Tire holding tool

Abstract

To provide a tire holding tool capable of vertically placing a tire and loading it on a pallet, light in weight, and coping with various kinds of tires.SOLUTION: The tire holding tool 1 is made of a foamed resin, and includes a valley part 2 on which a vertically placed tire T is placed, and mountain parts 3 which are respectively provided at both ends of the valley part 2 and regulate rolling of the tire T. The valley part 2 has a central curved surface part 21 for holding a position just under the tire T, and the mountain part 3 has an inclined curved surface part 31 for holding a position outside in the circumferential direction more than the position just under the tire T. According to this configuration, since it is made of a foamed resin, it is lightweight and can suppress an increase in weight. Further, since the foamed resin constituting the tire holding tool 1 has a predetermined elasticity, various tires T having different diameters can be held by the elastic deformation of the valley portion 2 and the peak portion 3.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a tire holder made of foamed resin such as polystyrene foam, which is used when transporting tires and which stably holds tires on a pallet. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, tires are transported by loading a plurality of tires onto a pallet, lifting the pallet using a forklift or the like, and storing the tires in a container of a transport vehicle such as a truck. In this case, the plurality of tires are generally stacked horizontally on the pallet (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Also, as shown in Fig. 5, a pallet for transporting tires is known that has supports on all four sides of the pallet P, allowing the pallets P to be stacked two high when placed in a container. Compared to tires placed vertically, horizontally placed tires T are less likely to roll, so the tires can be transported stably without the need for additional holding devices. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-16698 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In recent years, with the popularity of SUVs, tires have tended to become thicker. When thick tires are stacked horizontally, the height of the stacked tires increases, and it may exceed the height of the support columns of the tire transport pallet shown in Figure 5. Generally, the containers of transport vehicles are limited in height so that they can pass through height-restricted areas such as tunnels. Therefore, it is not possible to simply increase the height of the support columns of tire transport pallets. For example, while four standard tires for sedans can be loaded on one pallet, only three thick tires for SUVs can be loaded on one pallet.

[0006] One possible solution is to load tires vertically onto a pallet. Transport vehicle containers have fewer restrictions on the length in the front-to-rear direction than on the height direction, and pallets also have relatively flexible horizontal storage sizes. However, to transport tires vertically, the tires must be placed on the pallet using some kind of holder to prevent them from rolling. While such a holder must stably hold the tires, an increase in the weight of the holder itself is undesirable from the perspective of transport efficiency, and the holder must also be able to accommodate a variety of tire types with different thicknesses and diameters.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a tire holder that can load tires vertically onto a pallet, is lightweight, and can accommodate various types of tires. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a tire holder made of foamed resin, comprising a valley portion on which a vertically placed tire is placed, and peak portions provided at both ends of the valley portion to regulate the rolling of the tire, wherein the valley portion has a central curved surface portion that holds the tire in a position directly below it, and the peak portions have inclined curved surface portions that hold the tire in a position circumferentially outward of the position directly below it.

[0009] Preferably, the tire holder further comprises a groove portion provided between the valley portion and the peak portion, and the valley portion and the peak portion elastically deform via the groove portion, thereby changing the inclination angle of the inclined curved surface portion relative to the central curved surface portion.

[0010] In the tire holder, it is preferable that the bottom surfaces of the valleys and peaks are arched in shape with the bottom surfaces directly below the central curved surface portion raised when no tire is placed on them.

[0011] In the above tire holder, it is preferable that the groove portion has an inner groove portion provided on the outer side of the central curved surface portion, and an outer groove portion provided on the inner side of the inclined curved surface portion and outside the inner groove portion.

[0012] In the tire holder, it is preferable that the ridge portion has a most protruding portion at an outer end of the inclined curved surface portion, and the outer groove portion is formed in a shape that fits with the most protruding portion.

