Tire RFID Tag Protection via Dual-Modulus Rubber Sheets
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional tires with embedded electronic components, such as RFID tags, face communication quality issues and potential damage due to deformation during tire rolling, especially when the components are placed near the inner liner or between the carcass and sidewall, which deflects significantly.
Innovation Solution
A tire design that embeds an RFID tag covered by two rubber sheets, with a higher modulus second rubber sheet on the outer surface and a lower modulus first rubber sheet on the inner cavity side, positioned between the bead filler and steel belt, ensuring protection and maintaining communication quality even during tire deformation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the electronic component is arranged adjacent to the inner liner, then the communication quality may be maintained, but the distance from the outer surface is far causing communication quality to decline
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by using rubber sheets with different moduli at different locations around the electronic component. The first rubber sheet (inner side) has lower modulus to allow deformation, while the second rubber sheet (outer side) has higher modulus to maintain shape and protect the component. This localized differentiation solves the contradiction between needing proximity for communication and needing protection from deformation.
2Reliability
If the electronic component is arranged between the carcass and the side wall, then it is protected from deformation, but the sidewall deflection causes the electronic component to deform and lose function
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical parameter of the rubber sheets by using different moduli. The higher modulus of the second rubber sheet resists the deflection forces from the sidewall, maintaining the electronic component's shape and function despite the dynamic deformation environment of the tire sidewall.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite structure of two rubber sheets with different material properties (different moduli) to create a protective encapsulation. This composite approach combines the flexibility needed for tire deformation with the rigidity needed to protect the electronic component, resolving the contradiction between protection and deformation resistance.
3Device complexity
If a single rubber sheet is used to cover the electronic component, then the structure is simple, but the component cannot be protected during tire deflection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the protective layer into two distinct rubber sheets with different functions. The first rubber sheet provides basic coverage and flexibility, while the second rubber sheet provides enhanced protection against deformation. This segmentation allows each layer to perform its specific function optimally, solving the contradiction between structural simplicity and effective protection.
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 effectively protects the electronic component and maintains communication quality by using rubber sheets with differing moduli to absorb deformation, preventing strain on the RFID tag and ensuring stable bonding with the carcass ply.
Implementation Method 1
the second rubber sheet is configured from a rubber sheet which is more difficult to deform than the first rubber sheet
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3C
AI summary
To provide a tire capable of protecting an electronic component, even in a case of the tire deflecting. An electronic component (40) covered by rubber sheets is arranged on a tire outer surface side of a carcass ply (23) in a region between a tire-radial direction outside end (22A) of a bead filler (22) and a tire-width direction outside end (26A) of a steel belt (26); the rubber sheets include a first rubber sheet (431) arranged on a tire inner cavity side of the electronic component (40), and a second rubber sheet (432) arranged on a tire outer surface side of the electronic component (40); and the second rubber sheet (432) is configured from a rubber sheet which is more difficult to deform than the first rubber sheet (431).