Tire manufacturing method and manufacturing system

Abstract

Provided are a tire manufacturing method and a manufacturing system that can use a robot arm to move a forming drum body to a desired work station more flexibly and smoothly in sequence to form a green tire, thereby manufacturing tires of various specifications with good productivity. A plurality of forming drum bodies (2) can be temporarily placed on a loading device (8) between adjacent work stations (S), and at least three mutually adjacent work stations (S) are set in a forming process. According to the specifications of the green tire (G), a plurality of required work stations (S) are selected and a moving path of the forming drum body (2) is determined. A robot arm (6) arranged at a position corresponding to the moving path and a loading device (8) arranged at a position corresponding to the moving path are used to transfer the forming drum body (2) and move the forming drum body (2) according to the moving path, and a forming operation is performed at each selected work station (S) to form the green tire (G).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a tire manufacturing method and a manufacturing system, and more particularly, to a tire manufacturing method and a manufacturing system capable of using a robot arm to sequentially move a forming drum to required work stations and perform forming operations to form a raw tire, thereby manufacturing tires of various specifications with good productivity. Background Art

[0002] The following method is known: when forming a green tire, an annular support body (forming drum body) is moved to a plurality of work stations (operating stations) in sequence, and tire components are attached to the annular support body at each work station (for example, refer to Patent Document 1). A robot arm is used to move the annular support body to the next work station, and a holding station is provided between adjacent work stations. The robot arm arranged at the first work station places the annular support body at a holding station provided between the first work station and the second work station. The robot arm arranged at the second work station picks up the annular support body placed on the holding station and moves it to the second work station. In this way, the annular support body is moved to adjacent work stations in sequence via the holding stations to form the green tire.

[0003] In the tire manufacturing plant proposed in Patent Document 1, the robot arm not only moves the annular support body, but also has the function of rotating and driving the annular support body around its own axis when attaching tire components, and is also used for the forming operation of the green tire. The robot arm can make the annular support body become any desired state relative to the attached tire components. Therefore, according to the tire manufacturing plant, it is not necessary to set a device for moving and rotating the annular support body to a desired position for each work station, which is conducive to efficiently forming green tires of various specifications.

[0004] However, in the tire manufacturing plant, in order to move the annular support from the previous work station to the next work station, it is necessary to pass through a holding station arranged between the work stations. As a result, the conveying path for moving the annular support becomes rigid, which becomes an obstacle to flexibly and efficiently moving the annular support to the required work stations in sequence.

[0005] Prior art literature

[0006] Patent Literature

[0007] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-515474 Summary of the invention

[0008] Problems to be solved by the invention

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide a tire manufacturing method and a tire manufacturing system that can use a robot arm to more flexibly and smoothly move a forming drum to a desired work station in sequence to form a green tire, thereby manufacturing tires of various specifications with good productivity.

[0010] Means for solving problems

[0011] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the tire manufacturing method of the present invention forms a raw tire by moving a forming drum body to multiple work stations in the forming process in sequence and using a robot arm set at each of the work stations to perform a forming operation of attaching tire constituent components to the forming drum body, thereby forming the raw tire and vulcanizing the raw tire. It is characterized in that in the tire manufacturing method, multiple forming drum bodies can be temporarily placed on a loading device between adjacent work stations, and at least three mutually adjacent work stations are set in the forming process. According to the specifications of the raw tire to be formed, multiple work stations required for the forming operation are selected from all the work stations and the moving path of the forming drum body in the forming process is determined. The robot arm configured at a position consistent with the determined moving path and the loading device set at a position consistent with the moving path are used to transfer the forming drum body, thereby causing the forming drum body to move along the moving path and performing the forming operation at each of the selected work stations.

