Tire

Abstract

Provided is a tire in which the black density is improved and the contrast ratio is increased compared to conventional tires. A tire (1) is provided with a pattern region (7) in a portion of the outer surface of a sidewall (3), the pattern region (7) being provided so as to be visible as a different portion from the periphery of the portion, the pattern region (7) having a plurality of character protrusions (110) that are separated from each other, and the character protrusions (110) being provided so as to protrude from the pattern region (7). Each of the character protrusions (110) is a protrusion imitating a character or a protrusion imitating a rotated or flipped character, and when a parallelogram region circumscribing the contour of the character protrusion (110) and a region formed such that the area thereof is the smallest are set as a character protrusion region (R110), the character protrusion region (R110) and the character protrusion region (R110) form a parallelogram region. The character protrusion regions (R110) of adjacent character protrusions (110) are partially overlapped with each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a tire having a pattern area for displaying, for example, a logo, a tread pattern, etc. on a part of the outer surface of the sidewall. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a tire in which a pattern area formed by a plurality of fine protrusions is provided on a part of the sidewall of the tire (for example, Patent Document 1, etc.). In such a pattern area, the incident light is repeatedly reflected between the protrusions to produce a light absorption effect, whereby it is visually recognized as darker than the outer surface of the surrounding sidewall, and the contrast is improved. By providing such a pattern area, the tire can achieve, for example, an improvement in design effect and appearance.

[0003] Prior Art Documents

[0004] Patent Documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2017-1440 Summary of the Invention

[0006] Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] The high contrast achieved by a plurality of protrusions is less likely to undergo secular changes compared to methods such as painting, and has the advantage of maintaining its effect for a long time. Therefore, there is a demand for further increasing the black density compared to the prior art and promoting high contrast, and for forming a pattern area based on protrusions that can further improve the design effect and appearance.

[0008] The problem of the present disclosure is to provide a tire that has a higher black density and achieves a higher contrast compared to the prior art.

[0009] Means for Solving the Problems

[0010] The tire of the present disclosure has a pattern area on a part of the outer surface of the sidewall, and the pattern area is provided in a state where it can be visually recognized as a part different from the surrounding area. Among them, the pattern area has a plurality of character protrusions separated from each other, and each of the character protrusions is a protrusion imitating a character or a protrusion imitating a rotated or flipped character. When a parallelogram area that circumscribes the contour of the character protrusion and has the smallest area is set as the character protrusion area, a part of the character protrusion areas of adjacent character protrusions overlaps each other.

[0011] Advantages of the Invention

[0012] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a tire that has a higher black density and achieves a higher contrast compared to the prior art. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013] Figure 1 It is a side view of the tire 1 according to the first embodiment.

[0014] Figure 2 This is a diagram showing an example of a tire molding die for vulcanization molding the tire 1 according to the embodiment.

[0015] Figure 3 It is a plan view showing a state where a plurality of character protrusions 110 are provided on the UV development reference surface 7 b when the reference surface 7 a of the pattern area 7 is UV developed.

[0016] Figure 4 is with Figure 3 Likewise, only one character protrusion 110 is shown.

[0017] Figure 5 is Figure 4 A cross-sectional view of the character protrusion 110 cut at the position of arrow AA in FIG.

[0018] Figure 6 It is a figure which shows the evaluation result.

[0019] Figure 7 This is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1 .

[0020] Figure 8 It is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1 .

[0021] Figure 9 It is a diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1 .

[0022] Figure 10 It is a diagram showing a fifth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1 .

[0023] Figure 11 It is a diagram showing a sixth embodiment of the character protrusion provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1 .

[0024] Figure 12 This is a diagram showing a seventh embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1 .

[0025] Figure 13 It is a diagram showing an eighth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1 .

[0026] Figure 14 It is a diagram showing a ninth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1 .

[0027] Figure 15It is a view showing a tenth embodiment of the character protrusion provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1.

[0028] Figure 16 It is a view showing an eleventh embodiment of the character protrusion provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1.

[0029] Figure 17 It is a view showing a modified form of the protrusion shape in the cross section of the character protrusion 110.

[0030] Figure 18 It is a view showing a modified form of the protrusion shape in the cross section of the character protrusion 110.

[0031] Explanation of reference numerals:

[0032] 1 Tire

[0033] 1a Green tire

[0034] 1s Side

[0035] 2 Bead

[0036] 3 Sidewall

[0037] 3a Outer surface

[0038] 4 Tread

[0039] 5 Decoration area

[0040] 5a Inner arc line

[0041] 5b Outer arc line

[0042] 6A Emblem part

[0043] 6B Pattern part

[0044] 7 Pattern area

[0045] 7a Reference plane

[0046] 7b UV unfolding reference plane

[0047] 10 Tire forming die

[0048] 11 Sector die

[0049] 11a Inner surface

[0050] 12 Side plate

[0051] 12a Inner surface

[0052] 110 Character protrusion

[0053] 110a Top

[0054] 110b side

[0055] 111, 112, 113, 114 straight portions

[0056] 115, 116, 117 connecting portions

[0057] 120, 130, 140, 150, 160, 170, 180, 190, 210, 220, 230, 240, 250, 260, 270, 280 text protrusions

[0058] G110-1 text protrusion group

[0059] G110-1 first text protrusion group

[0060] G110-2 second text protrusion group

[0061] G110-3 third text protrusion group

[0062] R110 text protrusion area

[0063] R120, R130, R140, R150, R160, R170, R180, R190, R210, R220, R230, R240, R250, R260, R270, R280 text protrusion areas. Detailed implementation mode

[0064] Hereinafter, an implementation mode for implementing the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings and the like.

