Tire Sipe Unit Layout for On-Ice Grip Without Rigidity Loss
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pneumatic tires fail to balance rigidity reduction and high-density sipe arrangement effectively, resulting in inadequate on-ice gripping performance.
Innovation Solution
A tire design featuring land portions with sipe units composed of opposing sipes, where both sipes have long sides extending in the tire width direction and short sides aligned with the tire circumferential direction, maintaining a sipe density of 0.15 or more, defined by the equation SD = ((d × n/BW) + 1)/BL, to enhance on-ice gripping.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If sipes are arranged at high density to improve on-ice gripping performance, then on-ice gripping performance is improved, but rigidity of the land portion decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating sipe units with specific geometric characteristics (long sides extending in tire width direction, short sides extending in circumferential direction with 90° or more angles) in specific regions (land portions) of the tread. This localized structural design allows high-density sipe arrangement for ice gripping while maintaining land portion rigidity through the specific sipe unit geometry that prevents excessive deformation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes geometric parameters of sipes by specifying that long sides extend in the tire width direction and short sides extend in the circumferential direction with angles of 90° or more. This parameter optimization allows the sipes to effectively bite into ice surfaces while the specific angular configuration maintains structural rigidity of the land portion, resolving the contradiction between high-density arrangement and rigidity maintenance.
2Power
If sipes are arranged at high density to enhance braking and driving forces, then braking and driving forces are enhanced, but sipe edge deformation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by designing sipe units with specific geometric characteristics (long sides extending in tire width direction, short sides extending in circumferential direction with 90° or more angles) in specific regions (land portions) of the tread. This localized structural design allows high-density sipe arrangement for ice gripping while maintaining land portion rigidity through the specific sipe unit geometry that prevents excessive deformation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes geometric parameters of sipes by specifying that long sides extend in the tire width direction and short sides extend in the circumferential direction with angles of 90° or more. This parameter optimization allows the sipes to effectively bite into ice surfaces while the specific angular configuration maintains structural rigidity of the land portion, resolving the contradiction between high-density arrangement and rigidity maintenance.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
The tire 10 of this disclosure is characterized in that at least one of the land portions comprises at least one sipe unit 60, both ends of each of one sipe 6a and the other sipe 6b constituting a pair of sipes terminates in the land portion, the one sipe 6a and the other sipe 6b are arranged opposing each other in the tire circumferential direction and have long sides extending in the tire width direction, respectively, the one sipe 6a has a short side 62a extending from either end e1 of the long side 61a in the tire width direction to approach the other sipe 6b side, and the other sipe 6b has a short side 62b extending from the other end e2 of the long side 61b in the tire width direction to approach the one sipe 6a side.