Alternating V-Shaped Tire Blocks for Winter Roadholding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Winter tires face challenges in maintaining roadholding performance on dry and wet surfaces while providing adequate grip on snow-covered and icy surfaces due to the conflicting requirements of rigidity and deformability needed for different conditions.
Innovation Solution
The tire features central blocks configured as 'V' shapes with alternating orientations and sipes, along with shoulder and intermediate blocks designed for increased rigidity and deformability, ensuring balanced traction and braking on straight surfaces and lateral roadholding on bends, while maintaining performance on snow-covered and icy surfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the tread band is made more deformable to improve grip on snow-covered and icy surfaces, then roadholding on winter surfaces is improved, but rigidity on dry and wet surfaces deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The tread band is divided into different regions (central region and shoulder regions) with different block configurations. The central blocks have specific geometric shapes (trapezoidal, rectangular, or square) that provide rigidity for dry/wet surfaces, while the shoulder blocks have different configurations that provide deformability for snow/ice grip. This local differentiation allows each region to optimize for its specific function.
Solution Approach 2:
The tread band is segmented into multiple discrete blocks (central blocks and shoulder blocks) rather than a continuous structure. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each block's properties - central blocks can be designed for rigidity while shoulder blocks can be designed for deformability, resolving the contradiction between overall rigidity and deformability requirements.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the tread band is made more rigid to improve lateral roadholding on bends, then stability on dry and wet surfaces is improved, but deformability for snow grip deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The central blocks in the central region are designed with specific geometric shapes (trapezoidal, rectangular, or square) that provide rigidity for lateral roadholding on bends during dry/wet conditions. Meanwhile, the shoulder blocks maintain configurability for deformability to ensure snow grip, allowing each region to optimize for its primary function.
3Reliability
If sipes are added to retain snow on the tread surface, then roadholding on snow-covered surfaces is improved, but the complexity of the tread pattern increases
Solution Approach 1:
Sipes are pre-configured within the block structures during manufacturing, rather than being added as separate components. The sipes are integrated into the central and shoulder blocks as inherent features of the block geometry, which simplifies the overall structure compared to adding separate snow retention mechanisms while still providing effective snow retention capability.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
AI summary
A tyre (1) comprising a tread band (2) provided with : - a plurality of central blocks (10a, 10b) disposed in sequence along an equatorial plane (M) defined on the tread band, - a plurality of shoulder blocks (11) extending from opposite axial ends of the tread band (2) towards the equatorial plane, and - a plurality of intermediate blocks (12) disposed in sequence along the circumferential development of the tread band (2) between the central blocks and the shoulder blocks. The plurality of central blocks comprises a plurality of first central blocks (10a) formed by a first branch (15a) and by a second branch (16a) which are substantially rectilinear and extend from a common end in a first direction (A) and a second direction (B) respectively, in order to define a V with its concave portion facing a first axial end (4a) of the tread band, and a plurality of second central blocks (10b) disposed in alternating sequence with the first central blocks and formed by a first branch (15b) and a second branch (16b) which are substantially rectilinear and extend from a common end in the second direction (B) and the first direction (A) respectively, in order to define a V with its concave portion facing a second axial end (4b) of the tread band.