[0065] (First implementation mode)

[0066] Hereinafter, the implementation mode will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a side view of the tire 1 of the first implementation mode. The tire 1 is a so-called pneumatic tire in which a prescribed air pressure is filled in its inner cavity. The tire 1 of the implementation mode is a pneumatic tire for passenger cars including light vehicles, SUVs, etc. It should be noted that the structure of the tire 1 of the implementation mode can also be applied to pneumatic tires for other vehicle types such as light trucks, trucks, buses, etc.

[0067] First, with reference to Figure 1 a summary of the main side-related structure of the tire 1 will be described. Figure 1 is a side view of the tire 1 observed from the direction of the tire rotation axis X. It should be noted that the tire axial direction, the tire circumferential direction, and the tire radial direction in the following description are as follows. The tire axial direction refers to the extending direction of the tire rotation axis X, and in Figure 1"Inward" refers to the front and back directions of the paper surface. It should be noted that when observing from the radial direction of the tire, the axial direction of the tire is the left-right direction, so sometimes the axial direction of the tire is referred to as the left-right direction. The circumferential direction of the tire refers to the arc line centered on the tire rotation axis X and is the direction along the rotation direction of the tire 1. In Figure 1 it is indicated by the arrow G. The radial direction of the tire refers to the direction perpendicular to the tire rotation axis X and is arbitrarily indicated by the arrow Y in Figure 1 .

[0068] As Figure 1 shown, the tire 1 includes a bead 2, a sidewall 3 extending radially outward from the bead 2 away from the tire rotation axis X in the radial direction of the tire, and a tread 4. The bead 2 and the sidewall 3 are respectively provided with one, that is, a pair of left and right, on one side 1s of the tire 1 shown in Figure 1 and on the side of the other side not shown separated in the axial direction of the tire. The tread 4 is disposed between the radial outsides of the left and right sidewalls 3. The outer peripheral surface of the tread 4 includes a tread surface that contacts the road surface. Figure 1

[0069] The tire 1 is configured with various rubbers that respectively form the bead 2, the sidewall 3, and the tread 4 as the main body. A carcass ply that forms the skeleton of the tire 1 is disposed on the inner cavity side of the rubber that forms the entire tire 1, and further, an airtight layer that maintains the air pressure is disposed on the inner cavity side of the carcass ply. In addition, an annular reinforcing belt layer is embedded inside the rubber that forms the tread 4 (the carcass ply, the airtight layer, and the reinforcing belt layer are omitted from the illustration). It should be noted that in addition to these components, various components are also provided as needed in terms of the functions of the tire 1.

[0070] As Figure 1 shown, the sidewall 3 has an annular decorative area 5 on its outer surface 3a that extends over the entire circumference of the tire in the circumferential direction. The decorative area 5 is a region with a constant width sandwiched between an inner arc line 5a closer to the tire rotation axis X in the radial direction of the tire and an outer arc line 5b located on the radial outside of the inner arc line 5a. The inner arc line 5a and the outer arc line 5b can be lines formed by concave, convex, or steps on the outer surface 3a of the sidewall 3, or can be imaginary lines that do not actually exist.

[0071] The radial position of the decorative area 5 on the outer surface 3a of the sidewall 3 can be located at a position on the radial outside of the position of the maximum width of the tire, or can be located at a position including the position of the maximum width of the tire. It should be noted that the position of the maximum width of the tire refers to the position where the axial length is the longest between the outer surfaces 3a of the left and right sidewalls 3.

[0072] The tire 1 has a pattern area 7 on a part of the outer surface 3a of the sidewall 3, and the pattern area 7 is set to be visually recognizable as a part different from the surroundings of this part. The pattern area 7 is provided on the sidewall rubber which is a black rubber member constituting the outer surface of the sidewall 3.

[0073] As Figure 1 shown, badge portions 6A are provided at two portions of the annular decorative area 5 that are opposed to each other across the tire rotation axis X. The badge portions 6A are formed by arranging a plurality of characters in the circumferential direction of the tire. Through these plurality of characters, at least one of the badges such as the manufacturer name, product name, brand, etc. is displayed. Each character can be formed by being bordered by concave or convex lines, or the whole character is formed by being concave or convex. For example, each character of the badge portion 6A is set as the pattern area 7 of the embodiment.

[0074] As Figure 1 shown, in the annular decorative area 5, tread portions 6B are provided at two portions that are sandwiched by the two badge portions 6A in the circumferential direction. A pattern in which a parallelogram is curved following the annular decorative area 5 is provided in the tread portion 6B. For example, each pattern of the tread portion 6B is also set as the pattern area 7 of the embodiment.

[0075] It should be noted that the shape of the pattern area 7 is not limited to this, and various shapes can be cited, such as any shape, or the shape of the badges such as the manufacturer name, product name, brand, etc. described above, or the shape of other numbers, characters, etc.

[0076] Each of the above pattern areas 7 in the embodiment has a reference plane 7a along the contour of the sidewall 3. A plurality of character protrusions 110 described later are formed on the reference plane 7a. The pattern area 7 is an area that is set to be visually recognizable as a part different from the surroundings of the pattern area 7 by forming the plurality of character protrusions 110.

[0077] Figure 2 An example of a tire forming die for vulcanizing and forming the tire 1 of the embodiment is shown. Figure 2 This is a meridian sectional view along the axial direction of the formed tire 1 of such a tire forming die 10.

