Method for mounting a pneumatic tire on a wheel rim

Abstract

In the method according to the invention, a handling robot (1) comprises an articulated arm (3) movable in three directions, the articulated arm (3) having at its free end a gripper (2) for gripping and holding a pneumatic tire (4). The pneumatic tire (4) is held on its running surface by the gripper (2), removed from a feed position and moved to an optional wetting station (5) for wetting the pneumatic tire (4) with lubricating oil. The wetted pneumatic tire (4) is then moved to an assembly station (9) having a clamping device (11) for releasably holding a wheel rim (10). The assembly station (9) comprises a handling device having an assembly head (14) equipped with an assembly tool (15) that can be guided along between the tire beads (6, 7) and the wheel rim flange (12). The pneumatic tire (4) is now mounted on the wheel rim (10) by a coordinated action of the handling robot (1) and the assembly head (14).

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for mounting a pneumatic tire on a rim using a handling robot which guides the tire during mounting. An apparatus for carrying out the method is also described. [Background technology]

[0002] In the industrial production of vehicle wheels, the associated rim and tire are first introduced separately and then processed one after the other in various production stations until a complete wheel is produced. Here, the rim and tire need to be identified, soaped and assembled according to type. The assembled wheel is usually automatically inflated and balanced so that it can be mounted on the car. This type of wheel production requires a high level of quality control, since a poorly manufactured vehicle wheel can significantly affect the driving behavior of the vehicle, presenting a safety risk, especially at high speeds. Since the individual production steps are partly interdependent, an error in a preliminary step can result in the required quality tolerances being exceeded in the final wheel, rendering it unusable. Therefore, each production station in such a production line is designed to respect the permissible production tolerances as much as possible.

[0003] In one method for mechanically assembling vehicle wheels, a rim with the rim dish facing up or down is held in a horizontal position by a clamping device. A pneumatic tire is placed on the rim at an angle and forced toward the rim so that the lower tire bead is forced into the well of the rim at the bottom, while the upper part of the lower tire bead protrudes beyond the upper rim flange. A mounting tool is then lowered from above onto the tire and rim, forcing the tire sidewall down to the level of the well of the rim. The mounting tool is rotated about the axis of rotation of the rim, thereby continuously pulling the tire bead above the upper rim flange of the rim.

[0004] US 5,170,828 A discloses a method for mounting pneumatic tires on drop-center rims, according to which the pneumatic tire is placed from above on the rim held in a clamping device by a conveyor device and then transported together with the rim to a mounting and filling station, where the tire is slid over the rim by means of an inflation bell and inflated with the help of said bell, which is moved by a handling device and acts on the bead of the tire.

[0005] US 4,621,671 A discloses a machine for mounting pneumatic tires on drop centre rims, whereby the rims are transported on pallets along a conveyor line a given distance to two back-to-back mounted tire mounting stations.

[0006] Also known from WO 99 / 42309 A1 is an apparatus for mounting pneumatic tyres on rims, the apparatus comprising a robot having an articulated arm movable in three directions, which can be moved along a movement path which can be selected from a plurality of programmable predetermined (predetermined) movement paths stored in the memory of a central device.

[0007] DE102006057171A1 discloses an apparatus for assembling a pneumatic tire on a vehicle wheel rim by means of a handling robot with a robot hand having a rotatably drivable flange and movable about a number of axes, and a gripper attached to the robot hand, the gripper having a base body and a number of gripper arms movable in a radial direction relative to a central axis of the gripper, the gripper arms being coupled to a synchronizing device for synchronizing the radial movements of the gripper arms, the synchronizing device comprising a disk rotatably attached to the base body and capable of being driven in rotation by a motor, and a number of coupling elements attached to the disk and to the gripper arms by joints, causing a synchronized radial movement of the gripper arms upon rotation of the disk.

[0008] DE102005030692A1 discloses a handling robot for automatically assembling pneumatic tires onto rims. The pneumatic tire is handled and assembled with the aid of a gripper attached to a swiveling arm or robot hand of the handling robot and able to grip and hold the pneumatic tire in a suitable manner. The pneumatic tire is gripped by the gripper on its outer circumference in the area of ​​the tread. Furthermore, the fingers or arms of the gripper gripping the pneumatic tire are spaced apart from one another and are moved synchronously relative to one another such that the gripped pneumatic tire is always located in a defined central position relative to the gripper (and thus also relative to the robot hand).

