Tire Tread Pattern With Triangular Blocks for Wet Steering Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tire designs face challenges in maintaining steering stability during high-speed travel on wet surfaces while ensuring adequate drainage performance, as the rigidity of land portions on the tread surface decreases, leading to potential degradation in wet steering stability.
Innovation Solution
A pneumatic tire with a tread pattern featuring multiple circumferential main grooves, lug grooves with sipes, and second sipes that are inclined relative to the tire width direction, forming triangular blocks to enhance rigidity and drainage, with specific sipe depths and groove widths to balance rigidity and drainage performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If lug grooves are formed extending through the land portion region to improve drainage performance, then drainage performance is improved, but the rigidity of land portions decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The lug grooves are segmented into multiple sections: a first lug groove extending from the first circumferential main groove toward the second circumferential main groove and closed in the land portion region, and a second lug groove extending from the closed end of the first lug groove toward the second circumferential main groove. This segmentation allows drainage functionality to be distributed while maintaining land portion rigidity through strategic closure and positioning of each segment.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the lug grooves have different characteristics: the first lug groove is closed in the land portion region to maintain rigidity, while the second lug groove extends toward the second circumferential main groove to enhance drainage. The sipes are also strategically positioned at specific intervals to optimize both rigidity and drainage performance in different local areas.
2Ease of manufacture
If both ends of lug groove are joined to main groove to simplify structure, then manufacturing is easier, but rigidity of land portions decreases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of a single continuous lug groove connecting both main grooves, the design segments the groove into two separate lug grooves: the first lug groove closed in the land portion region and the second lug groove extending toward the second main groove. This segmentation maintains structural integrity and rigidity while still providing effective drainage pathways.
3Strength
If one end of lug groove is closed in land portion region to maintain rigidity, then rigidity is improved, but drainage performance may be insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The drainage function is distributed across two segmented lug grooves rather than relying on a single continuous groove. The first closed lug groove maintains rigidity while the second lug groove extends toward the second circumferential main groove to provide additional drainage pathways, ensuring sufficient water evacuation without compromising land portion stiffness.
Data Source
AI summary
In a tire tread pattern, lug grooves with sipes each include: a lug groove and a first sipe further extending from the lug groove to a second circumferential main groove and pass through a land portion region. Second sipes are alternately disposed with the lug grooves with sipes in a circumferential direction and pass through the land portion region. The second sipes extend inclined with respect to a lateral direction in a direction opposite to a direction in the circumferential direction in which the lug grooves with sipes are inclined. At an opening end at which the lug groove opens to a first circumferential main groove, the lug grooves with sipes and the second sipes are joined. Thus, triangular blocks surrounded by the second circumferential main groove, the lug grooves with sipes, and the second sipes are disposed side by side in the land portion region in the circumferential direction.