[0078] Figure 2 The shown tire forming die 10 includes a plurality of sector dies 11 arranged in a circular shape along the outer peripheral side of the tire 1, a pair of side plates 12 disposed on both axial sides of the annular body formed by the combination of the plurality of sector dies 11, and a pair of bead rings (not shown). At the time of vulcanizing and forming, as Figure 2As shown by the dashed line, an unvulcanized tire 1a that becomes the tire 1 is provided inside the tire forming die 10. The combination of the segment die 11, the side plates 12, and the bead rings is a forming die for forming the tire 1, and the outer surface of the entire tire 1 is formed by the inner surfaces of this forming die, that is, the inner surface 11a of the segment die 11, the inner surface 12a of the side plates 12, and the inner surface of the bead rings. Further, during vulcanization forming, an airbag (not shown) that presses the unvulcanized tire 1a against the inner surface of the tire forming die 10 is disposed inside the unvulcanized tire 1a. The tread 4 is mainly formed by a plurality of segment dies 11, and the sidewalls 3 are mainly formed by a pair of side plates 12. The bead 2 is formed by a pair of the above bead rings, and the entire inner surface of the tire 1 is formed by the above airbag.

[0079] The unvulcanized tire 1a is vulcanized using the tire forming die 10 to form the rubber shape of the entire tire 1, and a plurality of text protrusions 110 described below are formed in the above pattern area 7.

[0080] Figure 3 It is a plan view showing a state in which a plurality of text protrusions 110 are provided on a UV development reference plane 7b when UV developing from a reference plane 7a of the pattern area 7. Note that, in Figure 3 a state in which three text protrusions 110 are arranged side by side in the horizontal and vertical directions is shown, but actually, more text protrusions 110 can also be arranged (the same applies to the figures after the second embodiment described later). The UV development reference plane 7b is a plane obtained by two-dimensionally developing the outer surface 3a of the three-dimensional sidewall 3. Figure 4 is the same as Figure 3 and shows only one text protrusion 110.

[0081] In the present embodiment, in one text protrusion 110, as Figure 4 shown, a shape imitating the letter "M" in plan view protrudes from the reference plane 7a (UV development reference plane 7b). The text protrusion 110 of the first embodiment has a total of four straight portions 111, 112, 113, 114 in plan view. Further, the text protrusion 110 of the first embodiment has connecting portions 115, 116, 117 that connect a plurality of straight portions (111, 112, 113, 114) in plan view. Specifically, the straight portion 111 and the straight portion 112 are connected at the connecting portion 115. The straight portion 112 and the straight portion 113 are connected at the connecting portion 116. The straight portion 113 and the straight portion 114 are connected at the connecting portion 117. Further, in the text protrusion 110 representing the letter "M" in the present embodiment, in plan view, the connecting portions 115, 116, 117 can also be understood as bent portions where the straight portions are bent.

[0082] In Figure 3 and Figure 4In [the figure], the raised text area R110 is indicated by a double-dashed line. The raised text area R110 is an area surrounding the outer periphery of the raised text 110 representing a single character. More specifically, it is an area of a parallelogram circumscribing the contour of the raised text 110 and is formed in such a way that its area is minimized. It should be noted that the raised text area R110 of the present embodiment is rectangular because its four corners are right angles. Additionally, depending on the shape of the raised text, the raised text area may sometimes be square. It should be noted that this raised text area R110 is an imaginary area, and the range of the double-dashed line cannot be actually confirmed on the sidewall 3. In Figure 3 and Figure 4 In [the figure], for easy observation, the range of the raised text area R110 is slightly enlarged and shown with a slight separation from the raised text 110, but the raised text area R110 circumscribes the contour of the raised text 110 as defined above (the same applies to the figures after the second embodiment described later). As Figure 4 shown, in the pattern area 7, a part of the raised text area R110 is overlappingly arranged.

[0083] In the following description, in order to describe the arrangement of the raised text 110, terms such as the vertical (up and down) direction and the horizontal (left and right) direction indicating directions are used. This vertical (up and down) direction refers to the vertical (up and down) direction when facing the direction in which the character imitated by the raised text 110 can be correctly read. Similarly, the horizontal (left and right) direction is the direction orthogonal to the vertical (up and down) direction, and neither of them represents the relationship with the vertical direction and the horizontal direction.

[0084] The raised text area R110 overlaps in the vertical (up and down) direction of the raised text 110, and thus satisfies the relationship that the distance between the center lines of the raised text (vertical arrangement pitch) D0 < the vertical dimension D of the raised text (refer to Figure 3 ).

[0085] That is, when a set of a plurality of raised texts 110 arranged side by side in the first direction (horizontal direction) is defined as a raised text group G110, the pitch (the distance between the center lines of the raised text groups G110) D0 between the raised text groups G110 arranged adjacent to each other in the direction orthogonal to the first direction, i.e., the second direction (vertical direction), is shorter than the length of the raised text group G110 in the second direction (vertical direction) (the vertical dimension of the protrusion) D (refer to Figure 3 ).

[0086] In other words, when a set of a plurality of character protrusions 110 arranged side by side in a first direction (horizontal direction) is defined as a character protrusion group G110, it includes a first character protrusion group G110-1, a second character protrusion group G110-2 arranged on one side (lower side) of the first character protrusion group G110-1, and a third character protrusion group G110-3 arranged on the other side (upper side) of the first character protrusion group G110-1. The length D in the second direction (the longitudinal dimension of the character protrusion) of the character protrusion 110 constituting the first character protrusion group G110-1 is longer than the distance D23 from the upper end portion of the second character protrusion group G110-2 to the lower end portion of the third character protrusion group G110-3 (see Figure 3 ).