[0009] DE202018106191 discloses an apparatus for gripping and holding a tire by its periphery, comprising a handling device including an articulated arm that can be moved in several spatial directions and a gripper with two gripper arms at its free end. The multi-link gripper arm is made up of several segments that are in active contact with each other via a synchronization means, such that the movement of one gripper segment leads to the movement of another gripper segment. The gripping movement of the gripper arm takes place in a plane transverse to the axis of the tire, and several gripper segments can be brought into contact with the tire's periphery with their contact surfaces. This means that tires with different outer diameters can be gripped by the periphery without blocking the side of the tire for further processing, due to the synchronous radial movement of the gripper arms or their gripper segments.

[0010] WO2008 / 063212A2 discloses a tire assembly system in which multiple robots work together to perform specific tasks. For example, a rim robot moves the rim to a soaping station and places (sets) the rim after soaping, while a tire robot performs the same process on the tire. An assembly robot is used to assemble the wheel, where the tire and rim are attached.

[0011] DE102011002180B3 discloses a method for assembling a pneumatic tire on a well-base rim, in which the pneumatic tire is gripped on the tread by a gripper arranged on a handling device, and a first tire bead is slid on the rim by a controlled movement of the gripper. The gripper is then released from the pneumatic tire, which is moved by an actuator to an initial position for assembling a second tire bead. By rotating the gripper about the axis of the rim, an assembling tool arranged on the gripper is guided along the rim, and the second tire bead is slid on the rim. Summary of the Invention

[0012] A problem with the known devices is that several assembly stations with several handling devices are required, which is particularly costly and complicates the maintenance of the system.

[0013] It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for the automatic assembling of pneumatic tires, which makes it possible to reduce the number of handling devices without adversely affecting the automation.

[0014] This problem is solved by the features of claim 1. Preferred embodiments are set forth in the dependent claims.

[0015] According to the invention, the problem is solved by providing a method for assembling a pneumatic tyre onto a drop centre rim of a vehicle wheel, characterized in that the pneumatic tyre is gripped on its tread in a presentation position by a gripper arranged on an articulated arm of a handling robot movable in three directions, the tyre is approached to a rim held in a clamping device, and by controlled movements of the gripper holding the pneumatic tyre a first tyre bead facing the rim is slid onto the rim flange of the rim and a second tyre bead is attached with the help of a handling device having an assembling tool, the handling device guiding the assembling tool along a circular path on the rim flange during a movement of the handling robot, in particular along a circular path, so that the second tyre bead is slid completely onto the rim flange, the movements of the handling robot being coordinated with those of the handling device.

[0016] The handling robot can perform a predetermined or freely programmable positioning and movement of the tire, which positioning and movement is coordinated with the movement of the handling device with the assembly tool, in particular when assembling the second tire bead, i.e. the movements of both are coordinated. For example, the tire held by the handling robot can be tilted so that the tasks or activities performed by the assembly tool of the handling device are simpler or easier and can be performed faster, safer and more efficiently.

[0017] The method according to the invention has the advantage that due to the cooperation of the handling robot and the handling device a large number of tools are no longer required and the assembly operation, i.e. the handling of the tire, can essentially be performed by a single handling robot. This means that the (single) handling robot takes over the role of all tire assembly tools from the classical assembly machine, so that tools such as front and rear tire lifters, tire pushers, hold-down devices etc. are no longer required and a simple assembly system is provided. Advantageously, the handling robot takes over the functions of all tire handling tools that are not located at the assembly head. In particular, the tire is held on its tread by the handling robot throughout the entire assembly process. This allows for high conveyor speeds and therefore short cycle times and avoids inaccurate positioning of the tire when transferring it from one conveyor to the next. Such an assembly system can also be easily expanded since additional stations can be added.