[0012] The tire manufacturing system of the present invention comprises: a plurality of work stations, which are formed in a forming process; a forming drum body, which moves to the work stations in sequence; a robot arm, which is arranged at each of the work stations; and a vulcanizing device. The tire manufacturing system is configured to use the robot arm arranged at each of the work stations to perform a forming operation of attaching tire constituent components to the forming drum body to form a raw tire, and to vulcanize the raw tire using the vulcanizing device. The tire manufacturing system is characterized in that it comprises: a loading device, which is arranged between adjacent work stations; and a control device, which controls each of the robot arms. The tire manufacturing system is configured to be able to It is possible to temporarily place a plurality of the forming drum bodies between adjacent work stations, and at least three mutually adjacent work stations are provided in the forming process, and according to the specifications of the raw tire to be formed, a plurality of the work stations required for the forming operation are selected from all the work stations by the control device and a moving path of the forming drum body in the forming process is determined, the control device controls the robot arm arranged at a position conforming to the determined moving path, and utilizes the loading device arranged at a position conforming to the moving path to transfer the forming drum body so that the forming drum body moves according to the moving path, and the forming operation is performed at each of the selected work stations.

[0013] Effects of the Invention

[0014] According to the present invention, in the forming process, a plurality of the forming drum bodies can be temporarily placed on a loading device between adjacent working stations, and there are at least three mutually adjacent working stations. The loading device has the function of temporarily placing the forming drum body and functions as a branch point of the moving path of the forming drum body, so that more diverse moving paths can be set according to the specifications of the green tire to be formed. As a result, the forming drum body can be moved to the required working stations in sequence more flexibly and smoothly to form the green tire. In addition, by using the robot arm to perform the forming operation and move the forming drum body, it is easy and efficient to form green tires of various specifications. As a result, it is conducive to manufacturing tires of various specifications with good productivity. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 This is an explanatory diagram illustrating, in plan view, the equipment constituting the embodiment of the tire manufacturing system.

[0016] Figure 2 Yes Figure 1 An explanatory diagram showing an example of a partially enlarged portion of a device.

[0017] Figure 3This is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the gripping claws of the robot arm are positioned above the connecting portion of the forming drum body as seen from the side.

[0018] Figure 4 This is an example of plane observation. Figure 3 An illustration of a forming drum body.

[0019] Figure 5 It is an example Figure 3 An explanatory diagram of a state in which a forming drum body is held by a robot arm while a holding claw is engaged with a connecting portion.

[0020] Figure 6 This is an explanatory diagram illustrating a mounting device for a forming drum body as seen from the side.

[0021] Figure 7 This is an example of plane observation. Figure 6 An illustration of a loading device.

[0022] Figure 8 This is an example of temporarily placing the forming drum body on Figure 6 An illustration of the state of the loading device.

[0023] Fig. 9 is a schematic illustration Figure 1 An explanatory diagram of the control form of the control device.

[0024] Fig.10 It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the moving path of the forming drum.

[0025] Fig.11 This is an explanatory diagram showing a partially enlarged longitudinal cross-sectional view of a vulcanizing device that is vulcanizing a green tire. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] Hereinafter, a tire manufacturing method and system according to the present invention will be described based on the embodiments shown in the drawings.

[0027] Figure 1-2 The embodiment of the tire manufacturing system 1 illustrated includes a plurality of work stations S (S1 to S5) formed in the forming process and a vulcanizing device 15 disposed in the vulcanizing process. In the forming process, a green tire G is formed, and the formed green tire G is vulcanized by the vulcanizing device 15 to manufacture a tire T. In addition, the manufacturing system 1 includes a forming drum 2, a robot 6, a loading device 8, and a control device 14. The control device 14 controls each robot 6, and the forming drum 2 is sequentially moved to a desired work station S using the robot 6.

[0028] In the drawings, each work station S is divided and represented by a two-dot chain line. In this embodiment, five work stations S1 to S5 are formed in the forming process, but the number of work stations S is not particularly limited, and the required work stations S are set according to the tire specifications, etc. One or more robot arms 6 are set at each work station S.

[0029] At least three mutually adjacent work stations S are provided in the forming process. In this embodiment, the three work stations S1, S2, and S3 are mutually adjacent. In addition, the three work stations S2, S3, and S4 are also mutually adjacent, and the three work stations S3, S4, and S5 are also mutually adjacent. That is, in this embodiment, five work stations are formed in the forming process, and there are three groups of three mutually adjacent work stations S. In the forming process, at least three mutually adjacent work stations S may be provided in one group, and more preferably, there are multiple groups. In addition, as at least three mutually adjacent work stations S, for example, 3 to 5 mutually adjacent work stations S are used, and the number of mutually adjacent work stations S is restricted according to the number of work stations S formed in the forming process.

