Tire Tread Sipe Layout for Block Stiffness and Snow Grip
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Solution Overview
Problem
The presence of sipes in tire blocks weakens the structure, reducing stiffness and leading to deformation under external stresses, particularly tangential stresses, which affects the contact area and friction force on snowy and icy roads.
Innovation Solution
A tire design featuring a pair of sipes on each block, with each sipe having a single-wave portion positioned near the edge, configured to oppose sliding actions in both radial and longitudinal directions, enhancing stiffness and maintaining effective contact with the road surface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If sipes are formed on the blocks of the tread band, then the gripping performance on snowy and icy roads is improved, but the structural stiffness of the blocks is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The sipes are segmented into multiple portions (first, second, third, fourth portions) with different orientations and functions. The first and second portions extend in different directions to provide multi-directional grip, while the third and fourth portions provide lateral support to maintain block stiffness. This segmentation allows the sipes to fulfill multiple functions simultaneously without compromising overall structural integrity.
2Force
If multiple sipes are formed on each block, then the additional gripping elements increase friction force, but the block structure becomes more prone to deformation under tangential stresses
Solution Approach 1:
Different portions of the sipes are designed with different local qualities and orientations. The first and second portions (with different extension directions) provide gripping functionality, while the third and fourth portions (extending in directions different from the first two) provide localized structural reinforcement. This local quality differentiation allows specific regions of the sipe structure to serve specific functions - gripping or stiffening - thereby resolving the contradiction between friction enhancement and structural stability.
Data Source
AI summary
A tyre includes a plurality of blocks which are defined on a tread band and at least one first sipe and one second sipe which are formed on each block. The first sipe extends in a first longitudinal direction and comprises a first linear portion, only one single-wave portion which extends in continuation of the first linear portion and which has a distance from the first edge between 5% and 40% of the distance between the first edge and an opposite second edge, and a second linear portion. Similarly, the second sipe extends in a second longitudinal direction and comprises a first linear portion, only one single-wave portion which extends in continuation of the first linear portion and which has a distance from the second edge between 5% and 40% of the distance between the first edge and the second edge, and a second linear portion.