[0018] For certain types of tires, it is advantageous to wet the pneumatic tire with a lubricant before mounting in order to simplify the mounting. In this respect, it may be advantageous for a pneumatic tire already (pre-) wetted with lubricant to be provided (in particular at a providing position), gripped at its tread by a gripper arranged on an articulated arm of a handling robot and brought to a rim held in a clamping device, and by controlled movements of the gripper holding the pneumatic tire, a first tire bead facing the rim is slid onto the rim flange of the rim, and a second tire bead is attached with the help of a handling device having an mounting tool, which handling device guides the mounting tool along a circular path on the rim flange during a movement of the handling robot (in particular along a circular path), so that the second tire bead is completely positioned on the rim flange and the movements of the handling robot are coordinated with the movements of the handling device.

[0019] The soaping of the pneumatic tire, in particular its rim bead, is also preferably performed by the handling robot, i.e. after it removes the pneumatic tire from the presentation position and before the lubricant-wetted pneumatic tire is transferred to a clamping device. Thus, a method for mounting a pneumatic tire on a drop centre rim of a vehicle wheel is preferred, the method comprising the steps of: The pneumatic tire is gripped by its tread in the presentation position by a gripper arranged on an articulated arm of a handling robot movable in three directions, the tire bead is transported by the handling robot to a wetting station for wetting the tire bead with a lubricant and moved together with the tire bead along an application device for the lubricant in the wetting station; The lubricant-wetted tire is then moved by the handling robot to a rim held in a clamping device, and a first tire bead facing the rim is slid onto the rim flange of the rim by a controlled movement of the gripper holding the pneumatic tire; The second tire bead is mounted with the aid of a handling device having an assembly tool, which guides the assembly tool along a circular path on the rim flange during a movement of the handling robot (in particular along a circular path), whereby the second tire bead is slid completely onto the rim flange, the movement of the handling robot being coordinated with the movement of the handling device.

[0020] The method according to the invention makes it possible to carry out further processing steps, previously carried out by separate handling devices or manually, with a handling robot and to integrate them into the process, so that the tire mounting system can be simplified, the costs and maintenance efforts can be reduced and the cycle times can be shortened.

[0021] In one embodiment, the pneumatic tire is placed on the rim by the handling robot in a position inclined relative to the rim such that the axis of rotation of the pneumatic tire forms an angle with the axis of rotation of the rim, so as to assemble a first tire bead, a part of the rim flange enters into an opening of the first tire bead, the tire bead comes to rest in the area of ​​the part of the rim flange at the drop center of the rim, and then the tire bead is slid onto the rim flange by reducing the inclination of the pneumatic tire relative to the rim. This facilitates fitting the first bead using only a handling robot, which is associated with lower costs and shorter cycle times.

[0022] Preferably, the first tire bead is mounted with the aid of the handling device with the assembly tool, the movements of which are coordinated with those of the handling robot, during which the assembly tool is guided along a circular path on the rim flange, so that the first tire bead is fully seated on the rim flange. For certain types of tires, it is advantageous to use an assembly tool to assemble the first bead. However, this step can also be performed by a coordinated action of the handling robot and the assembly head. Here, it is shown to be advantageous that the tilting of the pneumatic tire by the handling robot is also performed along a circular path, and that said circular path has a radius larger than the radius of the assembly head or of the assembly tool. As a result, the assembly tool and the tilted part of the pneumatic tire (in particular the lowest point of the pneumatic tire) move synchronously on their circular paths, one being behind the other in the radial direction relative to the longitudinal axis of the rim. Thus, the assembly tool and the ramp of the pneumatic tire (in particular the lowest point of the pneumatic tire) are advantageously located radially one behind the other on their circumferential paths.

[0023] It may be advantageous if the application device comprises a rod-like stationary brushing device that can be wetted with the lubricant and the handling robot rotates the pneumatic tire around the brushing device. Applying lubricant using a brush around which the pneumatic tire is rotated has proven to be an efficient and cost-effective wetting method.

[0024] According to a further proposal of the invention, the pneumatic tire is deformed during assembly by the handling robot or the handling device in such a way that the tire bead to be mounted assumes an elliptical shape. To enable this, the gripper holding the pneumatic tire can be controlled in such a way that it performs a defined (predetermined) asynchronous clamping movement. Alternatively, the elliptical shape of the pneumatic tire can be achieved by a radial movement of the assembly head, in particular its tool.