[0087] In other words, the connecting portion (bending portion) 116 of the character protrusion 110 constituting the first character protrusion group G110-1 enters between the connecting portion (bending portion) 115 and the connecting portion (bending portion) 117 of the character protrusion 110 constituting the second character protrusion group G110-2.

[0088] As described above, the character protrusion 110 of the present embodiment is formed by combining the straight portions 111, 112, 113, and 114, so it is easy to process, and it is also easy to overlap the character protrusion region R110. In addition, the character protrusion 110 representing the character "M" in the present embodiment has a line-symmetric character shape, so it is easy to overlap the character protrusion region R110. Furthermore, since the straight portions 111, 112, 113, and 114 of the character protrusion 110 representing the character "M" in the present embodiment are connected (bent) at the same angle at the connecting portions (bending portions) 115, 116, and 117, it is easy to overlap the character protrusion region R110.

[0089] Figure 5 is in Figure 4A cross-sectional view obtained by cutting the character protrusion 110 at the position of the arrow AA in FIG. The cross-sectional shape of the straight portions 111, 112, 113, and 114 of the character protrusion 110 in the direction perpendicular to the extension direction thereof is roughly triangular, and protrudes from the UV development reference plane 7b (reference plane 7a) toward the outside in the tire axial direction. In addition, since the character protrusions 110 are densely arranged so that the character protrusion regions R110 overlap, a part of the light incident on the character protrusions 110 of the pattern area 7 is repeatedly reflected between adjacent protrusions (straight portions 111, 112, 113, 114 and connecting portions 115, 116, and 117). Since such light reflection occurs between multiple protrusions, the light incident on the character protrusion 110 of the pattern area 7 is gradually attenuated and absorbed. Therefore, part of the light incident on the character protrusion 110 is absorbed and not emitted to the outside, so when the pattern area 7 provided with the character protrusion 110 is visually recognized, it is visually recognized as darker than the outer surface 3 a of the sidewall 3 that reflects the surrounding light of the pattern area 7 .

[0090] The dimensions (longitudinal dimension D, horizontal width W) of the character protrusion 110, the protrusion height H, and the minimum distance S between the closest positions of the straight line portions 111, 112, 113, and 114 are made (see Figure 3 ) were used to evaluate the degree to which the pattern region 7 looked darker. In addition, as a comparative example, a sample having a simple protrusion in a conical shape was also evaluated. Figure 6 It is a figure which shows the evaluation result. Figure 6 The evaluation was performed based on the result of digitizing the color of the pattern area 7 in the L*a*b* color space and evaluating it using Color Reader CR20 manufactured by KONICA MINOLTA JAPAN CO., LTD.

[0091] according to Figure 6 The results shown show that in order to make the pattern area 7 visually recognizable as darker, the protruding height H of the text protrusion 110 is preferably greater than 0.5 mm and less than 1.0 mm. In addition, in order to make the pattern area 7 visually recognizable as darker, the longitudinal dimension D of the text protrusion 110 is preferably greater than 0.5 mm and less than 1.0 mm, and the horizontal width W is preferably greater than 1.5 mm and less than 2.0 mm. In addition, in order to make the pattern area 7 visually recognizable as darker, the minimum distance S is preferably greater than 0.1 mm and less than 0.3 mm. Furthermore, in order to make the pattern area 7 visually recognizable as darker, the ratio D0 / D of the distance between the center lines of the text protrusion 110 (longitudinal arrangement spacing) D0 and the longitudinal dimension D of the text protrusion 110 is preferably greater than 0.5 and less than 0.9.

[0092] According to the tire 1 of the present embodiment described above, the following effects are achieved.

[0093] (1)The tire 1 of the present embodiment has a pattern area 7 on a part of the outer surface of the sidewall 3, and the pattern area 7 is provided in a state where it can be visually recognized as a part different from the surroundings of this part. Among them, in the pattern area 7, there are a plurality of text protrusions 110 separated from each other. The text protrusions 110 are respectively protrusions imitating text, or protrusions imitating rotated or flipped text. When the area of the parallelogram region circumscribing the contour of the text protrusion 110 and formed in such a way that its area is minimized is set as the text protrusion region R110, a part of the text protrusion regions R110 of adjacent text protrusions 110 overlap each other.

[0094] Thereby, the text protrusions 110 can be arranged more densely, the light absorption effect can be improved, and a tire with a higher black density and a higher contrast ratio than before can be provided. In addition, when observing the pattern area 7 in detail, fine text can be visually recognized, and the effect of enhancing the interest and design of the appearance can also be obtained.

[0095] (2)Based on the tire 1 described in (1), the text protrusion 110 has a plurality of straight portions 111, 112, 113, 114, and connecting portions 115, 116, 117 connecting the plurality of straight portions 111, 112, 113, 114.

[0096] Thereby, it is easy to arrange the text protrusions 110 densely, and in addition, it is easy to manufacture the text protrusions 110.

[0097] (3)Based on the tire 1 described in (1) or (2), the text protrusion 110 has a plurality of bent portions.

[0098] Thereby, it is easy to arrange the text protrusions 110 densely, and in addition, it is easy to manufacture the text protrusions 110.

[0099] (4)Based on the tire 1 described in any one of (1) to (3), in three or more adjacent text protrusions 110, a part of the text protrusion regions R110 overlap each other.

[0100] Thereby, the text protrusions 110 can be arranged in a relatively wide pattern area 7.

[0101] (5)Based on the tire 1 described in any one of (1) to (3), the text protrusions adjacent to each other and having a part of the text protrusion regions R110 overlapping each other are protrusions representing the same text.

[0102] Thereby, the text protrusions 110 can be arranged regularly, and an appearance with excellent design can be provided.

