IP Library Granted Patent US 9,950,570
Granted Patent B2
US 9,950,570 · App. 14/655,881 · Granted Apr 24, 2018

Pneumatic tire

Inventor: Koichi Kotoku (Hiratsuka, JP)
Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
B60C9/18B60C5/00B60C9/0007B60C9/04B60C9/2006B60C9/28B60C11/01B60C2011/0033B60C2011/013B60C2200/06
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,950,570
App. No.
14/655,881
Granted
Apr 24, 2018
Kind
B2
Abstract

A pneumatic tire includes at least three circumferential main grooves that extend in the tire circumferential direction, and land portions that are partitioned and formed by these circumferential main grooves. In addition, a belt layer is formed by laminating a pair of cross belts each having a belt angle of not less than 10° and not more than 45° as an absolute value and having mutually opposite signs, and a circumferential reinforcing layer having a belt angle within a range of ±5° with respect to the tire circumferential direction. In addition, in a cross-sectional view taken along the tire meridian direction, a diameter D 1 at a point at an edge portion on the inner side of a shoulder land portion in the tire width direction and a diameter D 2 at a predetermined point within the ground-contact surface of the shoulder land portion have a relationship such that D 2 <D 1.

Claims (51)

1. A pneumatic tire comprising:

a carcass layer;

a belt layer disposed on an outer side of the carcass layer in a tire radial direction;

a tread rubber disposed on an outer side of the belt layer in the tire radial direction;

at least three circumferential main grooves extending in a tire circumferential direction; and

a plurality of land portions partitioned and formed by the circumferential main grooves,

the belt layer being formed by laminating a pair of cross belts each having a belt angle of not less than 10° and not more than 45° as an absolute value and having mutually opposite signs, and a circumferential reinforcing layer having a belt angle within a range of ±5° with respect to the tire circumferential direction,

among the circumferential main grooves, left and right circumferential main grooves on an outermost side in a tire width direction being referred to as an outermost circumferential main groove, and a land portion closer to an outer side in the tire width direction than the left and right circumferential main grooves on the outermost side being referred to as a shoulder land portion, and

in a cross-sectional view taken along a tire meridian direction, a diameter D 1 at a point P 1 on an edge portion on an inner side of the shoulder land portion in the tire width direction, a diameter D 2 at a predetermined point P 2 within a ground-contact surface of the shoulder land portion, and a diameter D 3 of a tire ground contact edge T having a relationship such that D 2 <D 1 and D 2 <D 3 ; wherein

the diameter D 1 at the point P 1 , the diameter D 2 at the point P 2 , and the diameter D 3 at the tire ground contact edge T have a relationship such that 0.30≤(D 1 −D 2 )/(D 3 −D 2 )≤0.70, and

a first profile extends from the point P 1 to P 2 and conforms with a line extending from a profile of the land portion from the outermost circumferential main groove to an inner side in the tire width direction.

2. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein, upon a wear end surface WE of the circumferential main grooves being drawn in the cross-sectional view taken along the tire meridian direction,

a distance Dcc on a tire equatorial plane from the circumferential reinforcing layer to the wear end surface WE and a distance De from an end portion of the circumferential reinforcing layer to the wear end surface WE have a relationship such that De/Dcc≤0.94.

3. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a distance Gcc on a tire equatorial plane from a tread profile to a tire inner circumferential surface and a distance Gsh from a tread edge to the tire inner circumferential surface have a relationship such that 1.10≤Gsh/Gcc.

4. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a distance WL from a tire equatorial plane to the point P 2 and a distance Ws′ from the tire equatorial plane to an end portion of the circumferential reinforcing layer have a relationship such that 0.60≤Ws′/WL≤1.00.

5. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a distance WL from a tire equatorial plane to the point P 2 and a width Wb 2 ′ from the tire equatorial plane to an end portion of a wider-width cross belt of the pair of cross belts have a relationship such that 0.90≤Wb 2 ′/WL≤1.30.

6. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a ground contact width Wsh of the shoulder land portion and a tread width TW have a relationship such that 0.1≤Wsh/TW≤0.2.

7. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a tread width TW and a cross-sectional width Wca of the carcass layer have a relationship such that 0.82≤TW/Wca≤0.92.

8. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a ground contact width Wcc of a land portion that is closest to a tire equatorial plane and a ground contact width Wsh of the shoulder land portion have a relationship such that 0.90≤Wsh/Wcc≤1.30.

9. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a diameter Ya at a maximum height position of the carcass layer and a diameter Yc at a maximum width position of the carcass layer have a relationship such that 0.80≤Yc/Ya≤0.90.

10. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a diameter Ya at a maximum height position of the carcass layer and a diameter Yd of the carcass layer at a position on an end portion of the circumferential reinforcing layer have a relationship such that 0.95≤Yd/Ya≤1.02.

11. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein the belt layer has a large-angle belt having a belt angle of not less than 45° and not more than 70° as an absolute value.

12. The pneumatic tire according to claim 11 , wherein belt cords of the large-angle belt are steel wires, and the large-angle belt has a quantity of ends that is not less than 15 ends/50 mm and not more than 25 ends/50 mm.

13. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein belt cords of the cross belts are steel wires, and have a quantity of ends that is not less than 18 ends/50 mm and not more than 28 ends/50 mm.

14. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a rubber hardness of the tread rubber is not less than 60.

15. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein belt cords of the circumferential reinforcing layer are steel wires, and have a quantity of ends that is not less than 17 ends/50 mm and not more than 30 ends/50 mm.

16. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein elongation of belt cords that configure the circumferential reinforcing layer when the belt cords are components and a tensile load is from 100 N to 300 N is not less than 1.0% and not more than 2.5%.

17. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein elongation of belt cords that configure the circumferential reinforcing layer when the belt cords are tire components and a tensile load is from 500 N to 1000 N is not less than 0.5% and not more than 2.0%.

18. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein the circumferential reinforcing layer is disposed closer to an inner side in the tire width direction than left and right edge portions of a narrow-width cross belt of the pair of cross belts, the pneumatic tire further comprising:

a stress relief rubber disposed between the pair of cross belts and disposed on an outer side of the circumferential reinforcing layer in the tire width direction so as to be adjacent to the circumferential reinforcing layer; and

an edge portion relief rubber disposed between the pair of cross belts and disposed on an outer side of the stress relief rubber in the tire width direction and at a position corresponding to the edge portions of the pair of cross belts so as to be adjacent to the stress relief rubber.

19. The pneumatic tire according to claim 18 , wherein a modulus Ein at 100% elongation of the stress relief rubber and a modulus Eco at 100% elongation of coating rubber of the pair of cross belts have a relationship such that Ein<Eco.

20. The pneumatic tire according to claim 18 , wherein a modulus Ein at 100% elongation of the stress relief rubber and a modulus Eco at 100% elongation of coating rubber of the pair of cross belts have a relationship such that 0.6≤Ein/Eco≤0.9.

21. The pneumatic tire according to claim 18 , wherein a modulus Ein at 100% elongation of the stress relief rubber is within a range of 4.0 MPa≤Ein≤5.5 MPa.

22. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein the circumferential reinforcing layer is disposed closer to the inner side in the tire width direction than left and right edge portions of a narrower-width cross belt of the pair of cross belts, and

a width Wb 3 of the narrower-width cross belt and a distance S from the edge portion of the circumferential reinforcing layer to the edge portion of the narrower-width cross belt are in a range of 0.03≤S/Wb 3 .

23. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 applied to a heavy duty tire having an aspect ratio of not more than 70%.

24. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein in the cross-sectional view taken along the tire meridian direction, the shoulder land portion has the first profile extending from the point P 1 to the point P 2 , and having an arcuate shape protruding toward an outer side in the tire radial direction, and has a second profile extending from the point P 2 to the tire ground contact edge T, and having an arcuate shape protruding toward an inner side in the tire radial direction.

25. The pneumatic tire according to claim 24 , wherein a length AR 1 of the first profile and a length AR 2 of the second profile have a relationship such that 0.10≤AR 2 /(AR 1 +AR 2 )≤0.40.

26. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 , wherein a tread width TW and a total tire width SW have a relationship such that 0.79≤TW/SW≤0.85.

27. A pneumatic tire comprising:

a carcass layer;

a belt layer disposed on an outer side of the carcass layer in a tire radial direction;

a tread rubber disposed on an outer side of the belt layer in the tire radial direction;

at least three circumferential main grooves extending in a tire circumferential direction; and

a plurality of land portions partitioned and formed by the circumferential main grooves,

the belt layer being formed by laminating a pair of cross belts each having a belt angle of not less than 10° and not more than 45° as an absolute value and having mutually opposite signs, and a circumferential reinforcing layer having a belt angle within a range of ±5° with respect to the tire circumferential direction,

among the circumferential main grooves, left and right circumferential main grooves on an outermost side in a tire width direction being referred to as an outermost circumferential main groove, and a land portion closer to an outer side in the tire width direction than the left and right circumferential main grooves on the outermost side being referred to as a shoulder land portion, and

in a cross-sectional view taken along a tire meridian direction, a diameter D 1 at a point P 1 on an edge portion on an inner side of the shoulder land portion in the tire width direction, a diameter D 2 at a predetermined point P 2 within a ground-contact surface of the shoulder land portion, and a diameter D 3 of a tire ground contact edge T having a relationship such that D 2 <D 1 and D 2 <D 3 ,

wherein in the cross-sectional view taken along the tire meridian direction, the shoulder land portion has a first profile extending from the point P 1 to the point P 2 and having an arcuate shape protruding toward an outer side in the tire radial direction, and has a second profile extending from the point P 2 to the tire ground contact edge T and having an arcuate shape protruding toward an inner side in the tire radial direction.

28. The pneumatic tire according to claim 27 , wherein a length AR 1 of the first profile and a length AR 2 of the second profile have a relationship such that 0.10≤AR 2 /(AR 1 +AR 2 )≤0.40.

Assignments (2)
CHANGE OF ADDRESS FOR ASSIGNEE Recorded Nov 18, 2023
From: THE YOKOHAMA RUBBER CO., LTD.
To: THE YOKOHAMA RUBBER CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 065626/0740 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 26, 2015
From: KOTOKU, KOICHI
To: THE YOKOHAMA RUBBER CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 035914/0045 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20150321515A1 · Nov 12, 2015