosses from the roller 72 to the outer periphery of the drum 10 at the attaching position P can be changed.

[0049] Furthermore, by moving the drum 10 in the X and Y directions on the turntable 24 , the position where the tape 64 is attached to the drum 10 can be controlled, and the pressure with which the tape 64 delivered from the roller 72 is attached can be controlled.

[0050] Furthermore, the structure is set such that the position of the drum 10 on the turntable 24 can be changed by moving the movable table 26 in a tangential direction around the axis C by the direct-acting mechanisms 34, 34 and by moving the drum table 28 in the moving direction of the movable table 26 by the direct-acting mechanisms 38, 38. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the direction in which the movable table 26 moves on the turntable 24 and the direction in which the drum table 28 moves on the movable table 26 can be appropriately set. In other words, it is sufficient that the drum 10 can be moved on the turntable 24 in directions orthogonal to each other.

[0051] Figure 3 、 Figure 4 It is a diagram showing the operation of the tire manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. Figure 3 This diagram shows an example of attaching a strip 64 to the center of the width of the drum 10. As shown in the enlarged view of this diagram, it shows the arrangement of the tire forming apparatus 2 relative to the component supply apparatus 6 when attaching the strip 64 to the center of the width of the drum 10 without tilting. For example, this state is assumed to be a rotation angle of 0° for the tire forming apparatus 2.

[0052] Figure 4 Shown from Figure 3 In the state shown, the tire forming apparatus 2 is rotated 90 degrees so that the side surface 10s of the drum 10 is opposite to the attachment position P. With the structure of the tire forming apparatus 2 of this embodiment, when the attachment position of the strip 64 is changed significantly from the crown 10t of the drum 10 to the side surface 10s of the drum 10, as long as Figure 4 As shown in (a), the turntable 24 is rotated 90° and Figure 4 As shown in (b), the drum base 28 is simply moved so that the side surface 10s of the drum 10 faces the pasting position P.

[0053] Furthermore, the angle at which the tape 64 is applied can be adjusted simply by finely adjusting the distance to the application position P using the drum 10 along the X-Y axis defined on the turntable 24 and rotating the turntable 24 slightly. In other words, since the axis C of the turntable 24 is aligned with the application position P, even if the drum 10 is rotated significantly, it is not necessary to rapidly move the drum 10 along the X- and Y-axes, thereby contributing to increased speed and precision.

[0054] Therefore, the tire manufacturing device 1 adopting this structure can reduce the movement amount of the drum 10 as described above, thereby reducing the energy loss, device failure risk, material breakage and other accidents caused by moving the component supply device 6 side relative to the drum 10 as in the past and increasing the stacking speed of the strip 64.

[0055] Figure 5 It is a diagram showing another embodiment of the tire manufacturing apparatus 1 .

[0056] like Figure 5 As shown in FIG. 1 (a), the tire manufacturing apparatus 1 improves green tire forming efficiency by installing two tire forming apparatuses 2A and 2B on the same tracks 8, 8 relative to a component supply apparatus 6. The tire forming apparatuses 2A and 2B are configured so that their drum axes 44 face each other. Furthermore, after moving along the tracks 8, 8, the axis C of their respective turntables 24 aligns with a laminating position P set in the tire manufacturing apparatus 1.

[0057] For example, in the tire forming apparatus 2A, the drum 10 is mounted on the drum shaft 44 in a cantilevered state, so the strip 64 can be attached to the portion corresponding to the bead portion of the tire on one side, but the strip 64 cannot be attached to the portion corresponding to the bead portion of the tire on the other side 10s. Figure 5 As shown in (b), after the pasting on one side is completed in the tire forming device 2A, the tire 64 is moved from the tire forming device 2A to the tire forming device 2B to paste the tape 64 on the other side 10s.

[0058] In addition, if Figure 5 As shown by the arrow in (b), the component supply device 6 may be capable of moving forward and backward relative to the tire forming devices 2A and 2B.

[0059] Therefore, when manufacturing tires using the metal core manufacturing method, a component supply device 6 for supplying an inner lining raw material for forming the inner circumferential surface of the product tire, a component supply device 6 for supplying a sidewall raw material, and a component supply device 6 for supplying a tread raw material are arranged along the tracks 8, 8, and two tire forming devices 2A, 2B are set for each component supply device 6, so that the tire can be manufactured efficiently.

[0060] As described above, a metal core manufacturing method using a tire manufacturing device is carried out, which tire manufacturing device includes: a supply device that supplies a strip formed into a strip as a component constituting the tire; and a tire forming device that sticks the strip to the outer periphery of the drum while rotating a drum having the inner peripheral shape of the product tire as its outer shape, the supply device having a pasting position for pasting the strip to the outer periphery of the drum, the tire forming device includes: a drum that is arranged so that the rotating axis is horizontal; a turntable that rotates the drum around an axis that vertically passes through the pasting position while maintaining the horizontal state of the rotating axis of the drum; and a parallel movement mechanism that is provided on the turntable so that the drum moves parallel to a horizontal plane set on the turntable, and the rotating axis extends along the tangent direction of a circle centered on the axis of rotation of the turntable. It is better to have the above structure.

