Method for manufacturing a tire and tire manufacturing machine

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for manufacturing a tire using a tire manufacturing machine comprising multiple manufacturing modules for providing a tire component of the tire to be manufactured, wherein the method comprises the steps of: receiving a production order indicating a number of tires to be manufactured; operating the tire manufacturing machine in a batch operation mode in which each of the multiple manufacturing modules is allowed to provide respective tire components according to the number of tires to be manufactured in the production order; and when one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal, switching the tire manufacturing machine from the batch operation mode into an interactive operation mode in which the multiple manufacturing modules cooperate to provide respective tire components on a tire-by-tire basis.

Description

[0001] METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A TIRE AND TIRE MANUFACTURING

[0002] MACHINE

[0003] BACKGROUND

[0004] The invention relates to a method for manufacturing a tire using a tire manufacturing machine, wherein the tire manufacturing machine comprises multiple manufacturing modules for providing a component of the tire to be manufactured . Furthermore, the invention relates to a tire manufacturing machine, wherein the tire manufacturing machine comprises multiple manufacturing modules for providing a component of the tire to be manufactured .

[0005] Such a method for manufacturing a tire is well- known in the prior art . The known method comprises the steps of providing a recipe for a type of tire to be manufactured to each of the manufacturing modules of the tire manufacturing machine, and a production order indicating the number of tires to be produced . After providing the recipe to each of the manufacturing modules , the step of allowing each of the manufacturing modules to manufacture a respective tire component in accordance with the provided recipe is performed . The step of allowing each of the manufacturing modules to manufacture a respective tire component is continued until the number of tires indicated by the production order is manufactured .

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] A disadvantage of the known method is that one or more of the manufacturing modules may run out of material or of tire components manufactured by another manufacturing module j ust before the number of tires indicated by the production order is manufactured . When this situation occurs , an operator has as an option to interrupt the production process and to remove all remaining material or tire components from the remaining manufacturing modules , wherein the removed material and tire components are not usable for another recipe and therefore are scrap . This option, therefore, disadvantageously results in a smaller number of manufactured tires than indicated by the production order, and an amount of scrap materials and components . As another option, when the above situation occurs , the operator may decide to refill the one or more manufacturing modules that are out of material or tire components . This is disadvantageous , as the one or more manufacturing modules will be refilled for only a small number of tires to be manufactured, whereafter the material or tire component of all or a maj ority of manufacturing modules need to be replaced in order to be able to manufacture another type of tire . With both options , a lot of time is lost which is disadvantageous for the efficiency of the tire manufacturing process .

[0008] It is an obj ect of the present invention to ameliorate or to eliminate one or more disadvantages of the known prior art, to provide an improved method for manufacturing a tire or to at least provide an alternative method .

[0009] According to a first aspect , the invention provides a method for manufacturing a tire using a tire manufacturing machine comprising multiple manufacturing modules for providing a tire component of the tire to be manufactured, wherein the method comprises the steps of : receiving a production order indicating a number of tires to be manufactured; operating the tire manufacturing machine in a batch operation mode in which each of the multiple manufacturing modules is allowed to provide respective tire components according to the number of tires to be manufactured in the production order ; and when one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal , switching the tire manufacturing machine from the batch operation mode into an interactive operation mode in which the multiple manufacturing modules cooperate to provide respective tire components on a tire-by-tire basis .

[0010] During performing the method according to the invention, a production order indicating a number of tires to be manufactured, for example, is received from a remote server . When one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal , the tire manufacturing machine is switched into the interactive operation mode . In the context of the present patent application, the interactive operation mode may be understood as that after each manufactured tire, the manufacturing modules cooperate to decide together whether or not a next tire may be manufactured . Although the interactive operation mode is slower than the batch operation mode, it reduces the risk or prevents the situation that one or more manufacturing modules run out of material or components while the other manufacturing modules keep providing tire components . This is advantageous , as the method reduces the risk that remaining materials and / or components need to be removed from the manufacturing modules and become scrap, or that one or more manufacturing modules need to be refilled at or near the end of the production order . Therefore, the method according to the invention advantageously provides an improved ef ficiency of the tire manufacturing process .