[0030] At each work station S, a forming operation of attaching a tire component M to the forming drum 2 is performed using a robot arm 6 provided at the work station S. Therefore, at each work station S, a component supply machine 7 for supplying the tire component M used for the forming operation is provided.

[0031] The component feeder 7 supplies any one or more of the tire constituent components M (M1 to M10) to the forming drum 2. Various known component feeders 7 can be used. Examples of the types of tire constituent components M include an inner liner, a carcass layer, a sidewall rubber, a reinforcing layer, and a tread rubber. The number of component feeders 7 arranged at each work station S is set as needed, and there may be a single case or a plurality of cases. At each work station S, sometimes only one component feeder 7 for supplying the same type of tire constituent components M is arranged, and sometimes multiple units are arranged.

[0032] The forming drum body 2 is used for attaching and stacking various tire components M, and therefore functions as a core material when forming the green tire G. As the forming drum body 2, for example, various known rigid cores can be used. In this embodiment, a rigid core having an outer peripheral surface with the same contour as the inner surface of the tire T to be manufactured is used as the forming drum body 2.

[0033] Figure 3 to Figure 5 The illustrated forming drum body 2 has a cylindrical portion 3 and a drum shaft 4a extending in the cylindrical axial direction at the center of the cylindrical portion 3. Figure 3 , Figure 5, the right half of the cylindrical portion 3 is shown in a longitudinal section. The cylindrical portion 3 is divided into a plurality of sections in the circumferential direction, and each section is supported by a support shaft 3a extending radially from the drum shaft 4a. The cylindrical portion 3 is formed by assembling the sections into a ring shape, and the cylindrical portion 3 is disassembled by disassembling the sections.

[0034] Discs 4b are fixed to both ends of the drum shaft 4a, one of which has a connecting portion 4c on its surface, and the other has an engaging portion 5 on its surface. The connecting portion 4c is gripped by a gripping claw 6b of a robot arm 6 described later. The engaging portion 5 engages with a guide 9a formed on a mounting table 9 of a mounting device 8.

[0035] The robot arm 6 is controlled by the control device 14 to perform a desired action based on the teaching instruction content input to the control device 14, the stored program, etc. As the robot arm 6, various known types (so-called industrial robot arms) can be used. The robot arm 6 of this embodiment is equipped with a drive motor 6M at the top of an arm portion 6a that can move to a desired position in three dimensions, and a gripping claw 6b is provided via the drive motor 6M. The gripping claw 6b is attached to and detached from the connecting portion 4c of the forming drum body 2.

[0036] When the holding claw 6b holding the connecting portion 4c and holding the forming drum body 2 is driven to rotate by the driving motor 6M, the forming drum body 2 is driven to rotate with the holding claw 6b around the drum shaft 4a. By rotating the forming drum body 2 held by the robot arm 6, the robot arm 6 can be used for forming operations.

[0037] In this embodiment, an identification part 12 is installed on the forming drum body 2. The identification part 12 is installed on the support shaft 3a supporting the cylindrical part 3, but can also be installed at other positions of the forming drum body 2 (for example, the cylindrical part 3). The identification part 12 has a function of distinguishing the forming drum body 2 on which the identification part 12 is installed from other forming drum bodies 2. As the identification part 12, an identification mark or a storage medium is used. The identification mark used as the identification part 12 is a non-storage medium (does not have the function of storing information), and various well-known types such as various symbols, numbers or combinations thereof, one-dimensional codes, and quadratic codes can be exemplified. As the storage medium used as the identification part 12, various well-known types such as IC chips (IC tags) that can store information can be exemplified.

[0038] The loading device 8 is provided between adjacent work stations S (in the area between the work stations S) and can temporarily place a plurality of forming drum bodies 2. The loading device 8 only needs to be able to temporarily place a plurality of forming drum bodies 2, and therefore, a plurality of loading devices 8 capable of temporarily placing one forming drum body 2 can be provided, and a single loading device 8 capable of temporarily placing a plurality of forming drum bodies 2 can also be provided. In addition, the loading device 8 provided between adjacent work stations S refers to a loading device 8 provided within a range that can be reached by the robot arm 6 provided at each adjacent work station S and can be used by the robot arm 6.

