Mold structure for tire vulcanization and tires manufactured using same

Abstract

A tire is disclosed. The disclosed tire may comprise: a tread part which has a center block formed at the center side in the widthwise direction of the tire and has grooves extending in the circumferential direction of the tire; a carcass part which is provided inside the tread part; a belt part which is laminated on the carcass part; a reinforcement belt part which is laminated on the belt part; and an additional belt part which is provided between the reinforcement belt part and the center block.

Description

Mold structure for tire vulcanization and tire manufactured using the same

[0001] The present invention relates to a mold structure for tire curing and a tire manufactured using the same, and more particularly, to a mold structure for tire curing that can improve the performance of a completed tire and a tire manufactured using the same.

[0002] In general, a pneumatic tire, which is composed of an inner liner that forms a sealed space on the inner periphery of the tire, a carcass laminated on the outer periphery of the inner liner, at least one belt laminated on the outer periphery of the carcass, a tread rubber layer laminated on the outer periphery of the belt and in contact with the ground, a sidewall that forms both sides of the tire, and a bead that is bonded to a wheel and seals the inside of the tire, is first processed into a green tire that forms the approximate shape of the tire through a molding process.

[0003] In the molding process described above, the processed green tire is placed in a vulcanizing mold with a cavity corresponding to the shape of the finished tire, along with various chemicals, and then a predetermined tread pattern is formed through vulcanization and crosslinking reactions using heat and pressure, and the tire is finally completed with the desired rubber characteristics.

[0004] At this time, a mold is installed on the inside of the curing mold used in the curing process of the green tire to form the tread pattern of the finished tire, i.e., various patterns related to the tire's performance, drainage in case of rain, etc. that come into contact with the road surface when the tire is driven.

[0005] Meanwhile, in the finished tire, kerfs are formed in the tread blocks, and since the tread blocks are divided by the kerfs, the rigidity of the blocks is reduced, making them prone to deformation. As a result, when driving, the small blocks of the tread blocks divided by the kerfs are deformed, causing the kerfs to collapse, reducing frictional force due to friction with the road surface, and causing the leading portion of the tire to roll in, which has resulted in problems with the driving performance of the tire, especially the handling stability, acceleration, and braking performance.

[0006] To solve these problems, the thickness of the cuff needs to be made thinner than the conventional 0.4 to 0.5 mm.

[0007] However, as the thickness of the kerf decreases, the phenomenon of surface spreading decreases, but the problem of the kerf bending easily occurs during tire curing, so the thickness of the kerf has been limited to a minimum of 0.4 mm in the past.

[0008] That is, in the past, the thickness of the cuff could not be formed thinner than 0.4 mm, and problems such as surface spreading were left unattended.

[0009] The present embodiment provides a mold structure for tire curing, which may include a mold, a kerf forming portion, and a reinforcing column. Furthermore, the mold may accommodate a green tire prior to curing. Furthermore, the kerf forming portion may protrude inwardly from the mold, thereby forming a kerf in the green tire during curing.

[0010] In addition, the reinforcing column may be formed to protrude inwardly from the mold, and may be provided in contact with the kerf forming portion. Accordingly, the reinforcing column may suppress warpage of the kerf forming portion. Accordingly, the thickness of the kerf forming portion may be set to 0.4 mm or less. In other words, the present embodiment provides a tire curing mold structure that improves the driving performance of a tire converted from a green tire, and a tire manufactured using the same.

[0011] According to one aspect of the present invention, a mold structure for tire curing may include a mold capable of accommodating a green tire before curing, a kerf forming portion that protrudes inwardly from the mold and forms a kerf in the green tire during curing, and a reinforcing column that protrudes inwardly from the mold and is provided in contact with the kerf forming portion.

[0012] The thickness of the above cuff forming portion may be less than 0.4 mm.

[0013] The above cuff forming portion may include a plurality of first curved portions arranged along the width direction.

[0014] The above reinforcing columns can be provided in multiples.

[0015] The above reinforcing column can be arranged in the thickness direction of at least one first curved portion among the plurality of first curved portions so as to be interlocked with the cuff forming portion in the width direction.