[0025] An apparatus for carrying out the method comprises a handling robot having an articulated arm movable in three directions and having at its free end a gripper for gripping and holding a pneumatic tire, an assembly station having a clamping device for releasably holding a rim, and a handling device having an assembly head equipped with an assembly tool that can be guided along between the tire bead and the rim flange, said assembly station being arranged within the working range of said handling robot.

[0026] The handling robot may receive the pneumatic tire already (pre-) moistened with a lubricant. Alternatively, the handling robot may bring the pneumatic tire to a classical wetting station, where the pneumatic tire is moistened with a lubricant, for example manually. In a preferred embodiment, a wetting station is provided, in particular in the working area of ​​the handling robot, with an application device that can be moistened with a lubricant, whereby the handling robot guides the pneumatic tire to be moistened to said application device. Here, the handling robot also takes over the soaping of the pneumatic tire by picking up the pneumatic tire from the loading station, performing a coordinated soaping operation in the wetting station and then guiding the moistened pneumatic tire to the rim held in the assembly station.

[0027] A handling robot, which may also be referred to as an assembly robot within the scope of the present invention, comprises an articulated arm movable in three directions and carries at its free end a gripper (preferably movable relative to the articulated arm) for gripping and holding a pneumatic tire. The gripper is designed in such a way that it can grip the tire at its outer circumference and hold it in a force-lock manner by radial clamping. Preferably, the tire is held at three or more points distributed around the circumference and located on the tire tread. The device according to the invention comprises an assembly station with a clamping device for holding the rim during tire assembly. Furthermore, in one embodiment, a wetting station with an application device, in particular a brush, for wetting the beads of the tire with a lubricant may be arranged in the working area of ​​the handling robot. Preferably, said wetting station is arranged directly at the end of a conveyor device for supplying the tires to be mounted. It may also be possible to integrate the wetting station at the end of the conveyor section of said conveyor device.

[0028] The handling robot advantageously takes over the work of the normal tire mounting tool. It can be advantageous if the gripper of the handling robot has at least one hold-down device which presses the second tire bead essentially at the height of the drop center of the rim.

[0029] A synchronization device may be provided for coordinating or synchronizing the control of the handling robot and the handling device, in particular the assembly head. The synchronization device may for example be a component of the program-controlled handling robot and the handling device and may be controlled by a control unit connected thereto in a data-exchangeable manner. Relevant data, such as the type of tire, may be entered via the control unit and the device according to the invention may be controlled. For this purpose, the control unit may have input means, such as a touch screen.

[0030] The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to embodiments of the invention illustrated in the drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0031] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows a pneumatic tire and a handling robot at a wetting station. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 shows a wetted pneumatic tire and a handling robot at an assembly station. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 shows the installation of the first bead. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 shows the assembly of the first bead using an assembly head. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 shows the assembly of the first bead using an assembly head. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 shows the assembly of the first bead using an assembly head. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 shows the assembly of the second bead using an assembly head. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 shows the assembly of the second bead using an assembly head. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 shows the further transport of the mounted wheels. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0032] FIG. 1 shows a pneumatic tire and a handling robot in a wetting station. The handling robot 1 comprises a gripper 2, such as is mounted on the free arm of an industrial robot, and an articulated arm 3 with several axes of movement. By means of the articulated arm 3, the gripper 2 can be moved in three spatial directions. Such a gripper 2 is known, for example, from DE202018106191U1, the content of which is expressly included herein. However, the method according to the invention is not limited to a specific embodiment of the gripper 2. It is merely the case that grippers known in the prior art and capable of holding a pneumatic tire on its tread are suitable for the method according to the invention. Grippers that allow for synchronous movements of several gripper elements are preferred. Instead of synchronous movements of several gripper elements, asynchronous movements can also be provided, for example if the tire is pressed into an oval shape by the gripper. In the latter case, the movements of the several gripper elements should be centered such that the center of the oval shape of the tire is the center of the gripper.