[0011] In an embodiment, the method further comprises the step of : setting a lower boundary and an upper boundary for the number of tires to be manufactured based on the number of tires to be manufactured; wherein the tire manufacturing machine is switched from the batch operation mode into the interactive operation mode when a number of tire components provided by one of the multiple manufacturing modules is between the lower boundary and the upper boundary, and one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal .

[0012] Based on the indicated number of tires to be manufactured, a lower boundary, which corresponds to a minimum number of tires to be manufactured, and an upper boundary, which corresponds to a maximum number of tires to be manufactured, are determined . Thus , the method according to the invention defines a range for the number of tires to be manufactured . The lower boundary may prevent that the tire manufacturing machine is switched into the interactive operation mode too early . I f a manufacturing module issues an almost-empty signal well before the lower boundary, it is unlikely that a number of tires anywhere near the number of tires in the production order will be reached using the interactive operation mode . In such a scenario , it may therefore be be more efficient to take action and refill the manufacturing module immediately to ensure that tires may continue to be produced at a higher rate in the batch operation mode, rather than switching to the slower interactive operation mode early . When at least one of the manufacturing modules has provided a number of tire components that is between the lower boundary and the upper boundary, and when one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal , the tire manufacturing machine can be switched into the interactive operation mode with a higher likelihood of reaching the number of tire components in the production order .

[0013] Additionally or alternatively, the method further comprises the step of : receiving an operator' s input to suspend the manufacturing of tires at an earliest opportunity in response to an almost-empty signal ; wherein the tire manufacturing machine is switched from the batch operation mode into the interactive operation mode at the earliest opportunity that one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal after the operator' s input is received .

[0014] Hence, the tire manufacturing machine can be put in a condition by the operator at any moment during the manufacturing of tires , to switch to the interactive operation mode at the earliest opportunity, i . e . with the next manufacturing module that issues an almost-empty signal , instead of waiting for the any of the manufacturing modules to reach the aforementioned lower boundary . This condition can be triggered by the operator when a future interruption or suspension of manufacturing of tires is anticipated or required, for example when the operator is aware of a future delay in the refilling of a particular manufacturing module . Instead of waiting for the future delay, the operator may already trigger the tire manufacturing machine to enter the interactive operation mode early, so that the tire manufacturing machine does not run into foreseeable problems later on .

[0015] In an embodiment, one or more of the multiple manufacturing modules are configured for issuing an almost- empty signal when the supply thereof is below a predetermined level .

[0016] In an embodiment, the step of switching the tire manufacturing machine into the interactive operation mode comprises switching the tire manufacturing machine into a trial-and-error mode . In a preferred embodiment, the trial- and-error mode initiates the following steps : pausing the multiple manufacturing modules that have provided components for at least the same number of tires as the one or more of the manufacturing modules that issues an almost-empty signal ; for each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal , allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire ; and when each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal succeeds in providing the one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire, allowing each of the remaining multiple manufacturing modules to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire . In a more preferred embodiment, the steps of pausing the multiple manufacturing modules that have provided components for at least the same number of tires as the one or more of the manufacturing modules that issues an almost- empty signal ; for each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal , allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire ; and, when each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost- empty signal succeeds in providing one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire, allowing each of the remaining multiple manufacturing modules to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire are repeated subsequently . According to this embodiment, the tire manufacturing machine is only allowed to produce a next tire when it is determined that the one or more of the manufacturing modules that issued the almost-empty signal succeeded in manufacturing the tire components required to manufacture a tire . This is advantageous , as it allows the tire manufacturing machine to manufacture as much tires as possibles within the range determined by the lower boundary and upper boundary, without causing materials and / or tire components to be turned into scrap or without requiring one or more manufacturing modules to be refilled .

[0017] In an embodiment, the method comprises the step of ending the trial-and-error mode when one or more of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal fail in providing one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire , or when the number of tires manufactured corresponds to the upper boundary .

[0018] In an embodiment, the method comprises the step of selecting one or more manufacturing modules that may trigger the trial-and-error mode . In a preferred embodiment , the step of , for each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal , allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire is performed in relation to the selected one or more manufacturing modules . In the context of the present patent application, it is noted that some manufacturing modules are more prone to running out of material and / or components than other manufacturing modules . For example , these manufacturing modules may be selected according to this embodiment . By limiting the amount of manufacturing modules , the time needed for allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one or more tire components is advantageously kept as short as possible .