[0016] The above reinforcing column may have a cross-sectional shape of any one of a circle, a semicircle, a fan, an ellipse, a rectangle, a rhombus, and a triangle.

[0017] The maximum width of the above reinforcing column may be 0.5 mm or more and 10.0 mm or less.

[0018] At least one of the plurality of first curved portions may include a plurality of second curved portions arranged along the height direction.

[0019] The above reinforcing column may include at least one third curved portion that is engaged in the height direction with at least one second curved portion among the plurality of second curved portions.

[0020] The above mold can extend along the circumferential direction.

[0021] According to another aspect of the present invention, a tire can be manufactured using the above tire vulcanization mold structure.

[0022] The present embodiment provides a mold structure for tire curing, which may include a mold, a kerf forming portion, and a reinforcing column. Furthermore, the mold may accommodate a green tire prior to curing. Furthermore, the kerf forming portion may protrude inwardly from the mold, thereby forming a kerf in the green tire during curing.

[0023] Additionally, the reinforcing column may be formed to protrude inwardly from the mold and be positioned in contact with the kerf-forming portion. Accordingly, the reinforcing column can suppress warpage of the kerf-forming portion. Accordingly, the thickness of the kerf-forming portion can be set to 0.4 mm or less. This means that the driving performance of tires converted from green tires can be improved.

[0024] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a tire vulcanization mold structure according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of a mold included in the tire vulcanization mold structure of Fig. 1.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of a kerf forming part and a reinforcing column included in the tire vulcanization mold structure of FIG. 1.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a kerf forming portion and a reinforcing column included in the tire vulcanization mold structure of FIG. 1.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a kerf forming portion and a reinforcing column included in the tire vulcanization mold structure of FIG. 1.

[0029] Fig. 6 is a plan view showing an example of a kerf formed by a kerf forming part included in the tire vulcanization mold structure of Fig. 1.

[0030] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a plurality of second curved portions included in at least one of the plurality of first curved portions included in the cuff forming portion of FIG. 4.

[0031] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following embodiments are provided to sufficiently convey the spirit of the present invention to those skilled in the art. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments presented herein and may be embodied in other forms. To clarify the present invention, the drawings may omit portions irrelevant to the description, and the sizes of components may be slightly exaggerated to facilitate understanding.

[0032] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a tire vulcanizing mold structure according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of a mold included in the tire vulcanizing mold structure of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of a cuff forming part and a reinforcing column included in the tire vulcanizing mold structure of FIG. 1.

[0033] Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a tire vulcanization mold structure (1000) according to one embodiment may include a mold (100), a cuff forming portion (200), and a reinforcing column (300).

[0034] The mold (100) can accommodate green tires (GR) before curing.

[0035] Here, the green tire (GR) is a tire that is processed into a tire shape in the first stage after the inner liner, sidewall, carcass, belt, and tread rubber layers are sequentially laminated in the tire forming process, and then, after being put into a vulcanizing mold (the mold (100) can be installed in such a vulcanizing mold) together with various chemicals, it is processed into a final finished tire by reflecting the predetermined rubber characteristics and tread pattern through vulcanization and crosslinking reactions by heat and pressure.

[0036] In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the mold (100) is cylindrical in the direction (D θ) can be formed along an extension. For example, the mold (100) may include arc-shaped segments (101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108) provided in an arc shape.

[0037] The kerf forming part (200) is formed to protrude inside the mold (100) so that a kerf (e.g., the kerf of Fig. 6) can be formed in the green tire (GR) during curing. Here, the inside of the mold (100) is formed in the radial direction (D R ) can mean the opposite direction.

[0038] In one embodiment, the kerf forming part (200) may refer to a part of a blade that is attached to and detached from the mold (100) and that forms a kerf (e.g., a kerf of FIG. 6) in the green tire (GR) during curing. However, the kerf forming part (200) is not limited thereto. For example, the kerf forming part (200) may be provided integrally with the mold (100).

[0039] Meanwhile, conventional tires had problems such as performance degradation due to the spreading phenomenon of the kerf (e.g., the kerf in Fig. 6) and the occurrence of the heel and toe phenomenon.

[0040] To solve this problem, it is necessary to make the thickness of the kerf (e.g., the kerf in Fig. 6) thinner than the conventional 0.4 mm.