[0013] In the tire holder, it is preferable that projections and recesses are provided on both end surfaces perpendicular to the groove, and the projections and recesses are formed alternately on each end surface. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] The tire holder according to the present invention is made of a foamed resin, so it is lightweight and the weight increase due to the use of the holder can be suppressed. Furthermore, the foamed resin that constitutes the tire holder has a predetermined elasticity, so that the valleys and peaks can be elastically deformed, allowing it to hold tires of various diameters. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1( a ) is a perspective view showing a state in which a tire is placed vertically using a tire holder according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1( b ) is a perspective view showing a state in which two tire holders are arranged side by side. [Figure 2](a) is a perspective view mainly showing the plane of the tire holder, (b) is a front view, (c) is a plan view, (d) is a cross-sectional view corresponding to (b), (e) is a bottom view, and (f) is a right side view. [Figure 3] 1A is a front view showing a state in which a tire with a large diameter is placed on the tire holder, and FIG. 1B is a front view showing a state in which a tire with a small diameter is placed on the tire holder. [Figure 4] FIG. 2(a) is a perspective view showing a state in which a plurality of the tire holders are loaded, and FIG. 2(b) is a front view. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which tires are loaded horizontally on a tire pallet.

[0016] A tire holder according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b), a tire holder 1 according to this embodiment is placed on a pallet P on which tires T are placed vertically. In the illustrated example, two tire holders 1 are placed on the pallet P in a connected state, and four tires T placed vertically are held by these two tire holders 1. In the following description, the face of the tire holder 1 that is parallel to the sidewall SW of the vertically placed tires (the face in the lower left direction in the drawing) is referred to as the front face.

[0017] 2(a) to 2(f), the tire holder 1 is a foamed resin structure having a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view, and includes a valley portion 2 on which a vertically placed tire T is placed, and ridge portions 3 provided on both ends of the valley portion 2 to restrict the rolling of the tire T. The tire holder 1 has a substantially bilaterally symmetrical shape in a front view, and its shape in a front view and its cross-sectional shape parallel to the front view are substantially identical (see FIGS. 2(b) and 2(d)).

[0018] In this embodiment, the valleys 2 and the peaks 3 are integrally molded. The material forming the valleys 2 and the peaks 3 is a foamed synthetic resin such as a polyolefin resin, such as polystyrene, polyethylene, or polypropylene, and in this embodiment, expanded polystyrene (EPS) is used.

[0019] The length (width) of the flat (back) surface of the tire holder 1 is longer than the length (depth) of the side surface, and is, for example, 650 to 800 mm wide and 450 to 550 mm deep. When viewed from the front, the tire holder 1 has an overall shape in which the central upper surface of the valley portion 2 is recessed in a valley shape, and a pair of peaks 3 on both ends of the valley portion 2 have upper surfaces that gently slope upward outward and connect to the bottom surface 35 via a most protruding portion 33 and a substantially vertical outer side surface 34. The maximum height of the peaks 3 is, for example, 220 to 300 mm. The pair of peaks 3 are shaped substantially symmetrically with respect to the central valley portion 2.

[0020] The valley portion 2 has, on its upper surface, a central curved surface portion 21 that maintains a position directly below the center of the tire T. The central curved surface portion 21 is a gently curved surface that is symmetrical and slightly recessed in the center when viewed from the front. The peak portion 3 has an inclined curved surface portion 31 that maintains a position circumferentially outward of the position directly below the tire T. When viewed from the front, an imaginary arc that represents the central curved surface portion 21 is extended left and right, the inclined curved surface portion 31 is modeled by a part of the extended arc (see FIG. 3(a) described below). A substantially vertical inner side surface 32 is provided on the inside (toward the valley portion 2), and the outer end of the inclined curved surface portion 31 forms a rounded most protruding portion 33.

[0021] A groove portion 4 is provided between the valley portion 2 and the peak portion 3. The groove portion 4 has an inner groove portion 41 provided on the outside of the central curved surface portion 21, and an outer groove portion 42 provided outside the inner groove portion 41 and on the inside of the inclined curved surface portion 31. The inner groove portion 41 is a square gutter-shaped groove that is narrow in width but deep. On the other hand, the inner groove portion 41 is a round gutter-shaped groove that is wide in width but shallow in depth. The outer groove portion 42 is formed in a concave shape that corresponds to the convex shape of the most protruding portion 33.