[0019] In an embodiment, the method comprises the step of assigning an component identi fier to each of the tire components provided by each of the multiple manufacturing modules . In a further embodiment, one of the multiple manufacturing modules is a tire manufacturing module configured for manufacturing a tire using tire components provided by the remaining manufacturing modules . In a preferred embodiment thereof , the method comprises the step of assigning a tire identifier to each tire manufactured by the tire manufacturing module . In a more preferred embodiment, the method comprises the step of associating component identifiers of tire components used for manufacturing a tire to a tire identifier of the respective tire manufactured . An advantage of this embodiment is that each tire may be identifiable after manufacturing, wherein it may also be possible to identi fy components used for manufacturing the tire .

[0020] In an embodiment , setting the lower boundary and upper boundary may be done automatically or by an operator .

[0021] In an embodiment, the method comprises the step of interrupting operation of the tire manufacturing machine at a random point of time . In an embodiment thereof , the step of interrupting operation of the tire manufacturing machine at a random point of time comprises : pausing the multiple manufacturing modules ; determining which one of the multiple manufacturing modules has provided tire components for the largest number of tires , and the number of tires for which components has been provided; allowing the other manufacturing modules to continue providing tire components till each of the other manufacturing modules has provided components for the same number of the tires as the one of the multiple manufacturing modules that has provided tire components for the largest number of tires . An advantage of this embodiment is that the manufacturing process may be interrupted, whereafter the tire manufacturing machine is allowed to manufacture as many tires as needed for using all or the maj ority of tire components provided by the manufacturing modules .

[0022] In an embodiment, the method comprises the step of manufacturing a tire using tire components provided by the multiple manufacturing modules .

[0023] In an embodiment , the step of allowing each of the multiple manufacturing modules to provide respective tire components comprises monitoring the number of tire components provided by each of the multiple manufacturing modules .

[0024] According to a second aspect, the invention provides a tire manufacturing machine for manufacturing a tire, wherein the tire manufacturing machine comprises : multiple manufacturing modules configured for providing a tire component for manufacturing a tire ; and a controller configured for controlling operation of the tire manufacturing machine and operatively connected to each of the multiple manufacturing modules , wherein the controller is configured for performing the steps of the method according to the first aspect of the invention .

[0025] The tire manufacturing machine according to the second aspect of the invention has at least the same technical advantages as described in relation to the method according to the first aspect of the invention .

[0026] In an embodiment, one or more of the multiple manufacturing modules comprises a sub-controller, wherein the controller is operatively connected to the sub-controller of the one or more of the multiple manufacturing modules .

[0027] In an embodiment , one of the multiple manufacturing modules is a tire manufacturing module configured for manufacturing a tire using tire components provided by the remaining manufacturing modules .

[0028] According to a third aspect , the invention provides a computer-readable medium having computer-readable instructions stored thereon that causes , when executed by a processor and / or a controller, the tire manufacturing machine according to the second aspect of the invention to perform the method according to the first aspect of the invention .

[0029] The various aspects and features described and shown in the speci fication can be applied, individually, wherever possible . These individual aspects , in particular the aspects and features described in the attached dependent claims , can be made subj ect of divisional patent applications .

[0030] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] The invention will be elucidated on the basis of an exemplary embodiment shown in the attached drawings , in which :

[0032] Figure 1 shows a schematic overview of a tire manufacturing machine according to an embodiment of the invention; and

[0033] Figure 2 shows a schematic flow diagram of a method according to an embodiment of the invention .

[0034] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A schematic overview of a tire manufacturing machine 1 according to an embodiment of the invention is shown in figure 1 . In particular, figure 1 shows a tire manufacturing machine 1 for manufacturing tire components for a green or unvulcanized tire, in particular a bead-apex manufacturing line for manufacturing and / or assembling bead rings , beads and / or apex fillers , filler strips or apexes . As schematically indicated, the tire manufacturing machine 1 comprises multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 for manufacturing a tire component of the tire to be manufactured, and a tire manufacturing module 15 for manufacturing a tire . For example , the manufacturing modules 2-7 comprises , but are not limited to , an extruder module, a cooling module and / or a handling module . The multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 are arranged parallel to each other and in series with the tire manufacturing module 15, such that a tire component from each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 , for example , may be transferred to the manufacturing module 15.