[0041] However, as the thickness of the kerf (e.g., the kerf of Fig. 6) becomes thinner, the phenomenon of surface spreading decreases, but since the problem of the kerf (e.g., the kerf of Fig. 6) bending easily occurs during tire curing, the thickness of the kerf (1) has been limited to a minimum of 0.4 mm in the past.

[0042] A reinforcing column (300) can solve this problem. Specifically, the reinforcing column (300) can be formed to protrude inwardly from the mold (100) and be provided in contact with the kerf forming portion (200). Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) can suppress warping of the kerf forming portion (200). Accordingly, the thickness of the kerf forming portion (200) can be set to 0.4 mm or less. In other words, the driving performance of a tire converted from a green tire (TR) can be improved.

[0043] As illustrated in Fig. 3, the reinforcing column (300) can be provided in contact with the thickness direction of the cuff forming portion (200). Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) has a positional relationship that facilitates suppressing bending of the cuff forming portion (200).

[0044] In one embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the cuff forming portion (200) may be bent multiple times. However, the shape of the cuff forming portion (200) is not limited by FIG. 3. In other words, the cuff forming portion (200) may have a relatively complex shape than the shape of the cuff forming portion (200) illustrated in FIG. 3, or may have a relatively simple shape than the shape of the cuff forming portion (200) illustrated in FIG. 3.

[0045] In another embodiment, unlike that illustrated in FIG. 3, the cuff forming portion (200) may not be curved. That is, the cuff forming portion (200) may be provided in a flat shape.

[0046] When the kerf forming part (200) is bent multiple times, the driving performance of the tire converted from a green tire (TR) is improved. In the following, the case where the kerf forming part (200) is bent multiple times will be described.

[0047] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a kerf forming part and a reinforcing column included in the tire vulcanizing mold structure of FIG. 1, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a kerf forming part and a reinforcing column included in the tire vulcanizing mold structure of FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 is a plan view showing an example of a kerf formed by being sunken into a green tire by a kerf forming part included in the tire vulcanizing mold structure of FIG. 1.

[0048] Referring to FIGS. 4 to 6, the positional relationship between the cuff forming part (200) and the reinforcing column (300) can be understood.

[0049] Specifically, the cuff forming portion (200) may include a plurality of first curved portions (C1) arranged along the width direction. Here, the width direction can be understood through the width (W) of the cuff forming portion (200) of FIGS. 4 and 5.

[0050] The reinforcing columns (300) may be provided in multiples. That is, the reinforcing columns (300) may be arranged in portions vulnerable to bending of the cuff forming portion (200). Accordingly, the reinforcing columns (300) may be arranged in various positional relationships that facilitate suppressing bending of the cuff forming portion (200).

[0051] As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the reinforcing column (300) can be arranged in the thickness direction on at least one of the plurality of first curved portions (C1) so as to be interlocked with the cuff forming portion (200) in the width direction. Here, the thickness direction can be understood through the thickness (t) of the cuff forming portion (200) of FIG. 3.

[0052] As described above, the reinforcing column (300) can be arranged in the thickness direction on at least one of the plurality of first curved portions (C1) so as to be interlocked with the cuff forming portion (200) in the width direction. Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) has a positional relationship that facilitates suppressing bending of the cuff forming portion (200).

[0053] The reinforcing column (300) may be provided with a cross-sectional shape of any one of a circle (CI), a semicircle, a fan (F), an ellipse, a rectangle (RE), a rhombus (DI), and a triangle (TR).

[0054] In one embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the reinforcing column (300) may be provided in any one of a circle (CI), a semicircle, a fan (F), and an ellipse. In this case, it is preferable that the first curved portion (C1) into which the reinforcing column (300) is fitted in the thickness direction is provided in a round shape. Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) has a positional relationship that facilitates suppressing bending of the kerf forming portion (200).

[0055] In another embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the reinforcing column (300) may be provided in any one of a rectangular (RE), a rhombus (DI), and a triangular (TR) shape. In this case, it is preferable that the first curved portion (C1) into which the reinforcing column (300) is fitted in the thickness direction is provided in the shape of a corner. Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) has a positional relationship that facilitates suppressing the bending of the kerf forming portion (200).