[0103] (Second Embodiment)

[0104] Figure 7 This is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the text protrusions provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1. The second embodiment and each of the embodiments shown below are the same as the first embodiment except for the specific form of the text protrusions provided in the pattern area 7. Therefore, parts that achieve the same functions as those of the aforementioned first embodiment are labeled with the same reference numerals, and repeated descriptions are appropriately omitted. In the second embodiment, in addition to the text protrusions 110 of the first embodiment, text protrusions 120 are also arranged in the pattern area 7.

[0105] The text protrusions 110 of the second embodiment have the same form as the text protrusions 110 of the first embodiment, and a part of the text protrusion area R110 is overlapped and arranged in the longitudinal direction.

[0106] The text protrusions 120 have a shape obtained by rotating the text protrusions 110 by 180 degrees on the UV development reference plane 7b (or flipping them in the longitudinal direction), and in the Figure 7 shown orientation, they become the form of a text imitating "W". The text protrusions 120 are arranged in such a way that a part of the text protrusion area R120 overlaps in the longitudinal direction. The overlapping method of the text protrusion area R120, the preferred overlapping method, is the same as that of the first embodiment. In the transverse direction, the text protrusions 120 are arranged adjacent to the text protrusions 110.

[0107] As in the second embodiment, as text protrusions, different texts can be combined, or texts obtained by rotating and flipping the same text (rotated text, flipped text) can be combined.

[0108] (Third Embodiment)

[0109] Figure 8 This is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the text protrusions provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1. In the third embodiment, in the pattern area 7, text protrusions 130 imitating the text "N" are arranged. The text protrusions 130 are arranged in such a way that a part of the text protrusion area R130 overlaps in the longitudinal direction. The text protrusions 130 include straight portions 131, 132, 133 and connecting portions (bent portions) 134, 135. Specifically, the straight portion 131 is connected to the straight portion 132 at the connecting portion 134. The straight portion 132 is connected to the straight portion 133 at the connecting portion 135.

[0110] The text protrusions 130 are arranged with the same text protrusions 130 in the left - right direction. In the up - down direction, a part of the text protrusion region R130 is overlapped and arranged with a position shift in the left - right direction. It should be noted that shifting the positions of the texts relative to each other is also called "phase - shifting". Here, the state of phase - shifting in the left - right direction means, for example, when the lower - side text is regarded as a reference, the center position of the upper - side text is shifted in the left - right direction relative to the center position of the lower - side text. Similarly, the state of phase - shifting in the up - down direction means, for example, when the left - side text is regarded as a reference, the center position of the right - side text is shifted in the up - down direction relative to the center position of the left - side text.

[0111] In the present embodiment, the connecting part (bending part) 134 of the lower - side text protrusion 130 enters between the straight part 131 and the connecting part (bending part) 135 of the upper - side text protrusion 130, and the connecting part (bending part) 135 of the upper - side text protrusion 130 enters between the connecting part (bending part) 134 and the straight part 133 of the upper - side text protrusion 130. In addition, the straight part 131 of the upper - side text protrusion 130 enters between the text protrusions 130 adjacent to the lower side. Through this configuration, the inclined straight part 132 of one text protrusion 130 and the inclined straight part 132 of the other adjacent - arranged text protrusion 130 are arranged in parallel and closely.

[0112] As in the third embodiment, when the text protrusions imitating the same text are arranged in such a way that the text protrusion regions overlap in the longitudinal direction, by arranging the positions of the texts shifted in the left - right direction (phase - shifting in the left - right direction) in the up - down direction, a configuration that can easily overlap the text protrusion regions can be achieved.

[0113] (Fourth Embodiment)

[0114] Figure 9 FIG. shows the fourth embodiment of the text protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the fourth embodiment, text protrusions 140 imitating the character "Z" are arranged in the pattern region 7. The text protrusions 140 are arranged in such a way that a part of the text protrusion region R140 overlaps in the horizontal direction. The text protrusions 140 include straight parts 141, 142, 143 and connecting parts (bending parts) 144, 145. Specifically, the straight part 141 and the straight part 142 are connected at the connecting part 144. The straight part 142 and the straight part 143 are connected at the connecting part 145.

[0115] The character protrusions 140 are arranged such that the character protrusion regions R140 of the character protrusions 140 adjacent to each other in the left-right direction are partially overlapped with phases shifted in the up-down direction. That is, the position of the character protrusion 140 arranged on the right side is arranged with its phase shifted upward compared to the character protrusion 140 arranged on the left side. Thereby, the connecting portion (bent portion) 144 of the left-side character protrusion 140 is arranged between the straight portion 141 and the connecting portion (bent portion) 145 of the right-side character protrusion 140.

[0116] As in the fourth embodiment, when the character protrusions imitating the same character are arranged such that the character protrusion regions overlap in the longitudinal direction, by arranging the positions of the characters shifted in the up-down direction (phase-shifted in the up-down direction) in the left-right direction, an arrangement in which the character protrusion regions are easily overlapped can be achieved.

[0117] (Fifth Embodiment)

[0118] Figure 10 FIG. is a view showing a fifth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the fifth embodiment, in the pattern region 7, the character protrusion 150 imitating the character "E" and the character protrusion 160 obtained by rotating the character protrusion 150 by 180 degrees (or flipping it in the left-right direction) on the UV development reference plane 7b are arranged. The character protrusion region R150 of the character protrusion 150 and the character protrusion region R160 of the character protrusion 160 are arranged so as to partially overlap.