[0039] exist Figure 1 In the illustrated embodiment, two placement devices 8 capable of temporarily placing one forming drum body 2 are provided between adjacent work stations S1 and S2. Similarly, two placement devices 8 capable of temporarily placing one forming drum body 2 are provided between adjacent work stations S1 and S3, between adjacent work stations S2 and S3, between adjacent work stations S2 and S4, between adjacent work stations S3 and S4, between adjacent work stations S3 and S5, and between adjacent work stations S4 and S5.

[0040] In this embodiment, there is one loading device 8 at the intersection of the two-dot chain lines that divide each of the three adjacent work stations S1, S2, and S3. The loading device 8 can be used by the robot arm 6 installed in each of the work stations S1, S2, and S3. Similarly, there is one loading device 8 that can be used by the robot arm 6 installed in each of the three adjacent work stations S2, S3, and S4, and there is one loading device 8 that can be used by the robot arm 6 installed in each of the three adjacent work stations S3, S4, and S5.

[0041] The forming drum body 2 is released from the holding by the robot arm 6 and placed in a horizontal state on the placing device 8. The forming drum body 2 placed and temporarily placed on the placing device 8 is held by the robot arm 6 and moved to another place (the next work station S, etc.).

[0042] like Figure 6 , Figure 7 As shown, the mounting device 8 includes a mounting table 9 and a base 10 disposed below the mounting table 9. The mounting table 9 is supported by a central axis 11 erected on the base 10. The central axis 11 is disposed at the center of the mounting table 9 and the base 10 in plan view.

[0043] The mounting platform 9 on which the forming drum body 2 is mounted has a guide 9a. The mounting platform 9 can use various shapes that can mount the forming drum body 2 in a horizontal state. In this embodiment, a circular plate is used as the mounting platform 9. The guide 9a is an engaging body engaged with the forming drum body 2. In this embodiment, the guide 9a in the shape of a truncated cone protrudes upward on the upper surface of the mounting platform 9 and is arranged at two locations that are opposite to each other at 180° across the central axis 11 when viewed in a plane. The number of guides 9a is not particularly limited, and for example, they can be arranged at 3 to 4 locations at equal intervals in the circumferential direction with the central axis 11 as the center when viewed in a plane.

[0044] The base 10 is fixed to a predetermined installation position of a target area (a floor of a molding process, etc.) by bolts, etc. The base 10 is not limited to a metal box-shaped frame body as in this embodiment, and a simple metal plate may be used, for example.

[0045] In this embodiment, a detector 13 is installed on the mounting device 8. The detector 13 is installed on the mounting table 9, but can also be installed at other positions of the mounting device 8 (for example, the base 10). Figure 8 As illustrated, when the forming drum body 2 is temporarily placed on the placement device 8 , the detector 13 detects the identification unit 12 mounted on the temporarily placed forming drum body 2 in a non-contact manner and reads the displayed or stored information of the identification unit 12 .

[0046] like Fig. 9 As illustrated, the detector 13 is connected to the control device 14 wirelessly or by wire so as to be communicable. The detection data of the detector 13 is sequentially transmitted and input to the control device 14. As the detector 13, various known types corresponding to the recognition unit 12 can be used.

[0047] The control device 14 inputs and stores various data in addition to the data sent from the detector 13, and performs control of each robot arm 6 and various calculation processes. Various computers can be used as the control device 14. The control device 14 also controls each component feeder 7, but the component feeder 7 can also be set to a specification controlled by a control device other than the control device 14.

[0048] The control device 14 selects a plurality of work stations S required for the forming operation from all the work stations S (S1 to S5) formed in the forming process according to the specifications of the raw tire G to be formed, and determines the moving path of the forming drum body 2 in the forming process. Then, the control device 14 controls the robot arm 6 arranged at a position that matches the determined moving path, and uses the loading device 8 arranged at a position that matches the moving path to transfer the forming drum body 2 so that the forming drum body 2 moves according to the determined moving path. In addition, the control device 14 controls the robot arm 6 in such a way that the forming operation is performed at each selected work station S. In this embodiment, the control device 14 controls the robot arm 6 arranged at a position that matches the moving path of the forming drum body 2 based on the detection data of the detector 13 that is input.