[0035] The tire manufacturing machine 1 is further provided with a controller 8 for controlling operation of the tire manufacturing machine 1 . The controller 8 is operatively connected to each of the multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 , in particular to a sub-controller 9-14 of each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 , and to the tire manufacturing module 15 , in particular to a not shown sub-controller thereof , such that the controller 8 is enabled to send one or more commands to one or more of the manufacturing modules 2-7 and / or to the tire manufacturing module 15 and / or to receive data from one or more of the manufacturing modules 2-7 and / or to from the tire manufacturing module 15 .

[0036] The controller 8 , together with the sub-controllers 9-14 of the manufacturing modules 2-7 and the sub-controller of the tire manufacturing module 15, enable the tire manufacturing machine 1 to perform a method for manufacturing a tire according to an embodiment of the invention . A flow diagram of the method for manufacturing a tire according to an embodiment of the invention is schematically shown in figure 2 .

[0037] The method comprises the step SI of receiving a production order to manufacture multiple tires , wherein the production order indicates a number of tires to be manufactured . After receiving the production order, a lower boundary and an upper boundary for the number of tires to be manufactured are determined in step S2 . For the sake of completeness , it is noted that the lower boundary indicates the minimum number of tires to be manufactured, which minimum number may be lower than the number of tires indicated in the production order . The upper boundary indicates the maximum number of tires to be manufactured, which maximum number may be higher that the number of tires indicated in the production order .

[0038] After receiving the number of tires to be manufactured, and determining the lower boundary and upper boundary, the number of tires to be manufactured, the controller 8 sends one or more commands to each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15, in particular to the respective sub-controllers 9- 14 thereof , in step S3 , wherein the one or more commands trigger the manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15 to provide tire components and tires , respectively . Subsequently, in step S4 , the tire manufacturing machine 1 is operated in a batch operation mode in which each of the multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 is allowed to provide respective tire components according to the number of tires to be manufactured in the production order and based on the received commands . The batch operation mode may be understood as that the manufacturing modules 2-7 are providing tire components without receiving input from each other . For the sake of completeness , it is noted that the number of tires to be manufactured, and the determined lower boundary and upper boundary by the controller 8 are converted into the number of components to be provided, the minimum number of components to be provided, and the maximum number of components to be provided, respectively, by each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 . In the context of the present application, it is emphasized that the minimum or maximum number of components to be provided may be a multiple of the number of tires to be manufactured, as a tire , for example , may require two or more of a specific component in order to be manufactured or due to scrap replacement . Optionally, during the step S4 of providing the components , each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15 provides an acknowledgement to the controller 8 after providing the respective components .

[0039] I f one or more of the manufacturing modules 2-7 detect that a low level of material and / or components is present at the one or more manufacturing modules 2-7 , the one or more manufacturing modules 2-7 issue an "almost-empty" signal to the controller 8 . I f , optionally, the number of tires manufactured is between the lower boundary and upper boundary, i . e . the minimum number of tires to be manufactured is reached, the tire manufacturing machine 1 is switched into an interactive operation mode, i . e . the tire manufacturing machine 1 enters a so-called trial-and-error mode in step S5. In the trial-and-error mode , in step S 6, all manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15 are paused, or, alternatively, the manufacturing modules 2-7 that have provided components for the same number of tires as the one or more manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued the almost- empty signal . In step S7 , each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued the almost-empty signal are allowed to try to provide one or more components required to manufacture a single tire , while the remaining manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15 remain paused . When each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued an almost-empty signal succeeds in providing the one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire, in step S8 , each of the remaining multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 are allowed to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire . Subsequently, as step S9 , the tire manufacturing module 15 is allowed to manufacture a tire using the components from each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 .

[0040] Although not explicitly shown, in an alternative embodiment, the trial-and-error mode may be triggered too, when the number of tires manufactured is below the lower boundary .

[0041] For example , the tire manufacturing machine 1 may receive an operator' s input to suspend the manufacturing of tires at an earliest opportunity in response to an almost- empty signal . The tire manufacturing machine 1 may then be switched from the batch operation mode into the interactive operation mode at the earliest moment that one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal after the operator' s input is received . When one of the manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued an almost-empty signal fails in providing the one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire, the production process is ended as step Si l . It is emphasized that when one of the manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued an almost-empty signal fails in providing the one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire, the remaining modules 2-7 are still allowed to provide components till they have provide components for the same number of tires as the one of the manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued an almost-empty signal that failed in providing the one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire .

[0042] In the context of the present patent application, it is noted that step S5 may be performed optionally at a selection of the manufacturing modules 2-7 , such that it is only predetermined manufacturing modules 2-7 are enabled to trigger the trial-and-error modus .

[0043] After manufacturing the single tire, in step S10 , it is checked at each of the manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15 whether the upper boundary has been reached . In the affirmative , the production process is ended as step Si l . I f it is determined that the upper boundary has not been reached yet, the production process continues with step S7 such that the manufacturing modules 2-7 that issued the almost-empty signal , are again allowed to try to provide one or more components required to manufacture a single tire . Steps S7-S 9 are repeated till the upper boundary is reached or till one of the manufacturing modules is empty, whereafter the manufacturing process is ended as step Si l .

[0044] It is noted that when none of the manufacturing modules 2-7 issues an almost-empty signal , the tire manufacturing machine 1 keeps manufacturing tires 1 till the upper boundary is reached . When the upper boundary is reached, the manufacturing process is ended as step Si l .

[0045] Although not explicitly indicated in figure 2 , the controller 8 assigns a component identifier to each component manufactured by the respective manufacturing module 2-7 , wherein the controller 8 also assigns a tire identi fier to each tire manufactured by the tire manufacturing machine 1 . As a result, it is recorded which components are comprised by a speci fic tire as there is an overview of which component identi fiers are associated with a specific tire identi fier .

[0046] A method according to another embodiment , which method comprises at least the same steps as described in relation to figure 2 , additionally comprises the step of interrupting the production process performed by the tire manufacturing machine 1 at a random point of time . The step of interrupting operation of the tire manufacturing machine 1 at a random point of time comprises : pausing the manufacturing modules 2-7 and the tire manufacturing module 15 ; determining which one of the multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 has provided tire components for the largest number of tires , and the number of tires for which components has been provided; and allowing the other manufacturing modules 2-7 to continue providing tire components till each of the other manufacturing modules 2-7 has provided components for the same number of the tires as the one of the multiple manufacturing modules 2-7 that has provided tire components for the largest number of tires . It , thereby, is prevented that unused components are provided by the manufacturing modules 2-7 .

[0047] It is to be understood that the above description is included to illustrate the operation of the preferred embodiments and is not meant to limit the scope of the invention . From the above discussion, many variations will be apparent to one skilled in the art that would yet be encompassed by the scope of the present invention .

[0048] Reference numbers

[0049] 1 tire manufacturing machine

[0050] 2-7 manufacturing modules 8 controller

[0051] 9-14 sub-controllers

[0052] 15 tire manufacturing module

[0053] Sl-Sl l method steps

Claims

C L A I M S1 . Method for manufacturing a tire using a tire manufacturing machine comprising multiple manufacturing modules for providing a tire component of the tire to be manufactured, wherein the method comprises the steps of : receiving a production order indicating a number of tires to be manufactured; operating the tire manufacturing machine in a batch operation mode in which each of the multiple manufacturing modules is allowed to provide respective tire components according to the number of tires to be manufactured in the production order ; and when one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal , switching the tire manufacturing machine from the batch operation mode into an interactive operation mode in which the multiple manufacturing modules cooperate to provide respective tire components on a tire-by-tire basis .2 . Method according to claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises the step of : setting a lower boundary and an upper boundary for the number of tires to be manufactured based on the number of tires to be manufactured; wherein the tire manufacturing machine is switched from the batch operation mode into the interactive operation mode when a number of tire components provided by one of the multiple manufacturing modules is between the lower boundary and the upper boundary, and one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal .3 . Method according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the method further comprises the step of : receiving an operator' s input to suspend the manufacturing of tires at an earliest opportunity in response to an almost-empty signal ;wherein the tire manufacturing machine is switched from the batch operation mode into the interactive operation mode at the earliest opportunity that one or more of the manufacturing modules issues an almost-empty signal after the operator' s input is received .4 . Method according to claim 1 , wherein one or more multiple manufacturing modules are configured for issuing an almost-empty signal when the supply thereof is below a predetermined level .