[0119] The character protrusion 150 includes straight portions 151, 152, 153, 154 and connecting portions (bent portions) 155, 156, 157. Specifically, the straight portion 151 and the straight portion 152 are connected at the connecting portion 155. The straight portion 152 and the straight portion 153 are connected at the connecting portion 156 at the middle position of the straight portion 152. The straight portion 152 and the straight portion 154 are connected at the connecting portion 157.

[0120] The character protrusion 160 similarly includes straight portions 161, 162, 163, 164 and connecting portions (bent portions) 165, 166, 167. Specifically, the straight portion 161 and the straight portion 162 are connected at the connecting portion 165. The straight portion 162 and the straight portion 163 are connected at the connecting portion 166 at the middle position of the straight portion 162. The straight portion 162 and the straight portion 164 are connected at the connecting portion 167.

[0121] The character protrusions 150 and 160 are arranged such that the character protrusion region R150 of the character protrusion 150 and a part of the character protrusion region R160 of the character protrusion 160, which are adjacent in the left-right direction with their phases shifted in the up-down direction, overlap. That is, the position of the character protrusion 160 arranged on the right side is arranged with its phase shifted upward compared to the character protrusion 150 arranged on the left side. Thus, the straight portion 153 of the character protrusion 150 on the left side enters between the straight portion 161 and the straight portion 163 of the character protrusion 160 on the right side. In addition, the straight portion 154 of the character protrusion 150 on the left side enters between the straight portion 163 and the straight portion 164 of the character protrusion 160 on the right side. In other words, the straight portion 161 of the character protrusion 160 on the right side enters between the straight portion 151 and the straight portion 153 of the character protrusion 150 on the left side. In addition, the straight portion 163 of the character protrusion 160 on the right side enters between the straight portion 153 and the straight portion 154 of the character protrusion 150 on the left side.

[0122] As in the fifth embodiment, when arranging character protrusions imitating the same character with their character protrusion regions overlapping in the longitudinal direction, character protrusions obtained by rotating (or flipping) the character protrusions adjacent in the left-right direction are formed, and they are arranged with the positions of the characters shifted in the up-down direction (with their phases shifted in the up-down direction) in the left-right direction, whereby an arrangement that easily overlaps the character protrusion regions can be achieved. In particular, in the case of combining the character protrusion 150 imitating the character "E" and the character protrusion 160 obtained by rotating (or flipping) the character protrusion 150 in this embodiment, the area where the UV unfolding reference plane 7b (reference plane 7a) is directly exposed can be reduced, and thus the light absorption effect can be improved.

[0123] (Sixth Embodiment)

[0124] Figure 11 FIG. is a diagram showing a sixth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the sixth embodiment, character protrusions 170 imitating the character "H" are arranged in the pattern region 7. The character protrusions 170 are arranged such that a part of the character protrusion region R170 overlaps in the longitudinal direction. The character protrusions 170 include straight portions 171, 172, 173 and connecting portions (bent portions) 174, 175. Specifically, the straight portion 171 and the straight portion 172 are connected at the connecting portion 174. The straight portion 172 and the straight portion 173 are connected at the connecting portion 175.

[0125] The text protrusions 170 are arranged with the same text protrusions 170 in the left - right direction. In the up - down direction, a part of the text protrusion region R170 is overlapped and arranged with a phase shift in the left - right direction. That is, the lower side of the straight portion 173 of the upper - left text protrusion 170 and the lower side of the straight portion 171 of the upper - right text protrusion 170 enter between the upper side of the straight portion 171 and the upper side of the straight portion 173 of the lower - side text protrusion 170. In addition, the upper side of the straight portion 173 of the lower - left text protrusion 170 and the upper side of the straight portion 171 of the lower - right text protrusion 170 enter between the lower side of the straight portion 171 and the lower side of the straight portion 173 of the upper - side text protrusion 170.

[0126] As in the sixth embodiment, it is also possible to arrange such that the text protrusion regions R170 of a plurality of text protrusions 170 overlap with the text protrusion region R170 of one text protrusion 170 (in this embodiment, at most four text protrusion regions R170 overlap with one text protrusion region R170). Especially in the case of the text protrusion 170 imitating the character "H" in this embodiment, the region where the UV - unfolding reference plane 7b (reference plane 7a) can be directly exposed is very small, so the light absorption effect can be improved.

[0127] (Seventh Embodiment)

[0128] Figure 12 FIG. shows the seventh embodiment of the text protrusion provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the seventh embodiment, in the pattern region 7, a text protrusion 180 imitating the character "K" and a text protrusion 190 obtained by rotating the text protrusion 180 by 180 degrees on the UV - unfolding reference plane 7b are arranged. The text protrusion region R180 of the text protrusion 180 and the text protrusion region R190 of the text protrusion 190 are arranged in a partially overlapping manner.

[0129] The text protrusion 180 includes straight portions 181, 182, 183 and connecting portions (bending portions) 184, 185. Specifically, the straight portion 181 and the straight portion 182 are connected at the middle position of the straight portion 181 and at the connecting portion 184. The straight portion 182 and the straight portion 183 are connected at the middle position of the straight portion 182 and at the connecting portion 185.

[0130] The text protrusion 190, similarly to the text protrusion 180, includes straight portions 191, 192, 193 and connecting portions (bending portions) 194, 195. Specifically, the straight portion 191 and the straight portion 192 are connected at the middle position of the straight portion 191 and at the connecting portion 194. The straight portion 192 and the straight portion 193 are connected at the middle position of the straight portion 192 and at the connecting portion 195.

