Method of operating a tire

Abstract

A method of operating a tire includes a first sidewall, a second sidewall, and a tread extending between the first sidewall and the second sidewall. The tread comprises a first pavement strip block, a first plurality of pattern blocks arranged between the first side wall and the first pavement strip block, and a second plurality of pattern blocks arranged between the second side wall and the first pavement strip block; the method includes inflating the tire to a first pressure; in response to inflation, contacting the first pavement strip with the pavement without contacting the first plurality of blocks and the second plurality of blocks with the pavement; a vehicle with tires on the paved road surface is dragged; deflating the tire such that the first pavement patch, the first plurality of blocks, and the second plurality of blocks contact the pavement; and thereafter, driving the vehicle away from the road.

Description

[0001] The present invention is a divisional application with an application date of September 30, 2020, an application number of 202011062727.4, and an invention name of “Tyre for positioning a vehicle on a surface”. Technical Field

[0002] The present disclosure relates to a method of operating a tire. Background Art

[0003] This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.

[0004] Off-road vehicles are becoming more and more popular. Most people do not live near off-road trails. Therefore, off-road vehicles must be transported to the ride location. Typically, the off-road vehicle is loaded onto a trailer and moved to the desired ride location. When not in use, the trailer and the off-road vehicle must be stored. This places a burden on the off-road vehicle owner. Another way to move an off-road vehicle to a desired location is by towing. One problem with towing is that the tires of off-road vehicles wear faster, especially on paved roads. One way to remedy this problem is to provide a separate set of tires for the off-road vehicle. The separate set of tires is typically set on a separate set of wheels. The separate set of tires is suitable for use on paved roads and will not show the wear of off-road tires. However, the increased cost, labor and inconvenience associated with changing tires on site are undesirable. Summary of the invention

[0005] This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.

[0006] A method of operating a tire is described, the tire having a first sidewall, a second sidewall, and a tread extending between the first sidewall and the second sidewall, the tread including a first paved surface block centrally located between the first sidewall and the second sidewall and a first plurality of tread blocks disposed between the first sidewall and the first paved surface block and a second plurality of tread blocks disposed between the second sidewall and the first paved surface block, the first paved surface block including a first compound, the first plurality of tread blocks and the second plurality of tread blocks including a second compound,

[0007] Methods include:

[0008] Inflate the tire to a first pressure;

[0009] In response to the inflation, the first paved road block is brought into contact with the paved road surface without bringing the first plurality of tread blocks and the second plurality of tread blocks into contact with the paved road surface;

[0010] Towing a vehicle with tires on a paved surface;

[0011] Deflation of the tire so that the first paved road surface block, the first plurality of tread blocks, and the second plurality of tread blocks contact the paved road surface; and

[0012] Afterwards, move the vehicle off the road.

[0013] A tire construction suitable for towing a vehicle to minimize wear of the tire due to off-road characteristics is described.

[0014] In one aspect of the present disclosure, a tire for positioning a vehicle on a surface includes a first sidewall, a second sidewall, and a tread extending between the first sidewall and the second sidewall. The tread includes a first paved surface block, and a first plurality of tread blocks disposed between the first sidewall and the first paved surface block, and the tread also includes a second plurality of tread blocks disposed between the second sidewall and the first paved surface block. The tread includes a first lateral shape at a first inflation pressure such that the first paved surface block contacts the surface, while the first plurality of tread blocks or the second plurality of tread blocks do not contact the surface. The tread includes a second lateral shape at a second pressure less than the first pressure such that the first plurality of tread blocks, the first paved surface block, and the second plurality of tread blocks contact the surface.

[0015] Further scope of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein.The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 is a side view of an off-road vehicle being towed by a towing vehicle.

[0017] Figure 2A is a simplified cross-section view of an off-road tire.

[0018] Figure 2B is a second example of an off-road tire.

[0019] Figure 3 yes Figure 2A Simplified cross-sectional view of a tire in a less inflated state.

[0020] Figure 4 is a front view of the tread pattern of a tire having a first stripe.

[0021] Figure 5 is a front view of a tread pattern of a tire having two bars.

