Zigzag Tire Sipes With Tie-Bars for Ice Grip and Noise Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Winter tires with sipes face challenges in on-ice performance, load durability, and noise reduction due to sipe deformation and strain concentration under ground load.
Innovation Solution
A tire design featuring zigzag-shaped sipes divided by a tie-bar into first and second portions, with widening portions that enhance rigidity and dispersion of strain, and inhibit air movement to reduce noise.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If sipes are added to improve on-ice performance, then friction on ice is improved, but strain concentration occurs at sipe bottoms causing reduced load durability
Solution Approach 1:
The sipe is divided into multiple segments by introducing tie-bars that connect to the ground contact surface, creating a stepped structure. This segmentation distributes the strain that would otherwise concentrate at the sipe bottom, while maintaining the sipe's ability to enhance on-ice friction through its zigzag configuration
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces a vertical dimension to the sipe structure by adding tie-bars that extend from the sipe bottom toward the ground contact surface. This creates a three-dimensional stepped configuration that distributes strain across multiple levels, preventing concentration at a single point while maintaining surface area for friction
2Reliability
If sipes are increased to improve water absorption, then water evacuation is improved, but noise from air movement in sipes increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sipe is segmented into multiple sections by tie-bars, creating a stepped structure with multiple horizontal surfaces. This segmentation breaks up continuous air movement paths, reducing the noise generated by air flowing through the sipe while maintaining effective water evacuation through the zigzag configuration
Solution Approach 2:
The tie-bars, which create additional surfaces that could potentially increase noise, actually serve to break up air flow paths and reduce noise generation. The structure converts what could be noise-generating continuous channels into segmented paths that dampen air movement noise
Data Source
AI summary
A tire includes first blocks with zigzag first sipes. Each first sipe includes a tie-bar locally raising radially outwardly from the sipe bottom to divide the first sipe into first and second portions. The sipe bottoms of the first and second portions extend in a zigzag shape in a cross-section parallel to the ground contact surface. The sipe bottom of the first portion communicates with a first widening portion having a circular cross-sectional shape with a groove width greater than a width of the first portion and extending in a zigzag shape along the first portion. The sipe bottom of the second portion communicates with a second widening portion having a circular cross-sectional shape with a groove width greater than a width of the second portion and extending in a zigzag shape along the second portion. The first and second widening portions do not communicate with each other.