[0022] The bottom surfaces of the valleys 2 and the peaks 3 (the surfaces of the tire holder 1 opposite to the surface on which the tire T is placed) are not flat, and when no tire T is placed, the bottom surface 22 directly below the central curved surface 21 has an arched shape that is raised above the installation surface of the tire holder 1 (see FIG. 2(b)). Specifically, the bottom surface 22 of the valleys 2 is a gently sloping curved surface that is slightly higher at the center. Furthermore, the bottom surface 35 of the peaks 3 is gently curved and sloping, being lower on the outer surface 34 side and becoming higher toward the inside. Therefore, when no tire T is placed, only the corners 36 of the bottom surface 35 of the peaks 3 on the outer surface 34 side are in contact with the installation surface of the tire holder 1. In this state, it is desirable that the bottom surface 22 of the valleys 2 be raised above the installation surface of the corners 36 by 25 to 45 mm. A shallow bottom groove 43 is provided between the bottom surface 22 of the valley portion 2 and the bottom surface 35 of the peak portion 3. The concave shape of this bottom groove 43 corresponds to the convex shape of the outer surface 34 of the bottom surface 35 of the peak portion 3.

[0023] The front and back surfaces of the tire holder 1 (both end surfaces perpendicular to the groove 4) are each provided with unevenness (recesses 44, protrusions 45), and these unevennesses are formed alternately on each surface (see FIG. 2(c)). In this embodiment, for example, the end surface from the center of the valley 2 to the inside of the outer groove 42 is a recess 44 (protrusion 45), and the end surface from the outer groove 42 to the outer side surface 34 is a protrusion 45 (recess 44). By providing such unevenness, when multiple tire holders 1 are arranged side by side, as shown in FIG. 1(b), adjacent tire holders 1 can be connected to each other, and lateral displacement of individual tire holders 1 on the pallet can be prevented.

[0024] Lightening recesses 23, 37 are provided at predetermined intervals on the bottom surface 22 of the valley portion 2 and the bottom surface 35 of the ridge portion 3 (see FIGS. 2(d) and 2(e)). In this embodiment, four lightening recesses 23 are provided on the bottom surface 22 of the valley portion 2 in a direction parallel to the groove portion 4, and similarly, four lightening recesses 37 are provided on the bottom surface 35 of the ridge portion 3. By providing such lightening recesses 23, 37, it is possible to reduce the weight of the tire holder 1 and the amount of resin material used while ensuring a predetermined strength.

[0025] The tire holder 1 according to this embodiment is made of foamed resin, so it is lightweight and the weight increase due to the use of the holder can be suppressed. In addition, the foamed resin that constitutes the tire holder 1 has a predetermined elasticity, so that the valleys 2 and peaks 3 can elastically deform to hold tires of various diameters. Here, the operation of the tire holder 1 will be described in more detail with reference to Figures 3(a) and (b).

[0026] 3(a) shows a configuration example when a tire T1 with a relatively large diameter is placed on the tire holder 1. The load of the tire T1 is applied approximately evenly to the central curved surface portion 21 and the two inclined curved surface portions 31, so the tire holder 1 generally maintains its original shape. Furthermore, because the tire T1 is supported at three points on the tire holder 1, it is stably held even when placed upright.

[0027] On the other hand, FIG. 3(b) shows a configuration example when a tire T2 with a relatively small diameter is placed on the tire holder 1. The valley portions 2 and peak portions 3 elastically deform via the groove portions 4 (inner groove portions 41, outer groove portions 42), thereby changing the inclination angle of the inclined curved surface portions 31 relative to the central curved surface portion 21. When a small tire T2 is placed on the tire holder 1, the load of the tire T2 is concentrated on the central curved surface portion 21, so the valley portions 2 are pressed downward. As a result, the inclined curved surface portions 31 are pulled inward, increasing the inclination angle of the inclined curved surface portions 31 relative to the central curved surface portion 21. As a result, the two inclined curved surface portions 31 sandwich the tire T2 at outer positions in the circumferential direction, and the tire T2 is stably held at three points on the tire holder 1.