[0022] Figure 6 yes Figure 2A Detailed cross-sectional view of a tire. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] Examples will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although the following description includes several examples of multi-purpose vehicle applications, it should be understood that the features herein can be applied to any suitable vehicle, such as motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, mopeds, mopeds, etc. The examples disclosed below are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed in the following detailed description. Rather, these examples are selected and described so that others skilled in the art can take advantage of their teachings.

[0024] Reference now Figure 1 , an off-road vehicle 10 is shown. The off-road vehicle 10 includes a body 12, wheels 14, and tires 16. The wheels 14 are coupled to the body 12 via a suspension (not shown).

[0025] The towing vehicle 20 may be used to tow the off-road vehicle 10 by using a towing device 22, such as a tow bar or one or more towing straps. In this example, the off-road vehicle 10 is towed with all four tires contacting the road surface 24. However, the towing device 22 may include a wheel lift so that only two tires 16 contact the road surface 24.

[0026] Reference now Figure 2A , a road surface 24 is shown relative to one of the tires 16. The tire 16 has a tread 30, a first sidewall 32, and a second sidewall 34. The tread 30 is shown as having a plurality of lugs 36 with spaces 38 between the lugs. The tread 30 also includes a center pavement bar 40. In this embodiment, the center pavement bar 40 is continuous and circumferential and is used to contact the road surface 24 during towing due to the lateral shape. The center pavement bar 40 can also be in a plurality of discontinuous center bar portions. During towing, the tire 16 is inflated to a first inflation pressure that is much higher than a second inflation pressure when the vehicle is used on a non-road surface. As described in more detail below, the center pavement bar 40 is made of a material different from the material of the lugs 36. The center paving strip block 40 is more durable, more wear resistant and longer lasting than the material used to form the lugs 36. The construction of the tread 30 is described in more detail below. The lugs 36 are not as wear resistant as the center paving strip block 40.

[0027] Reference now Figure 2B, tread 30 may include a first central paved paving strip 40A and a second central paved paving strip 40B, each of which is arranged around a central circumference of tire 16. The lateral shape of tread 30 allows central paved paving strips 40A and 40B to contact road surface 24 when the tire is inflated to a high pressure.

[0028] Reference now Figure 3 , in Figure 2A and Figure 2B At the lower pressure condition illustrated, the lateral shape of the tread 30 of the tire 16 allows both the lugs 36 and the center paved paving block 40 to contact the non-road surface 42 .

[0029] Reference now Figure 4 , shows a front view of a tire 16. In this example, the tire 16 has a central paved tread block 40 and side tread blocks 36. The side tread blocks 36 are arranged in two rows. The central paved tread block 40 is shown as a discontinuous tread pattern in the center of the tire 16, with multiple discontinuous central bar sections.

[0030] Reference now Figure 5 , which explains Figure 2B The tire 16' is shown. The tread surface 30 is shown having two central paved paving strips 40A, 40B that are discontinuous and each have a plurality of discontinuous central strip portions.

[0031] Reference now Figure 6, showing a cross section of a tire 16. In this example, three different compounds are used to form the tread. In this example, compound A is in regions 50A and 50B adjacent to respective sidewalls 32 and 34. The lugs 36 may be in the first region 50A and the second region 50B. A third region 50C disposed between region 50A and region 50B includes a central paved paving strip 40 or central paved paving strips 40A, 40B. The first region 50A and the second region 50B may be formed of a first compound having a natural rubber (NR) greater than or equal to 90 parts per hundred rubber (PHR) and a styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) less than 10 PHR. The filler system may be composed of carbon black, and the curing system may be low in sulfur content, such as less than two PHR. The central region or third region 50C has a central paved paving strip 40, or strips 40A, 40B formed of a second compound. The second compound can be harder than regions 50A, 50B and make the tread more wear-resistant. The third region 50C is formed by a blend of natural rubber (NR) and SBR. For example, the central compound can be 50±15 PHR of natural rubber (NR) and 50±15 PHR of styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR). In this example, the filler system can also be carbon black, and the curing system can also be low-sulfur (less than 2 PHR).