[0061] This structure allows the supply device to be fixed, reducing the energy loss, risk of failure, and material breakage caused by moving the heavy extruder that constitutes the supply device. Specifically, by aligning the drum's central axis of rotation with the attachment point to the drum, the drum can be rotated at high speed, increasing the degree of freedom in the lamination of the strips. Furthermore, this structure eliminates the need for rapid movement (parallel translation) of the drum along, for example, the XY axis defined on the turntable, even when the turntable is rotated significantly to move the drum to the attachment point. This contributes to higher speed and precision.

[0062] Furthermore, in the tire manufacturing apparatus, it is preferred that the parallel movement mechanism be configured to move the drum in parallel with a tangential direction of a circle centered on the axis and a direction orthogonal to the tangential direction.

[0063] That is, in a tire manufacturing method using a metal core method, when a drum having the inner circumferential shape of a product tire as its outer shape is rotated and a strip formed into a belt as a component constituting the tire is pasted to the outer circumference of the drum, the drum is placed on a turntable with its rotation axis horizontally, which rotates around an axis that vertically passes through a pasting position for pasting the strip to the drum set on a supply device, and it is preferable if the drum can be moved on the turntable parallel to a horizontal plane set on the turntable. Preferably, the drum can be moved on the turntable parallel to a tangent direction of a circle centered on the axis and a direction orthogonal to the tangent direction.

[0064] In the above embodiment, the component supply device kneads the rubber raw material using an extruder to supply the strip, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a strip raw material containing aggregates such as fibers may be supplied.

[0065] Description of Reference Numerals

[0066] 1. Tire manufacturing device; 2. Tire forming device; 6. Component supply device; 10. Drum; 20. Base; 22. Base; 24. Turntable; 26. Moving table; 28. Drum table; 60. Extrusion molding machine (extruder); 64. Strip; C. Axis.

Claims

1. A tire manufacturing device, characterized in that: The tire manufacturing device comprises: a supply device that supplies a strip formed into a belt shape as a member constituting the tire; and A tire forming device that adheres the strip to the outer periphery of a drum having an inner peripheral shape of a product tire as its outer shape while rotating the drum. The feeding device has a pasting position for pasting the strip to the outer periphery of the drum, wherein the axis of the rotating shaft passes through the pasting position; The tire forming device comprises: a drum arranged so that the axis of rotation of the drum is horizontal; a turntable for rotating the drum around an axis vertically passing through the attachment position while maintaining the horizontal state of the rotation axis of the drum; a parallel movement mechanism provided on the turntable, for moving the drum parallel to a horizontal plane set on the turntable; a moving stage fixed to a first direct-acting mechanism mounted on the turntable; and A drum stage fixed to a second direct-acting mechanism mounted on the moving stage; wherein, The tire manufacturing apparatus is configured such that the drum is movable along a set of orthogonal coordinate axes having an extension direction of the first direct-acting mechanism as an X-axis and an extension direction of the second direct-acting mechanism as a Y-axis by moving the movable table on the turntable or by moving the drum table on the movable table; and The rotation axis extends in a tangential direction of a direction around the axis of rotation of the turntable.

2. The tire manufacturing device according to claim 1, wherein: The parallel movement mechanism moves the drum in parallel with a tangential direction of a circle centered on the axis and a direction orthogonal to the tangential direction.

3. A tire manufacturing method, wherein a belt strip formed into a belt shape as a member constituting the tire is attached to the outer circumference of the drum while the drum having the inner circumference shape of the product tire as its outer shape is rotated, wherein: The drum is mounted on a turntable so that its rotation axis is horizontal and rotates about an axis that vertically passes through a position where the tape is pasted on the drum, which is set on a supply device, wherein the axis of the rotation axis passes through the pasting position; and capable of causing the drum to move parallel to a horizontal plane set on the turntable; wherein, The moving stage is fixed to the first direct-acting mechanism mounted on the turntable; The drum stage is fixed to a second direct-acting mechanism mounted on the moving stage; In which, by moving the movable table on the turntable or by moving the drum table on the movable table, the drum can be moved along a group of orthogonal coordinate axes, wherein the group of orthogonal coordinate axes has the extension direction of the first direct-acting mechanism as the X-axis and the extension direction of the second direct-acting mechanism as the Y-axis.

4. The tire manufacturing method according to claim 3, characterized in that: The drum can be moved on the turntable in parallel along a horizontal plane, a tangential direction of a circle centered on the axis, and a direction orthogonal to the tangential direction.

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