Tire Sidewall Concave Mark Texture for Light-Independent Visibility
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tire designs with concave marks on the sidewall often struggle with visibility, particularly depending on the direction of light, which can impair the recognition of the concave marks' entire contour.
Innovation Solution
A tire design featuring concave marks on the sidewall with a bottom surface that includes a peripheral region and a main region, where the peripheral region has a shadow region and a non-shadow region, both formed with uneven surfaces containing multiple minute protuberances. The width of the uneven surface in the non-shadow region is smaller than in the shadow region, enhancing visibility and three-dimensional effect.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If the depth of concave marks is increased to improve visibility, then the visibility of concave marks improves, but the air resistance and rolling resistance increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies different surface treatments to different regions of the concave mark bottom surface. The peripheral region has an uneven surface with minute protuberances to enhance visibility through light scattering, while the main region maintains a smoother surface. This localized differentiation allows visibility improvement without requiring increased overall depth, thus avoiding increased air and rolling resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of improving visibility by increasing the depth (one dimension) of concave marks, the invention transitions to modifying the surface texture (another dimension) by adding uneven surfaces with minute protuberances. This dimensional shift allows visibility enhancement through light interaction without deepening the concave marks, thereby avoiding increased air resistance and rolling resistance.
2Illumination intensity
If the uneven surface width in non-shadow region is reduced to enhance visibility contrast, then the visibility and three-dimensional effect improve, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention specifies quantitative parameters for the uneven surface width ratios (0.2-0.7) to optimize the balance between visibility enhancement and manufacturing feasibility. By defining this parameter range, the invention transforms a qualitative design goal into a quantifiable manufacturing specification, making it easier to control production precision while achieving the desired visual effect.
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 tire achieves excellent visibility of the concave marks regardless of the light direction, improving the tire's overall appearance and durability by reducing the depth of the concave marks, which also decreases air resistance and rolling resistance.
Implementation Method 1
the bottom surface includes a peripheral region extending along a contour of the or each concave mark and a main region surrounded by the peripheral region, the peripheral region includes a shadow region and a non-shadow region, the shadow region is a region where the shadow of the inner wall surface is formed when light is assumed to be shed to the or each concave mark from a first direction
Implementation Method 2
the shadow region is a region where the shadow of the inner wall surface is formed when light is assumed to be shed to the or each concave mark from a first direction
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A tire includes a pair of sidewall portions. An outer surface of at least one of the sidewall portions includes at least one concave mark recessed from a reference surface. The or each concave mark includes a bottom surface and an inner wall surface. The bottom surface includes a peripheral region and a main region. The peripheral region includes a shadow region and a non-shadow region. The shadow region and the non-shadow region are each formed with an uneven surface provided with minute protuberances. A width of the uneven surface of the non-shadow region measured in a direction perpendicular to a contour of the or each concave mark is smaller than a width of the uneven surface of the shadow region measured in a direction perpendicular to the contour.