[0032] The third material 54 arranged radially inside the first area 50A, the second area 50B, and the third area 50C can be composed of natural rubber (NR) greater than 90PHR and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) less than 10PHR. The filler system can be carbon black, silica, or pre-coupled silica. The third material 54 can be called a tread underlayer. Below the tread underlayer is a wrapping layer 56, a belt 58, an inner liner compound 60, and a carcass layer 62. More than one belt can be used. And, in some configurations, the wrapping layer 56 can be omitted. It should be noted that nylon belts or nylon strips can be used to maintain the shape of the tire and allow driving at higher speeds. And, a thin layer of carbon black can be used in the space between the tread blocks in the tire pattern. This allows the tire to resist static electricity during operation.

[0033] In operation, during towing of the vehicle 10, the vehicle's tires 16 are inflated to a relatively high pressure, such as 26 pounds per square inch (PSI). The vehicle can be towed with high tire pressure. When the tire pressure is high, the central paved road strip block 40, or the strips 40A, 40B contact the paved road surface. Because one or more central strips have a high hardness, the central portion does not wear quickly on the paved road surface (compared to the pattern blocks adjacent thereto). When the vehicle is not being towed and the vehicle is to be driven off-road, the tire pressure is reduced to a much lower tire pressure, such as 12 PSI. Of course, such high tire inflation pressures and low tire inflation pressures can vary due to the construction of the tire and the construction of the tread surface.

[0034] The foregoing description has been provided for the purpose of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure. The individual elements and features of a specific example are generally not limited to that specific example, but are interchangeable when applicable and can be used in selected examples even if not explicitly shown or described. It can also be varied in a variety of ways. Such variations are not considered to be departures from the present disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0035] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0036] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 911,635, filed on October 7, 2019. The entire disclosure of the above application is incorporated herein by reference.

Claims

1. A method for operating a tire, characterized in that: The tire has a first sidewall, a second sidewall, and a tread extending between the first sidewall and the second sidewall, the tread including a first paved road block centrally located between the first sidewall and the second sidewall, and a first plurality of tread blocks disposed between the first sidewall and the first paved road block and a second plurality of tread blocks disposed between the second sidewall and the first paved road block, the first paved road block including a first compound, the first plurality of tread blocks and the second plurality of tread blocks including a second compound, the method comprising: inflating the tire to a first pressure; In response to the inflation, the first paved road block is brought into contact with a paved road surface without bringing the first plurality of tread blocks and the second plurality of tread blocks into contact with the paved road surface; towing a vehicle having the tires on the paved road; deflate the tire so that the first paved road surface block, the first plurality of tread blocks, and the second plurality of tread blocks contact the paved road surface; and Thereafter, the vehicle is driven off the road.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first paving strips are discontinuous and form a plurality of central strip portions.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first compound does not contain silicon dioxide.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first compound includes a natural rubber and a styrene-butadiene rubber blend.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The first compound includes between about 35 parts per hundred and 65 parts per hundred natural rubber and between about 35 parts per hundred and about 65 parts per hundred styrene butadiene rubber.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The method further includes a third region extending beneath the first plurality of tread blocks, the second plurality of tread blocks, and the first paving strip block.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The third region includes greater than about 90 parts per hundred natural rubber and less than about 10 parts per hundred rubber of styrene butadiene rubber.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The third region includes silica, carbon black or precoupled silica.

9. The method according to claim 5, wherein: The first compound includes carbon black.

10. The method according to claim 5, wherein: The first compound includes less than about 2 parts sulfur per hundred parts rubber.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first compound does not contain silicon dioxide, and the second compound does not contain silicon dioxide.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first compound makes the tread more wear-resistant than the second compound.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first compound includes a styrene butadiene-based rubber and a natural rubber blend, and the second compound includes natural rubber.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The tread includes a second paving strip.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The second paving strip includes a plurality of discontinuous central strip portions.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The second paving strip is arranged adjacent to the first paving strip.

17. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The second paving strip comprises the same material as the first paving strip.

18. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The first plurality of tread blocks are disposed between the first sidewall and the first pavement strip, and the second plurality of tread blocks are disposed between the second sidewall and the second pavement strip, and the first pavement strip includes a first compound and the second pavement strip includes the first compound.

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