[0033] Furthermore, the gripper 2 is connected to an articulated arm 3 and can rotate about two axes. The handling robot 1, which may also be called an assembly robot within the scope of the present invention, has several independent drives, which may be controlled by a programmable control device, allowing the gripper 2 to be moved to a precise position. The gripper 2 grips the pneumatic tire 4 to be mounted by its outer periphery, for example from a conveyor device, not shown in FIG. 1. The pneumatic tire 4 is thereby tensioned radially and held in a force-locking manner. The conveyor device supplying the pneumatic tire 4 to be mounted is preferably arranged in the working area of ​​the handling robot 1.

[0034] In one embodiment, a wetting station 5 may be arranged in the working area of ​​the handling robot 1. The wetting station 5 serves to wet the tire beads (i.e. the lower bead 6 and the upper bead 7) with a lubricant before assembly in order to facilitate the assembly process. This means that a step of soaping the pneumatic tire 4 can easily be included in the process according to the invention. Here too, the pneumatic tire 4 is held or moved by the handling robot 1. Thus, the pneumatic tire 4 is held on its running surface by the handling robot 1 throughout the entire assembly process and additionally also during the soaping process. Alternatively, the handling robot 1 may take the soaped pneumatic tire 4, i.e. wetted with a lubricant, from the presentation position and feed it to a further assembly process. In this case, the soaping of the pneumatic tire 4 is carried out by conventional means, such as manually or by using a separate device.

[0035] The wetting station 5 comprises an application device 8 for applying the lubricant, which can be designed, for example, as a brush. The wetting station 5 can comprise a table with a flat tray, in the center of which a cylindrical fixed brush can be arranged. Alternatively, a spray nozzle can be provided as application device 8. In the following, the application of the lubricant using a brush as application device 8 is described. A liquid lubricant, for example a soapy liquid, is conveyed by a pump arranged below the liquid bath (tub) through a central supply line of the brush to the top of the brush, whereby the brush is impregnated with the lubricant. The pneumatic tire 4, held by its tread by the gripper 2, is moved with the help of the handling robot 1 above the application device 8 (in particular the brush) of the wetting station 5 and lowered until the brush enters into the openings of the two tire beads 6, 7. During this process, the tire 4 is essentially centered with the brush. The diameter of the brush in the illustrated example is smaller than the inner diameter of the beads 6, 7. The pneumatic tire 4 is then moved until the beads 6, 7 contact the brush at one point. The pneumatic tire 4 and gripper 2 are then moved one or several times on a circular path around the axis of the brush, so that the brush slides along the tire beads 6, 7 and thoroughly wets them with the lubricant. After wetting, the pneumatic tire 4 is re-centered with respect to the brush and removed upwards from the wetting station 5.

[0036] Figure 2 shows the handling robot 1 and the moistened pneumatic tyre 4 at the assembly station, and Figure 3 shows the assembly of the first bead 6. An assembly station (assembly station) 9 is arranged in the working area of ​​the handling robot 1. At the assembly station 9, the pneumatic tyre 4 moistened with lubricant is mounted on a clamped rim 10 with the help of the handling robot 1. The rim 10, which is fitted to the tyre 4, is fixed in a horizontal position by a suitable clamping device 11.

[0037] The handling robot 1 moves the pneumatic tire 4 from its original horizontal position to an inclined position relative to the horizontal position. The pneumatic tire 4 is then lowered onto the rim 10 and the lower bead 6 is essentially slid radially, starting from its lowest point, over the upper rim flange 12, so that the rim flange 12 partially enters the opening of the tire bead 6, which comes to rest with its lowest point against the drop center 13 of the rim 10. Once this state is reached, i.e. when the pneumatic tire 4 reduces its inclination relative to the rim 10, the radial movement of the tire 4 relative to the rim 10 ends and the tire 4 is rotated around the contact point between the tire bead 6 and the drop center 13 so that the tire 4 returns to a substantially horizontal position. This causes the tire bead 6 to be completely slid onto the rim flange 12.