[0056] In another embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the reinforcing column (300) may be provided in any one of the shapes of a rectangle with rounded corners (RE), a rhombus with rounded corners (DI), and a triangle with rounded corners (TR). In this case, it is preferable that the first curved portion (C1) into which the reinforcing column (300) is fitted in the thickness direction is provided in a round shape. Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) has a positional relationship that facilitates suppressing bending of the kerf forming portion (200).

[0057] In one embodiment, the maximum width of the reinforcing column (300) may be 0.5 mm or more and 10.0 mm or less. If the maximum width of the reinforcing column (300) is less than 0.5 mm, the bending of the kerf forming part (200) may not be sufficiently suppressed. If the maximum width of the reinforcing column exceeds 10.0 mm, the production cost of the reinforcing column (300) increases, and a large trace of the reinforcing column (300) may remain in the kerf, which may deteriorate driving performance. Here, the maximum width of the reinforcing column (300) may mean, if any one of the above is a circle (CI), the diameter of the circle (CI), if any one of the above is a semicircle, the diameter of the semicircle, if any one of the above is a sector (F), the diameter of the sector (F), if any one of the above is an ellipse, the major axis of the ellipse, if any one of the above is a rectangle (RE), the long side of the rectangle, if any one of the above is a rhombus (DI), the long diagonal of the rhombus (DI), and if any one of the above is a triangle (TR), the hypotenuse of the triangle (TR).

[0058] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a plurality of second curved portions included in at least one of the plurality of first curved portions included in the cuff forming portion of FIG. 4.

[0059] Referring to FIGS. 3 to 7, at least one of the plurality of first curved portions (C1) may include a plurality of second curved portions (C2) arranged along the height direction. Here, the height direction can be understood through the height (d) of the cuff forming portion (200) of FIG. 3.

[0060] The reinforcing column (300) may include at least one third curved portion (C3) that is engaged in the height direction with at least one second curved portion (C2) among a plurality of second curved portions (C2). Here, the thickness direction can be understood through the thickness (t) of the kerf forming portion (200) of FIG. 3.

[0061] As described above, the reinforcing column (300) may include a third curved portion (C3) that is engaged with at least one second curved portion (C2) among the plurality of second curved portions (C2) in the height direction. Accordingly, the reinforcing column (300) is curved so as to easily suppress bending of the cuff forming portion (200).

[0062] Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 6, a tire according to one embodiment can be manufactured using a tire curing mold structure (1000). Since the tire curing mold structure (1000) has already been described above, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Claims

1. Mold capable of accepting green tires before curing; A kerf forming portion that protrudes into the inside of the mold and forms a kerf in the green tire during curing; and A tire curing mold structure comprising a reinforcing column formed to protrude inwardly of the mold and provided in contact with the cuff forming portion.

2. In paragraph 1, The thickness of the above cuff forming part is Mold structure for tire curing less than 0.4 mm.

3. In paragraph 1, The above cuff forming part A mold structure for tire curing comprising a plurality of first curved portions arranged along the width direction.

4. In paragraph 3, The above reinforcing column A mold structure for tire vulcanization prepared in multiple ways.

5. In paragraph 4, The above reinforcing column A mold structure for tire curing, wherein at least one of the plurality of first curved portions is arranged in the thickness direction so as to be interlocked with the cuff forming portion in the width direction.

6. In paragraph 5, The above reinforcing column A mold structure for tire curing, the cross-sectional shape of which is provided in any one of a circle, a semicircle, a fan, an ellipse, a rectangle, a rhombus, and a triangle.

7. In paragraph 6, The maximum width of the above reinforcing column is Mold structure for tire curing with a thickness of 0.5 mm or more and 10.0 mm or less.

8. In paragraph 3, At least one of the plurality of first curved portions is A mold structure for tire curing comprising a plurality of second bends arranged along the height direction.

9. In paragraph 8, The above reinforcing column A tire curing mold structure comprising at least one third curved portion that is engaged with at least one second curved portion among the plurality of second curved portions in the height direction.

10. In paragraph 1, The above mold A mold structure for tire curing extending along the circumference.

11. A tire manufactured using a tire vulcanization mold structure according to Article 1.

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