Heavy-Duty Tire Tread Cavities for Lower Crown Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Heavy-duty construction plant vehicle tires experience significant internal crown temperature rises due to high loads, speeds, and uneven terrain, leading to premature deterioration and reduced productivity during tire manufacturing.
Innovation Solution
The tire design incorporates a tread with crown and lateral cavities that facilitate heat exchange, using a low-hysteresis elastomeric mixture with silica and carbon black fillers, optimized to reduce thermal conductivity and increase heat dissipation without compromising manufacturing productivity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If silica is used as reinforcing filler in elastomeric mixtures, then heat dissipation is reduced and crown temperature is lowered, but thermal conductivity decreases and curing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating cavities at specific locations within the tread (axial ends and/or lateral edges) rather than uniformly throughout. These localized cavities provide targeted thermal management where heat accumulation is most problematic, while maintaining the beneficial low-hysteresis silica-filled elastomeric mixture in the crown without compromising overall curing efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces porous structures in the form of cavities within the tread elastomeric mixture. These cavities create pathways for heat evacuation and reduce the overall thermal mass in high-stress regions, enabling the use of low-thermal-conductivity silica-filled materials while still achieving adequate heat dissipation and acceptable curing times.
2Strength
If tread thickness is increased to handle heavy loads, then load capacity is improved, but heat dissipation capability deteriorates and crown temperature rises
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the tread structure by introducing cavities that divide the continuous elastomeric material into regions separated by air-filled spaces. This segmentation creates thermal pathways that allow heat to escape from the thick tread section to the exterior, preventing heat trapping while maintaining the structural integrity and load-bearing capacity of the overall thick tread design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent addresses the thermal management problem by adding a new dimensional element (cavities extending from the tread surface inward) rather than simply reducing tread thickness. This dimensional approach creates three-dimensional heat evacuation pathways that complement the thick tread's load-bearing function without compromising crown temperature control.
3Loss of energy
If silica content is increased to reduce hysteresis, then heat generation is reduced, but thermal conductivity decreases and manufacturing productivity suffers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating the low-hysteresis silica-filled elastomeric mixture specifically in the crown region where heat generation from hysteresis is most problematic, while using a different material formulation in the tread that prioritizes thermal conductivity and curing efficiency. This localized material assignment optimizes both heat reduction and manufacturing productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite materials by combining different elastomeric mixtures with distinct filler compositions in different tire regions. The crown uses silica-rich low-hysteresis material to minimize heat generation, while the tread uses a formulation optimized for thermal conductivity and rapid curing, creating a functionally optimized composite structure that resolves the productivity-heat generation contradiction.
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 design effectively reduces the crown temperature of the tire during operation and decreases the tire curing time, enhancing both the tire's performance and manufacturing efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
elastomeric mixtures which comprise silica among their reinforcing fillers have lower hysteresis, that is to say heat dissipation
Implementation Method 2
elastomeric mixtures comprising mainly silica, for example a content at least equal to 30 phr (parts per hundred of rubber (elastomer), by weight), have a lower thermal conductivity than elastomeric mixtures comprising carbon black
Implementation Method 3
crown cavities, distributed in a circumferential direction... extending towards the inside of the tread, from the tread surface to a crown cavity bottom
Implementation Method 4
facilitate heat exchange
Data Source
AI summary
A tire (1) for a heavy-duty construction plant vehicle, comprising a tread (2) having a height H radially on the outside of at least one low-hysteresis elastomeric mixture layer (41) having an overall filler content TG=TSi+TN, TSi being the silica content and TN the carbon black content. According to the invention, the tread (2) comprises, in the vicinity of at least one axial end (21), a plurality of crown cavities (6) and/or a plurality of lateral cavities (7), respectively distributed in the circumferential direction (XX′): a crown cavity (6) having a depth PS, such that PS/H is at least equal to AS+KS*RSi, with AS=0.35, KS=0.4 and RSi=TSi/TG, a lateral cavity (7) having a depth PF, such that PF/H is at least equal to AF+KF*RSi, with AF=−0.1, KF=0.3 and RSi=TSi/TG.