[0038] 4 to 6 show the assembly of the first bead by means of an assembly head. For certain types of pneumatic tires 4, assembly by means of an assembly tool may be advantageous and easier. For such tire assembly, according to an embodiment, the first bead 6 can be attached by means of an assembly head 14. The assembly head 14 is arranged above the rim 10, in particular coaxially with the axis of the rim 10, and can be moved in different directions by a handling device, not shown. The handling device can be designed as a simple assembly station with a linear drive and a rotary drive. However, the handling device can also be designed as an industrial robot, at whose free end the assembly head and the assembly tool are arranged.

[0039] The assembly tools 15 are movably arranged on the assembly head 14 and include in particular a bead deflector and an assembly roller. The position of the assembly tools 15 can be adjusted radially to accommodate different rim and tire diameters. The arrangement of additional elements, for example tracking rollers, can also be provided. It can also be advantageous to arrange a second set of assembly tools diametrically opposite to the first set of assembly tools.

[0040] To start the assembly of the first bead 6, the tool 15 is moved through the opening in the upper bead 7 into a working position on the edge of the rim 10. As soon as the tool 15 reaches the position shown in Fig. 4, the assembly head 14 is rotated clockwise around the axis of the rim 10. The tool 15 moves along the edge of the rim 10, its bead deflector continuously pushing the lower bead 6 above the edge of the rim 10, and a pressure roller following the bead deflector presses the bead 6 down towards the centre of the rim 10. At the same time, the handling robot 1 tilts the held pneumatic tyre 4 in synchronism with the rotation of the assembly head 14. Since the radius of the circular path of the assembly tool 15 is smaller than the radius of the circular path followed by the tilt of the pneumatic tire 4, the tilted pneumatic tire 4, in particular the lowest point of said pneumatic tire 4, is located close to the assembly tool 15, i.e. the assembly tool 15 and the tilt of the pneumatic tire 4 (in particular the tilt of the lowest point of said pneumatic tire 4) performed by the handling robot 1 essentially move synchronously along their respective circular paths in the radial direction (circumferential direction) relative to the longitudinal axis of the rim 10. This considerably simplifies the assembly of the pneumatic tire 4. The movements of the assembly head 14 and the handling robot 1 are coordinated, both performing a synchronous movement along a circular path. The handling robot 1 thereby assists the movement of the assembly head 14 or its tool 15 through the quasi-moving tilt of the pneumatic tire 4. A correspondingly programmable control device can be connected in a data-exchangeable manner to the control of the assembly head 14 or its synchronizer and to the control of the handling robot 1 or its synchronizer. The control unit of the handling robot 1 can use data about the size and position of the rim 10 or pneumatic tire 4 inputted via said control unit to precisely control the movement of the gripper 2 gripping the pneumatic tire 4 and coordinate it with the movement of the assembly head 14. The assembly of the first tire bead 6 is essentially complete when the assembly head 14 reaches a predefined point on its circular path, or a corresponding sensor detects the completion of the assembly of the first bead 6, or when the pneumatic tire 4 is again in a horizontal position.

[0041] To attach the second bead (upper tire bead) 7, the assembly tool 15 can be moved to an initial position after assembling the first tire bead 6. In this position, the assembly tool 15 is positioned close to the edge of the rim 10. By further lowering the assembly tool 15, the second bead 7 is pressed at one point above the upper rim flange 12 and contacts the drop center 13 of the rim 10. This lowering of the assembly tool 15 is accompanied by a tilting of the pneumatic tire 4 by the gripper 2 of the handling robot 1. This tilting is performed only to the extent that it prevents the lower bead 6 from slipping off the drop center 13 of the rim 10 on the opposite side of the tire 4. The tilting of the tire 4 is then performed along a circular path and the movement of the assembly head 14 or the assembly tool 15 is also performed along a circular path. Here too, the movement of the pneumatic tire 4 (i.e. its quasi-moving tilt) and the movement of the assembly head 14 or the assembly tool 15 are synchronized. The fact that the radii of the circular paths are different means that the lowest point of the pneumatic tire 4 and the assembly tool 15 can be guided closer to each other, meaning that they are radially in front of and behind each other relative to the longitudinal axis of the rim.

[0042] The installation of the second tire bead 7 is completed only when the tool 15 reaches its starting position again, in particular after an almost complete or complete circular movement, after which the clamping device 11 releases the rim 10 and the handling robot 1 can transport the mounted wheel 16 consisting of the rim 10 and the tire 4 to a subsequent processing station, for example a tire inflation station.

