Floating Mold Back Ring for Tire Curing Gap Closure
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Split-type and segmented curing molds for tires face issues with gaps due to wear and improper design, leading to flash formation and misalignment, which result in rubber loss and integrity issues during the curing process.
Innovation Solution
A tire curing mold design featuring translatable sections, side plates, and displacement members, such as Belleville washers, that apply closing forces to ensure proper alignment and gap closure, using a system of base plates, mold back rings, and side plates to maintain the mold in a closed position and resist internal pressure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If mold components are designed and formed with high precision to provide a tight fit, then gap formation is reduced, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the mold back ring movable rather than fixed. The mold back ring is designed to move axially in response to internal pressure during curing, allowing the mold sections to self-adjust and maintain tight fit without requiring high-precision manufacturing. This dynamic adjustment mechanism compensates for wear and manufacturing tolerances automatically.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of the mold back ring from a fixed position to a movable position that can adjust axially. This parameter change allows the system to adapt to internal pressure variations and component wear, maintaining proper fit without requiring high-precision manufacturing of all components.
2Reliability
If alignment mechanisms are used to promote proper alignment of mold components, then wear along edges is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the self-service principle by designing the mold back ring to automatically perform the alignment function. The movable mold back ring self-adjusts to maintain proper alignment of mold sections during closing operations, eliminating the need for separate alignment mechanisms. The system serves itself by using the internal pressure to drive the adjustment.
3Duration of action of stationary object
If mold components are made robust to resist wear, then durability improves, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the mold back ring dynamic rather than static and robust. By allowing the mold back ring to move and adjust, the design reduces wear on other components through proper load distribution and alignment, extending service life without requiring all components to be heavily built and expensive to manufacture.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively closes gaps and aligns mold components, preventing flash formation and ensuring the integrity of the tire's tread design by applying controlled closing forces through displacement members, thereby enhancing the precision and durability of the mold operation.
Implementation Method 1
a first plurality of displacement members extending between the first base plate and the first mold back ring at a plurality of locations around the mold, the one or more displacement members applying a closing force against the first mold back ring to force the first plurality of translatable sections into the closed position
Data Source
AI summary
A tire curing mold capable of operating between open and closed positions includes a first plurality of translatable sections, the sections translatable between open and closed positions and one or more first side plates positioned for engagement with the first plurality of translatable sections when the sections are in the closed position. The tire curing mold also includes a first mold back ring slidably engaging the first plurality of sections and slidably attached to a first base plate, and a first plurality of displacement members extending between the first base plate and the first mold back ring, the one or more displacement members applying a closing force against the first mold back ring to force the first plurality of translatable sections into the closed position.