Pneumatic Tire Middle Land Zone Groove Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pneumatic tires face challenges in achieving well-balanced wet performance and steering stability on dry roads, as narrow grooves in previous designs lead to aquaplaning on wet roads and insufficient rigidity on dry roads.
Innovation Solution
The tire features circumferentially continuous main grooves with shoulder and middle land zones, including sipe-like narrow and wide portions in the middle grooves, which prevent groove wall contact and enhance drainage, maintaining rigidity and improving water discharge.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If narrow grooves with groove width less than 2 mm are provided in the middle land zones, then the rigidity of the middle land zones is maintained, but the grooves cannot serve for drainage and aquaplaning phenomenon occurs on wet roads
Solution Approach 1:
The middle narrow grooves are segmented into multiple sections along their length: a first section with groove width less than 2 mm (maintaining rigidity), a second section with groove width not less than 2 mm (enabling drainage), and optionally a third section with groove width less than 2 mm. This segmentation allows different portions of the same groove to serve different functions.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the middle narrow grooves have different groove widths tailored to their specific functional requirements. The first section has narrow width for rigidity maintenance, the second section has wide width for drainage, creating local quality variations within the groove structure.
2Device complexity
If the opposite walls of the narrow groove contact with each other in their substantially whole area, then the groove structure is simple, but the groove cannot discharge water and aquaplaning occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The groove is divided into multiple sections along its length, with alternating narrow and wide sections. This segmentation prevents the entire groove from having contacting walls while maintaining simplicity in the overall groove design.
Solution Approach 2:
The groove width parameter is changed along the length of the groove, transitioning from narrow width (less than 2 mm) to wide width (not less than 2 mm) and optionally back to narrow width. This parameter variation enables the groove to prevent aquaplaning while maintaining structural simplicity.
Data Source
AI summary
A pneumatic tire comprises a tread portion 2 provided with two shoulder main grooves 3, a crown main grooves 4, two shoulder land zones 8, and two middle land zones 7. The shoulder land zones 8 are each provided with shoulder lateral grooves 11. The middle land zones 7 are each provided with middle narrow grooves 10. Each of the middle narrow grooves 10 comprises a sipe-like narrow portion 12 whose groove width is less than 2 mm, and a wide portion 14 whose groove width is not less than 2 mm. The wide portion 14 includes an axially outer wide portion 15 formed at the axially outer end of the middle narrow groove 10.