[0043] Advantages of the method or device according to the invention include the fact that the handling robot 1 holds the tire 4 throughout the entire assembly process, thereby eliminating (reducing) the occurrence of errors during tire transport. Assembly is simplified and cycle times are shortened.

Claims

1. A method for mounting a pneumatic tire (4) onto a drop center rim (10) of a vehicle wheel (16), comprising the steps of: The pneumatic tire (4) is gripped on its tread in a presentation position by a gripper (2) arranged on an articulated arm (3) of a handling robot (1) movable in three directions, The tire (4) is brought close to a rim (10) held in a clamping device (11), and by controlled movement of the gripper (2) holding the pneumatic tire (4), the first tire bead (6) facing the rim (10) is slid onto the rim flange (12) of the rim (10); A second tire bead (7) is installed with the aid of a handling device having an assembly tool (15), The movement of the handling device is coordinated with the movement of the handling robot (1), During the movement of the handling robot (1), the assembly tool (15) is guided along a circular path on the rim flange (12), so that the second tire bead (7) is slid completely onto the rim flange (12). A method characterized by:

2. The pneumatic tire is transported by the handling robot (1) to a wetting station (5) for wetting the tire beads (6, 7) with lubricant, and is moved together with the tire beads (6, 7) along a lubricant application device (8) at the wetting station (5).

2. The method of claim 1 .

3. The pneumatic tire (4) is placed on the rim (10) by the handling robot (1) in a position inclined relative to the rim (10) so that the rotation axis of the pneumatic tire (4) forms an angle with the rotation axis of the rim (10) to assemble a first tire bead (6); A portion of the rim flange (12) enters the opening of the first tire bead (6), and the tire bead (6) comes to rest on the portion of the rim flange (12) at the drop center (13) of the rim (10). Subsequently, by reducing the inclination of the pneumatic tire (4) relative to the rim (10), the tire bead (6) is slid on the rim flange (12).

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the first tire bead (6) is mounted with the aid of the handling device having the assembly tool (15); The movement of the handling device is coordinated with the movement of the handling robot (1), During the movement of the handling robot (1), the assembly tool (15) is guided along a circular path on the rim flange (12), so that the first tire bead (6) is slid completely onto the rim flange (12).

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The application device (8) comprises a rod-shaped static brushing device that can be wetted with the lubricant; The handling robot (1) rotates the pneumatic tire (4) around the brushing device.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

6. The pneumatic tire (4) is rotated by the handling robot (1) around the contact point between the drop center (13) and the tire bead (6, 7) when the tilt relative to the rim (10) is reduced.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

7. The pneumatic tire (4) is deformed during assembly by the handling robot (1) or the handling device so that the tire beads (6, 7) to be mounted have an oval shape.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

8. After assembling the pneumatic tire (4) onto the rim (10), the handling robot (1) transfers the mounted wheel (16) to a conveyor device that transports the wheel (16).

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

9. 9. An apparatus for carrying out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, comprising: a handling robot (1) having an articulated arm (3) movable in three directions and having a gripper (2) at its free end for grasping and holding a pneumatic tire (4); an assembly station (9) having a clamping device (11) for releasably holding a wheel rim (10); Equipped with Handling device having an assembly head (14) equipped with an assembly tool (15) that can be guided along between the tire bead (6, 7) and the wheel rim flange (12) Further provided with The assembly station (9) is located within the working range of the handling robot (1). An apparatus characterized in that

10. a wetting station (5) arranged in the working area of ​​the handling robot (1) and having an application device (8) that can be wetted with a lubricant; Further provided with The handling robot (1) guides the pneumatic tire (4) to be wetted to the application device (8).

10. The device of claim 9.

11. The gripper (2) of the handling robot (1) has at least one pressing device that presses the second tire bead (7) essentially at the height of the drop center (13) of the wheel rim (12).

11. Apparatus according to claim 9 or 10.

12. The handling device and the handling robot (1) are connected to a synchronization device that synchronizes their movements.

11. Apparatus according to claim 9 or 10.

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