[0049] A plurality of work stations S required according to the specifications of the raw tire G to be formed can also be selected based on a pre-made reference book, etc. The moving path of the forming drum body 2 in the forming process can also be determined based on a pre-made reference book, etc. In this case, an instruction to determine the selected work station S and the determined moving path is input to the control device 14 by manual operation or the like.

[0050] The vulcanizing device 15 is provided with a vulcanizing mold 16 corresponding to the tire specification, and the green tire G is vulcanized in the vulcanizing mold 16. Various known vulcanizing devices 15 can be used. The number of vulcanizing devices 15 is appropriately set.

[0051] Next, an example of the steps of manufacturing a tire using the manufacturing system 1 is described. In the manufacturing system 1, a plurality of green tires G are continuously formed. That is, the forming operation of a plurality of green tires G is performed at the same time in the forming process. The green tires G formed at the same time may all be of the same specification, but there may also be a mixture of green tires G of different specifications. For example, there may be cases where two or three specifications of green tires G are formed at the same time in the forming process.

[0052] exist Figure 1 , Figure 2 In the forming process illustrated in the example, according to the specifications of the green tire G to be formed, a plurality of work stations S required for the forming operation are selected from all the work stations S1 to S5 and the work stations S1 to S5 are selected and operated as follows: Fig.10 The moving path of the forming drum body 2 in the forming process is determined as shown in the example. In the case of the green tire G of specification A, as shown in Fig.10 As shown in (A), all the workstations S1 to S5 are selected as the moving path, and the forming drum 2 is moved in the order of S1, S2, S3, S4, and S5 using the loading device 8 provided between the workstations. Fig.10As shown in (B), the work stations S1, S2, S4, and S5 are selected as the moving path, and the forming drum body 2 is moved in the order of S1, S2, S4, and S5 using the loading device 8 provided between the work stations. Fig.10 As shown in (C), the work stations S1, S2, and S5 are selected as the moving path, and the forming drum body 2 is moved in the order of S1, S2, and S5 using the placement device 8 provided between the respective work stations.

[0053] In the selected work station S, the robot arm 6 provided at each work station S is used to attach the desired tire component M to the forming drum 2. Figure 5 As illustrated, the forming drum 2 is mounted on the robot 6 , and the forming drum 2 is rotationally driven to be in a desired state (position and angle) relative to the component feeder 7 , and the tire constituent component M supplied from the component feeder 7 is attached to the forming drum 2 .

[0054] When the forming operation at each work station S is completed, in order to move the forming drum body 2 to the next work station S2, the robot arm 6 is used as follows Figure 5 After the forming drum body 2 held as shown in the example is moved to the upper side of the predetermined loading device 8, the holding of the forming drum body 2 is released. Figure 8 As shown in the example, the fitting portion 5 of the forming drum body 2 is engaged with the guide 9a of the placement portion 2, and the forming drum body 2 is placed in a horizontally inverted state and temporarily placed on the placement table 9. The drum shaft 4a is positioned directly above the central axis 11. In order to move the forming drum body 2 temporarily placed on the placement device 8 to the next work station S2, the forming drum body 2 is mounted on a predetermined robot arm 6 and lifted from the placement device 8 for movement.

[0055] In order to move the forming drum 2, the forming drum 2 is transferred by using the robot arm 6 arranged at a position corresponding to the determined moving path and the loading device 8 arranged at a position corresponding to the moving path, so that the forming drum 2 is moved according to the moving path. Fig.10 In the cases of (A) and (B), the forming drum body 2 is moved while the forming operation is performed sequentially at the adjacent work stations S. Therefore, the forming drum body 2 is moved using the robot arm 6 provided at the work station S where the forming operation is performed.

[0056] In this embodiment, when the forming drum body 2 is temporarily placed on each loading device 8, the detector 13 provided on the loading device 8 detects the identification unit 12 installed on the temporarily placed forming drum body 2. The detection data of the detector 13 is input to the control device 14, and based on the detection data, the control device 14 controls the robot 6 arranged at a position corresponding to the input moving path of the forming drum body 2.

[0057] Specifically, when an identification mark is used as the identification unit 12, each identification mark is associated with the specification of the raw tire G formed using the forming drum body 2 to which the identification mark is attached, and stored in the control device 14. When a storage medium capable of storing information is used as the identification unit 12, the specification of the raw tire G formed using the forming drum body 2 to which the storage medium is attached is pre-stored in the storage medium.