[0131] The character protrusions 180 and 190 are arranged such that the character protrusion regions R180 of the character protrusions 180 and a part of the character protrusion region R190 of the character protrusions 190, which are adjacent in the left - right direction with phases shifted in the up - down direction, overlap. That is, the position of the character protrusion 190 arranged on the right side is arranged with phases shifted upward and downward compared to the character protrusion 180 arranged on the left side. Thus, the straight portion 182 of the left - hand character protrusion 180 enters between the straight portion 192 and the straight portion 193 of the upper - right character protrusion 190. In addition, the straight portion 183 of the left - hand character protrusion 180 enters between the straight portion 192 and the straight portion 193 of the lower - right character protrusion 190. In other words, the straight portion 192 of the upper - right character protrusion 190 and the straight portion 193 of the lower - right character protrusion 190 enter between the straight portion 182 and the straight portion 183 of the left - hand character protrusion 180.

[0132] As in the seventh embodiment, in the case where character protrusions imitating the same character are arranged such that the character protrusion regions overlap in the vertical direction, character protrusions obtained by rotating the character protrusions adjacent in the left - right direction are formed, and a plurality of them are arranged with the positions of the characters shifted in the up - down direction (phases shifted in the up - down direction) in the left - right direction. Thus, an arrangement in which the character protrusion regions can be easily overlapped can be achieved. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the character protrusion arranged on the right side is in a form obtained by rotating the character protrusion arranged on the left side, but a character protrusion obtained by horizontally flipping the character protrusion arranged on the left side can also be arranged on the right side.

[0133] (Eighth Embodiment)

[0134] Figure 13 FIG. is a view showing an eighth embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the eighth embodiment, in the pattern region 7, a character protrusion 210 imitating the character "L" and a character protrusion 220 obtained by rotating the character protrusion 210 by 180 degrees on the UV - unfolded reference plane 7b are arranged. The character protrusion region R210 of the character protrusion 210 and the character protrusion region R220 of the character protrusion 220 are arranged so as to overlap in part.

[0135] The character protrusion 210 includes straight portions 211, 212 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 213. Specifically, the straight portion 211 and the straight portion 212 are connected at the connecting portion 213.

[0136] The character protrusion 220 similarly includes straight portions 221, 222 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 223. Specifically, the straight portion 221 and the straight portion 222 are connected at the connecting portion 223.

[0137] The text protrusions 210 and 220 are arranged such that the text protrusion region R210 of the text protrusion 210 adjacent in the vertical and horizontal directions and the text protrusion region R220 of the text protrusion 220 are partially overlapped with their phases shifted in both the vertical and horizontal directions. That is, the position of the text protrusion 220 arranged on the right side is phase-shifted downward compared to the text protrusion 210 arranged on the left side, and is also phase-shifted in the horizontal direction. From another perspective, the text protrusion 210 is phase-shifted in both the vertical and horizontal directions and arranged along an inclined direction. Similarly, the text protrusion 220 is also phase-shifted in both the vertical and horizontal directions and arranged along an inclined direction. Thus, the straight portion 222 of the text protrusion 220 on the right side is arranged side by side above the straight portion 212 of the text protrusion 210 in the upper left. In addition, the straight portion 211 of the text protrusion 210 in the lower right is arranged side by side to the left of the straight portion 221 of the text protrusion 220 in the upper left.

[0138] As in the eighth embodiment, the text protrusion 210 and the text protrusion 220 obtained by rotating the text protrusion 210 can also be arranged such that the text protrusion region R210 of the text protrusion 210 adjacent in the vertical and horizontal directions and the text protrusion region R220 of the text protrusion 220 are partially overlapped with their phases shifted in both the vertical and horizontal directions.

[0139] (Ninth Embodiment)

[0140] Figure 14 FIG. is a view showing a ninth embodiment of the text protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the ninth embodiment, in the pattern region 7, a text protrusion 230 imitating the character "X" and a text protrusion 240 obtained by rotating the text protrusion 230 by 45 degrees on the UV development reference plane 7b are arranged. The text protrusion region R230 of the text protrusion 230 and the text protrusion region R240 of the text protrusion 240 are arranged in a partially overlapping manner.

[0141] The text protrusion 230 includes straight portions 231, 232 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 233 where they intersect. Similarly to the text protrusion 230, the text protrusion 240 includes straight portions 241, 242 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 243 where they intersect.

[0142] The text protrusions 230 and 240 are alternately arranged in both the vertical and horizontal directions. Thus, either one of the straight portions 241 and 242 of the text protrusion 240 enters between the straight portions 231 and 232 where there are four places on the text protrusion 230.

[0143] Similar to the fifth embodiment, by rotating the text protrusions imitating the same character by a specified angle (45 degrees in this embodiment), it is possible to achieve an arrangement where the text protrusion regions are easily overlapped.

[0144] (Tenth Embodiment)

[0145] Figure 15 FIG. is a view showing the tenth embodiment of the text protrusions provided in the pattern region 7 of the tire 1. In the tenth embodiment, in the pattern region 7, there are arranged a text protrusion 250 imitating the character "T" and a text protrusion 260 obtained by rotating the text protrusion 250 by 180 degrees (or flipping it in the vertical direction) on the UV development reference plane 7b. The text protrusion region R250 of the text protrusion 250 and the text protrusion region R260 of the text protrusion 260 are arranged in a partially overlapping manner.

[0146] The text protrusion 250 includes straight portions 251, 252 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 253. Specifically, the straight portion 251 and the straight portion 252 are connected at the middle position of the straight portion 251 and at the connecting portion 253.

[0147] Similar to the text protrusion 250, the text protrusion 260 includes straight portions 261, 262 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 263. Specifically, the straight portion 261 and the straight portion 262 are connected at the middle position of the straight portion 261 and at the connecting portion 263.

