Circumferential Sipe Geometry in Pneumatic Tires for Wear-Stable Drainage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Pneumatic tires with grooves and sipes experience rapid changes in performance due to widened portions during wear, affecting drainage performance.
Innovation Solution
A pneumatic tire design featuring circumferential main grooves and land portions with widened circumferential sipes that extend inward from the tread surface, maintaining drainage performance while suppressing abrupt changes in tire properties as wear progresses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If grooves or sipes with increasing groove width are provided in the tread surface to improve drainage performance during wear progression, then drainage performance is improved, but tire performance changes rapidly and abruptly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by providing circumferential sipes with widened portions at specific locations within land portions, rather than uniformly across the entire tread. The widened portions are strategically positioned to enhance drainage performance in critical areas while maintaining overall tire performance stability. This localized modification allows drainage improvement without causing abrupt overall performance changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by designing sipes with widened portions that progressively expose as tread wear occurs. The sipe structure is configured so that the widened portions, which extend inward from the tread surface, gradually become more prominent during wear progression. This dynamic exposure provides progressive drainage improvement rather than abrupt changes, maintaining performance stability while enhancing drainage capability.
2Reliability
If widened portions are created in sipes to enhance drainage capability, then drainage performance is improved, but the structural uniformity of the tire tread is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the sipe structure into multiple portions: regular-width sections and widened portions. The circumferential sipes are segmented along the tire circumferential direction, with widened portions positioned at specific locations rather than throughout the entire sipe length. This segmentation allows localized drainage enhancement while preserving the overall structural uniformity of the tread pattern.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by creating non-uniform sipe geometry only in specific regions. The widened portions are localized features within the sipes, concentrated in areas where drainage enhancement is most beneficial. This localized geometric modification improves drainage performance without compromising the overall structural uniformity and aesthetic appearance of the tread pattern.
Data Source
AI summary
A pneumatic tire of the present disclosure includes, on a tread surface, a plurality of circumferential main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction, and a plurality of land portions defined between circumferential main grooves adjacent in the tire width direction among the plurality of circumferential main grooves or by the circumferential main grooves and tread edges. The land portions include at least one circumferential sipe extending in the tire circumferential direction. The circumferential sipe includes a plurality of widened portions arranged in the tire circumferential direction. In a reference state, each widened portion is formed only from a portion that, from one side towards the other side in the tire circumferential direction, extends from the tread surface inward in the tire radial direction.