[0058] Furthermore, the control device 14, to which the detection data detected by the detector 13 is input, grasps the position of the forming drum body 2 to which the identification unit 12 detected the detection data is attached, and compares it with the moving path of the forming drum body 2. Next, the forming drum body 2 is moved by controlling the robot arm 6 arranged at a position corresponding to the future moving path of the forming drum body 2, and when the robot arm 6 performs the forming operation, the robot arm 6 performs the forming operation, and then controls the forming drum body 2 to be placed on a predetermined placing device 8. When the robot arm 6 only moves the forming drum body 2, the control device 14 controls the forming drum body 2 to be placed on a predetermined placing device 8.

[0059] When an identification mark is used as the identification part 12, there is an advantage that the risk of damage in the vulcanization process is reduced, which is also conducive to cost reduction. When a storage medium is used as the identification part 12, various additional information can be stored, and the information stored in the storage medium can be grasped using a reader (reading machine) without using the control device 14.

[0060] In the forming process, a plurality of forming drum bodies 2 can be temporarily placed on the loading device 8 between adjacent work stations S, and there are at least three mutually adjacent work stations S. The loading device 8 has the function of temporarily placing the forming drum body 2 and functions as a branch point of the moving path of the forming drum body 2. Therefore, when raw tires G of different specifications are mixed and formed at the same time, more various moving paths can be set according to the specifications of the formed raw tires G. That is, when raw tires G of different times required for forming operations are formed at the same time, the options for the moving paths for forming each raw tire G in the shortest possible time can be increased. With this, the forming drum body 2 can be moved to the required work stations S in sequence more flexibly and smoothly to form the raw tire G. In addition, since the robot arm 6 is used to perform the forming operation and move the forming drum body 2, it is easy to efficiently form raw tires G of various specifications compared to the case where the robot arm 6 is only used for moving the forming drum body 2.

[0061] By making it possible to temporarily place a plurality of forming drum bodies 2 on the loading device 8 between adjacent work stations S, at least one forming drum body 2 is not simply temporarily placed on the loading device 8 between adjacent work stations S, but the movement can be suspended according to the progress of the forming operation at the work station S at the moving destination. That is, the loading device 8 can function as a buffer device. Therefore, whether the green tires G formed at the same time are all of the same specifications or the green tires G of different specifications are mixed, it is conducive to more flexible and smooth sequential movement of the forming drum body 2 according to the progress of the forming operation at the work station S at the moving destination.

[0062] exist Fig.10 In the case of (C), the forming drum body 2 is moved while the forming operation is performed sequentially at the non-adjacent work stations S2 and S5. However, the forming drum body 2 cannot be moved from the work station S2 to S5 only by the robot arm 6 installed at the work stations S2 and S5. Therefore, as the robot arm 6 arranged at a position that matches the moving path, the robot arm 6 installed at the work station S3 or S4 is used. In addition, as the loading device 8 installed at a position that matches the moving path, the loading device 8 installed between the work stations S3 and S4 is used.

[0063] That is, the robot arm 6 installed at the work station S3 or S4 is used only to move the forming drum body 2 and is not used for the forming operation. Which of the work stations S3 and S4 to use the robot arm 6 is determined by using the robot arm 6 that is not used for the other green tire G at this time. In this way, the robot arm 6 is not only used for both the forming operation and the movement of the forming drum body 2, but also used only for the movement of the forming drum body 2 according to the specifications of the green tire G, which is conducive to more flexible and smooth sequential movement of the forming drum body 2.

[0064] like Figure 1 As illustrated, when there is a placement device 8 that can be used in common by the robot arms 6 provided at three or more adjacent work stations S, the forming drum body 2 temporarily placed on the placement device 8 can be directly moved to the work station S using the robot arms 6 provided at the adjacent work stations S. Therefore, it is advantageous to move the forming drum body 2 to a desired work station S more quickly.

[0065] As described above, by sequentially moving the forming drum 2 to the desired work stations S, the green tire G is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the forming drum 2 using the desired tire components M. The formed green tire G is moved together with the forming drum 2 to the vulcanization step.

