Sprayed Tire Air Barrier Coating to Replace Inner Liners
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional pneumatic tires require expensive halogenated inner liners to prevent air leakage, which increases production costs and tire weight, making them undesirable.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus for spraying an air barrier material onto the inner surface of tires, utilizing a post-cure inflation machine, conveyor system, and tire trimming machine to apply the material while the tire is in various positions, ensuring efficient application without the need for a traditional inner liner.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional inner liner is used to prevent air leakage, then air barrier performance is improved, but production cost and tire weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the form factor of the air barrier from a pre-formed inner liner component to a sprayed coating material. The air barrier material is applied as a spray that can be precisely controlled in thickness and coverage, transforming the delivery method and physical state of the air barrier to eliminate the need for heavy traditional inner liners while maintaining air retention performance
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the air barrier function from the traditional inner liner structure and applies it directly as a sprayed coating on the tire interior surface. This separates the air barrier functionality from the structural inner liner component, allowing the air barrier to be applied only where needed on the tire surface without adding unnecessary weight
2Reliability
If a traditional inner liner is used to prevent air leakage, then air barrier performance is improved, but production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses a sprayed air barrier coating that can be applied more economically than traditional inner liners. The spray application method allows for more efficient material usage and reduces the need for expensive halogenated rubber materials, providing a cost-effective solution for achieving air barrier performance
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing process from assembling pre-formed inner liner components to spraying air barrier material directly onto the tire. This process transformation eliminates the need for expensive inner liner materials and reduces manufacturing complexity, thereby lowering production costs while maintaining air barrier functionality
3Ease of manufacture
If spray application is used to apply air barrier material, then ease of manufacture is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The spray application system incorporates controls that monitor and adjust the spraying process to ensure uniform and consistent application of the air barrier material. This feedback mechanism maintains manufacturing precision by preventing overspray, ensuring proper coverage, and controlling material thickness throughout the tire interior surface
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
This approach reduces the need for expensive inner liners by effectively sealing the tire internally, thereby minimizing air leakage and lowering production costs while maintaining tire performance.
Implementation Method 1
spraying the air barrier material onto the inner surface of the tire
Implementation Method 2
The rubber used for the other portions of the tire is too permeable and allows air inside the tire to escape over time
Data Source
AI summary
A method of applying an air barrier to an inner surface of a tire includes placing the tire in a tire trimming machine, rotating the tire in the tire trimming machine as a part of a tire trimming operation, and while performing the tire trimming operation spraying the air barrier material onto the inner surface of the tire.