5. Method according to any one of the preceding claims , wherein the step of switching the tire manufacturing machine into the interactive operation mode comprises switching the tire manufacturing machine into a trial-and- error mode .

6. Method according to claim 5, wherein the trial- and-error mode initiates the following steps : pausing the multiple manufacturing modules that have provided components for at least the same number of tires as the one or more of the manufacturing modules that issues an almost-empty signal ; for each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal , allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire ; and when each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal succeeds in providing the one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire, allowing each of the remaining multiple manufacturing modules to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture the respective single tire .7 . Method according to claim 6, wherein the steps of pausing the multiple manufacturing modules that have provided components for at least the same number of tires as the one or more of the manufacturing modules that issues an almost-empty signal ; for each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal , allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one ormore tire components required to manufacture a single tire ; and, when each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal succeeds in providing one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire , allowing each of the remaining multiple manufacturing modules to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire are repeated subsequently .8 . Method according to claim 6 or 7 , comprising the step of ending the trial-and-error mode when one or more of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal fail in providing one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire .

9. Method according to claim 6 or 7 , and claim 2 , comprising the step of ending the trial-and-error mode when the number of tires manufactured corresponds to the upper boundary .10 . Method according any one of the preceding claims , comprising the step of selecting one or more manufacturing modules that may trigger the trial-and-error mode .11 . Method according to any one of the claims 6- 9, and claim 10 , wherein the step of , for each of the manufacturing modules that issued an almost-empty signal , allowing the respective one or more manufacturing modules to try to provide one or more tire components required to manufacture a single tire is performed in relation to the selected one or more manufacturing modules .12 . Method according to any one of the preceding claims , comprising the step of assigning a component identi fier to each of the tire components provided by each of the multiple manufacturing modules .13 . Method according to any one of the previous claims , wherein one of the multiple manufacturing modules is a tire manufacturing module configured for manufacturing a tire using tire components provided by the remaining manufacturing modules .14 . Method according to claim 13 , comprising thestep of assigning a tire identifier to each tire manufactured by the tire manufacturing module .

15. Method according to claims 12 and 14 , comprising the step of associating component identifiers of tire components used for manufacturing a tire to a tire identi fier of the respective tire manufactured .

16. Method according to claim 2 , wherein setting the lower boundary and upper boundary may be done automatically or by an operator .17 . Method according to any one of the preceding claims , comprising the step of interrupting operation of the tire manufacturing machine at a random point of time .18 . Method according to claim 17 , wherein the step of interrupting operation of the tire manufacturing machine at a random point of time comprises : pausing the multiple manufacturing modules ; determining which one of the multiple manufacturing modules has provided tire components for the largest number of tires , and the number of tires for which components has been provided; and allowing the other manufacturing modules to continue providing tire components till each of the other manufacturing modules has provided components for the same number of the tires as the one of the multiple manufacturing modules that has provided tire components for the largest number of tires .

19. Method according to any one of the preceding claims , comprising the step of manufacturing a tire using tire components provided by the multiple manufacturing modules .20 . Method according to any one of the preceding claims , wherein the step of allowing each of the multiple manufacturing modules to provide respective tire components comprises monitoring the number of tire components provided by each of the multiple manufacturing modules .21 . Tire manufacturing machine for manufacturing a tire, wherein the tire manufacturing machine comprises :multiple manufacturing modules configured for providing a tire component for manufacturing a tire ; and a controller configured for controlling operation of the tire manufacturing machine and operatively connected to each of the multiple manufacturing modules , wherein the controller is configured for performing the steps of the method according to any one of the preceding claims .22 . Tire manufacturing machine according to claim 21 , wherein one or more of the multiple manufacturing modules comprises a sub-controller, wherein the controller is operatively connected to the sub-controller of the one or more of the multiple manufacturing modules .23 . Tire manufacturing machine according to claim 21 or 22 , wherein one of the multiple manufacturing modules is a tire manufacturing module configured for manufacturing a tire using tire components provided by the remaining manufacturing modules .24 . Computer-readable medium having computer- readable instructions stored thereon that causes , when executed by a processor and / or a controller, the tire manufacturing machine according to any one of the claims 21- 23 to perform the method according to any one of the claims 1-20 .-o-o-o-o-o- o-o-o-BT / RM

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