[0066] exist Fig.11In the illustrated vulcanization step, the green tire G that has been formed is vulcanized by a known method. The green tire G is placed together with the forming drum 2 in the vulcanization mold 16 mounted on the vulcanization device 15. Then, the green tire G is vulcanized in the closed vulcanization mold 16 to complete the tire T. In this embodiment, a pneumatic tire T is manufactured, but the present invention is not limited to pneumatic tires and can be applied to the manufacture of various other types of tires T.

[0067] By moving the forming drum 2 more flexibly and smoothly to the required work stations S in sequence while performing the forming work, it is easy to efficiently form green tires G of various specifications. As a result, it is advantageous to manufacture tires T of various specifications with good productivity.

[0068] Description of Reference Numerals

[0069] 1 Manufacturing System

[0070] 2 Forming drum

[0071] 3 Cylinder

[0072] 3a Support shaft

[0073] 4a Drum shaft

[0074] 4b Disc

[0075] 4c Connection

[0076] 5 Chimeric part

[0077] 6 Robotic Arm

[0078] 6a Arm

[0079] 6b Gripping claw

[0080] 6M Drive Motor

[0081] 7 Component Feeder

[0082] 8 Loading device

[0083] 9 Loading table

[0084] 9a Guide

[0085] 10 Base

[0086] 11 Central axis

[0087] 12 Identification

[0088] 13 Detector

[0089] 14 Control Devices

[0090] 15 Vulcanization device

[0091] 16 Vulcanization mold

[0092] M (M1 to M10) tire components

[0093] G Green tire

[0094] T Vulcanized tire

[0095] S Workstation

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a tire, wherein a forming drum is moved sequentially to a plurality of work stations of a forming process, a robot arm provided at each of the work stations is used to perform a forming operation of attaching tire components to the forming drum to form a green tire, and the green tire is vulcanized. In the tire manufacturing method, A plurality of the forming drum bodies can be temporarily placed on a loading device between adjacent working stations, and at least three mutually adjacent working stations are arranged in the forming process. According to the specifications of the raw tire to be formed, a plurality of work stations required for the forming operation are selected from all the work stations and a moving path of the forming drum body in the forming process is determined, and the forming drum body is transferred using the robot arm configured at a position that matches the determined moving path and the loading device set at a position that matches the moving path, thereby moving the forming drum body along the moving path and performing the forming operation at each of the selected work stations.

2. The method for manufacturing a tire according to claim 1, In the forming step, a plurality of types of green tires having different specifications are mixed and formed at the same time.

3. The method for manufacturing a tire according to claim 1 or 2, An identification part is installed on each of the forming drum bodies, and a detector for detecting the identification part is provided on each of the loading devices. When the forming drum body is temporarily placed on each of the loading devices, the detector provided on the loading device detects the identification part installed on the temporarily placed forming drum body, and the detection data of the detector is input to the control device. The control device controls the robot arm arranged at a position that matches the moving path of the forming drum body based on the input detection data.

4. The method for manufacturing a tire according to claim 3, As the identification unit, an identification mark or a storage medium capable of storing information is used.

5. A tire manufacturing system, comprising: a plurality of workstations, the plurality of workstations being formed in a forming process; a forming drum, the forming drum being sequentially moved to the workstations; a robot arm, the robot arm being disposed at each of the workstations; and a vulcanizing device, wherein the tire manufacturing system is configured to form a green tire by using the robot arm disposed at each of the workstations to perform a forming operation of attaching tire components to the forming drum, and vulcanizing the green tire by using the vulcanizing device. The tire manufacturing system comprises: a loading device, which is disposed between adjacent working stations; and a control device, which controls each of the robot arms. The tire manufacturing system is composed of: A plurality of the forming drum bodies can be temporarily placed between adjacent working stations, and at least three mutually adjacent working stations are arranged in the forming process. According to the specifications of the green tire to be formed, the control device selects a plurality of the work stations required for the forming operation from all the work stations and determines the moving path of the forming drum body in the forming process. The control device controls the robot arm arranged at a position conforming to the determined moving path, and utilizes the loading device arranged at a position conforming to the moving path to transfer the forming drum body so that the forming drum body moves along the moving path, and the forming operation is performed at each selected work station.

Images