[0028] 3(a) is placed on the tire holder 1, the load of the tire T2 is concentrated on the outer portions of the inclined curved surface portion 31, so that the ridges 3 are pushed outward, and accordingly, the central curved surface portion 21 is pulled upward, reducing the inclination angle of the inclined curved surface portion 31 relative to the central curved surface portion 21 (not shown). As a result, the central curved surface portion 21 supports the position directly below the tire, and the large tire is stably held at three points on the tire holder 1.

[0029] As shown in Figures 4(a) and 4(b), when the tire holders 1 are stacked with their concave upper surfaces, including the central curved surface portion 21 and the inclined curved surface portion 31, facing each other, the outer groove portion 42 is formed with a concave shape that corresponds to the convex shape of the most protruding portion 33, so the outer groove portion 42 and the most protruding portion 33 are stacked. Furthermore, the concave shape of the bottom groove portion 43 corresponds to the convex shape of the corner portion 36 of the ridge portion 3, so the corner portion 36 of the ridge portion 3 and the bottom groove portion 43 are stacked. This allows the tire holders 1 to be stacked and stably carried when transporting multiple tire holders 1 alone when not in use and without tires placed on them. Furthermore, because the ridge portions 3 fit into the groove portions 4, the storage space can be reduced.

[0030] The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. In the tire holder 1 of the above embodiment, the grooves 4 (inner grooves 41, outer grooves 42) are provided between the valleys 2 and the peaks 3. However, for example, in a configuration in which the width in a front view is larger, another groove (not shown) may be provided in the center of the central curved surface portion 21. Conversely, in a configuration in which the width in a front view is smaller, the inner grooves 41 may not be present, and only the outer grooves 42 may be provided. Furthermore, to improve durability, a resin sheet may be coated on the outer surface of the tire holder 1 by vacuum integral molding. [Explanation of symbols]

[0031] 1 Tire holder 2 Valley 21 Central curved section 22 bottom 3 Yamabe 31 Inclined curved surface section 33 Most protruding part 35 bottom 4 Groove 41 Inner groove 42 Outer groove 44 Concavity (unevenness) 45 Convex place (unevenness)

Claims

1. A tire holder made of foam resin, The tire support structure has a valley portion on which a vertically placed tire is placed, and a ridge portion provided at each end of the valley portion to restrict the rolling of the tire, The valley portion has a central curved surface portion that maintains a position directly below the tire, The ridge portion has an inclined curved surface portion that holds the tire at a position outside the tire in the circumferential direction relative to a position directly below the tire.

2. Further, a groove portion is provided between the valley portion and the peak portion, 2. The tire holder according to claim 1, wherein the valleys and peaks are elastically deformed via the grooves, thereby changing the inclination angle of the inclined curved surface portion relative to the central curved surface portion.

3. 3. The tire holder according to claim 1, wherein the bottom surfaces of the valley portions and the peak portions are formed in an arch shape with the bottom surfaces directly below the central curved surface portion raised when no tire is placed on the bottom surface.

4. 3. The tire holder according to claim 2, wherein the groove portion has an inner groove portion provided on the outer side of the central curved surface portion, and an outer groove portion provided on the inner side of the inclined curved surface portion and outside the inner groove portion.

5. the peak portion has a most protruding portion at an outer end of the inclined curved surface portion, 5. The tire holder according to claim 4, wherein the outer groove portion is formed in a shape that fits into the most protruding portion.

6. Concave and convex portions are provided on both end surfaces perpendicular to the groove portion, 3. The tire holder according to claim 2, wherein the projections and recesses are formed alternately on the respective end surfaces.

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