[0148] The same text protrusions 250 are arranged in the left - right direction for the text protrusion 250. The same text protrusions 260 are also arranged in the left - right direction for the text protrusion 260. In addition, the text protrusion 260 is located below the text protrusion 250 and is arranged with a phase shift in the left - right direction with respect to the text protrusion 250. As a result, the straight portion 262 of the text protrusion 260 arranged on the lower side enters between the straight portions 252 of the text protrusions 250 arranged on the upper side and adjacent in the left - right direction. In other words, the straight portion 252 of the text protrusion 250 arranged on the upper side enters between the straight portions 262 of the text protrusions 260 arranged on the lower side and adjacent in the left - right direction.

[0149] Similar to the tenth embodiment, when arranging the text protrusions imitating the same character in a manner that overlaps the text protrusion regions in the longitudinal direction, by rotating the text protrusions (or flipping them in the vertical direction) and arranging these text protrusions with the positions of the characters shifted in the left - right direction (phase - shifted in the left - right direction) in the vertical direction, it is possible to achieve an arrangement where the text protrusion regions are easily overlapped.

[0150] (Eleventh Embodiment)

[0151] Figure 16FIG. 0 is a view showing an eleventh embodiment of the character protrusions provided in the pattern area 7 of the tire 1. In the eleventh embodiment, in the pattern area 7, there are arranged a character protrusion 270 imitating the character "Y" and a character protrusion 280 obtained by rotating the character protrusion 270 by 180 degrees (or flipping it in the vertical direction) on the UV development reference plane 7b. The character protrusion area R270 of the character protrusion 270 and the character protrusion area R280 of the character protrusion 280 are arranged in a partially overlapping manner. It should be noted that the eleventh embodiment can also be understood as a form in which the character "T" in the tenth embodiment is replaced with the character "Y".

[0152] The character protrusion 270 includes straight portions 271, 272, 273 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 274. Specifically, the straight portion 271, the straight portion 272 and the straight portion 273 are connected at the connecting portion 274.

[0153] The character protrusion 280, similarly to the character protrusion 270, includes straight portions 281, 282, 283 and a connecting portion (bending portion) 284. Specifically, the straight portion 281, the straight portion 282 and the straight portion 283 are connected at the connecting portion 284.

[0154] The character protrusions 270 are arranged with the same character protrusions 270 in the left - right direction. The character protrusions 280 are also arranged with the same character protrusions 280 in the left - right direction. In addition, the character protrusions 280 are located below the character protrusions 270 and are arranged with a phase shift in the left - right direction with respect to the character protrusions 270. Thus, the straight portion 283 of the character protrusion 280 arranged on the lower side enters between the straight portions 273 of the character protrusions 270 arranged on the upper side and adjacent in the left - right direction. In other words, the straight portion 273 of the character protrusion 270 arranged on the upper side enters between the straight portions 283 of the character protrusions 280 arranged on the lower side and adjacent in the left - right direction.

[0155] As in the eleventh embodiment, even if the character "T" in the tenth embodiment is replaced with the character "Y", it is possible to have an arrangement in which the character protrusion areas are easily overlapped, similarly to the tenth embodiment.

[0156] (Modified Mode)

[0157] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and changes can be made, and they are also within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0158] (Modified Mode 1) In the first embodiment, an example in which the cross - sectional shape of the straight portion of the character protrusion 110 is a substantially triangular shape and protrudes from the UV development reference plane 7b (reference plane 7a) has been described. However, the protrusion shape in the cross - section of the character protrusion 110 can be appropriately changed. Figure 17 andFigure 18 This is a diagram showing a deformation mode of the protrusion shape in the cross section of the character protrusion 110. For example, as Figure 17 shown, the cross-sectional shape of the character protrusion 110 can be a substantially isosceles trapezoidal shape having a top 110a parallel to the UV unfolding reference plane 7b. Additionally, for example, as Figure 18 shown, the cross-sectional shape of the character protrusion 110 can also be a protruding shape having a top 110a parallel to the UV unfolding reference plane 7b and a side surface 110b protruding outward. Moreover, the front end of the protruding shape may not be flat but have a rounded corner. It should be noted that the deformation mode of the cross-sectional shape of the character protrusion can also be applied in the same manner after the second embodiment.

[0159] (Deformation mode 2) In each of the embodiments, an example of a character protrusion imitating a capital letter of the alphabet (English alphabet) has been described. However, it is not limited thereto. For example, it can be a character protrusion imitating a capital letter of the alphabet (English alphabet), a number, or a character in other languages such as Japanese or Korean.

[0160] It should be noted that the respective embodiments and deformation modes can also be used in appropriate combinations, but detailed descriptions are omitted. Additionally, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above.

Claims

1. A tire comprising a pattern region on a portion of an outer surface of a sidewall, wherein the pattern region is provided in a state where it can be visually recognized as a portion different from the surroundings of the portion, wherein: The pattern area has a plurality of mutually separated character protrusions, The text protrusions respectively imitate the protrusions of text or the protrusions of text after rotation or flipping. When a parallelogram region circumscribing the outline of the character protrusion and formed so that its area becomes the smallest is defined as the character protrusion region, the character protrusion regions of adjacent character protrusions partially overlap.

2. The tire according to claim 1, wherein: The text protrusion has: a plurality of straight portions; and A connecting portion connects the plurality of straight line portions.

3. The tire according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein: The character protrusion has a plurality of bending parts.

4. The tire according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein: In three or more adjacent character protrusions, the character protrusion regions partially overlap with each other.

5. The tire according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein: The character protrusions that are adjacent to each other and whose character protrusion regions partially overlap each other are protrusions representing the same character.

Images