IES20150026A2 - Removable tyre tread - Google Patents

Abstract

This invention aims to simplify the design and ensure the multiple utilization of the removable tyre tread without fastening devices, as well as to enable fast and easy mounting and demounting. The removable tread is manufactures as a ring-shaped covering with a tread pattern on the outer surface and a structure and a structure similar to the pneumatic tyre structure. At the same time the ring-shaped covering has an internal diameter essentially equal to the outer diameter of the pneumatic tyre, radial thickness within the 0.1-0.2 range of the tyre thickness in the cap area, and width lying within 0.03-1.0 range of the pneumatic tyre cap width.

Description

REMOVABLE TYRE TREAD This invention relates to the pneumatic tyre treads, and more specifically to the removable pneumatic tyre tread, which can be used as a pneumatic tyre tread to be replaced in vehicles of various categories and various load-carrying capacity depending on the road situation and the conditions of vehicle operation.

Especially important is the development of special accessories intended for the improvement of the performance characteristics of summer, or sport, or wet or other types of pneumatic tyres mounted onto the vehicles in the countries with warm climate, when driving on snow-covered or ice-covered roads. In such countries, for example, in the majority of European countries except for Northern Europe, winter tyres are not usually used as it is not economically feasible.

This problem is especially acute for freight transport, for which winter tyres are not used, as these have a veiy high price amounting to thousands of Euros. Consequently, the use of winter tyres is not economically expedient. The same situation is with sports cars. In case of extreme weather conditions sports cars become virtually uncontrolled.

Along with the problem of designing accessories for the improved performance of pneumatic tyres in winter, there is a problem of developing the accessories, which would be able to protect winter tyres from tread wear during short term use in positive temperatures of the ambient air, because during this period, as it is well-known, winter tyres are worn severely.

Another problem is the design of removable treads, which are attached to the worn pneumatic tyre treads in order to retread them.

Despite the diversity of devices, each of which serves to solve one of the above mentioned problems, there is no information on solving all these tasks in one technical design. In practice such engineering solution should have a simple design, low cost and should be easily mounted and demounted on the road.

There is a removable pneumatic tyre tread (CN 201287591 Y) in the form of a ringshaped covering, which has the tread pattern on the outer surface and the structure similar to the pneumatic tyre structure, and allows fastening onto the tyre cap. The width of the ringshaped covering is equal to the pneumatic tyre cap width, and the tread pattern of the ringshaped covering corresponds to the condition of use of the pneumatic tyre. But at the same time the attachment of the ring-shaped covering to the pneumatic tyre is ensured through 2 S86580 vulcanization, which creates a perfect junction between the ring-shaped covering and the pneumatic tyre.

The known removable tread is designed to restore the worn pneumatic tyre tread and cannot be demounted afterwards. The term “removable tread” is understood as the tread, which replaces the worn pneumatic tyre tread.

Mounting of the described removable tread, designed to restore the worn tread, is effected by cutting the worn tread, installation on the track removable tread and vulcanization of tire with removable tread until there is a perfect junction between the ring-shaped covering and the pneumatic tyre. The mounting of the removable tread is labour-consuming and can only be performed indoors by an expert.

The removable tread described above becomes essentially the restored tread of the pneumatic tyre after its mounting onto the tyre; in this case the tyre acquires the properties of a summer, winter or all-season tyre depending on the mounted removable tread. A motorist who uses retreaded pneumatic tyres faces a task common for all road users - how to attach necessary properties to the pneumatic tyres of a vehicle depending on the weather conditions and the road situation.

In order to solve this problem one has to install additional accessories onto the retreaded pneumatic tyres, which are adjusted to specific road and weather conditions, which involves extra expenses.

There is another removable covering for the rolling surface of the pneumatic tyre (GB 2061201), which has a base made of an elastic material, for example, rubber, which is rigidly attached to the rim made of an elastic material with skid-resistant elements, for example, studs. The internal diameter of the covering is approximately one third less than the overall diameter of the pneumatic tyre, and the rigid fastening of the rim to the covering is ensured through vulcanization. The removable covering is designed to cover the cap and the major part of the tyre sidewalls, and has reinforced edges, which make the removable covering durable.

The described removable covering is virtually a skid-resistant device and is designed to enhance pneumatic tyre traction on snow-covered and ice-covered roads.

Mounting of the known removable covering onto the pneumatic tyre is performed with the nominal air pressure in the tyre by stretching the elastic covering and embracing the cap and a part of the tyre sidewalls. Mounting of this tyre is a labour-consuming process, which requires special equipment or much physical force. This is preconditioned by the fact that at negative temperatures the elastic covering becomes rigid, and it is very complicated to stretch it till the pneumatic tyre can be inserted into it.

The described design of the removable tread, just as the removable tread described above, has the measurements compared to the measurements of the pneumatic tyre, which makes the transportation of a set of such treads in a car trunk difficult and limits the sphere of application of such tread.

The invention aims to solve the task of creating a removable tread for a pneumatic tyre with such design, which would ensure simplification of its design and multiple use of the removable tread without fastening devices and allow its quick and easy mounting and demounting.

This aim is solved as follows: in the removable tread for pneumatic tyre, which is manufactured as a ring-shaped covering with the tread pattern on the outer surface and the structure similar to the pneumatic tyre structure, and which can be attached to the pneumatic tyre cap, according to the invention, the ring-shaped covering has an internal diameter essentially equal to the overall diameter of the pneumatic tyre, radial thickness within the 0.12.0 range of the pneumatic tyre thickness in the cap area, and width lying within 0.03 - 1.0 range of the pneumatic tyre cap width. The ring-shaped covering is manufactured so as to allow tree fitting onto the pneumatic tyre cap by reducing the pressure in the tyre below the atmospheric, and its fastening onto the cap by increasing the pressure in the pneumatic tyre to at least the nominal value; the covering is manufactured so as to allow multiple use and removal without damage to the pneumatic tyre and the ring-shaped covering.

The removable tread is most simple and reliable in operation among all described appliances of similar function and can be used repeatedly during a long period of time. Here no special fastenings or vulcanization are needed to keep the removable tread on the pneumatic tyre, as the ring-shaped covering holds exclusively due to the pneumatic tyre pressure, which tightly presses the cover to at least a part of the pneumatic tyre cap and during operation creates virtually a perfect junction between the pneumatic tyre and the removable tread. Such junction excludes penetration of snow, mud and water between the covering and the tyre, and can be easily mounted and demounted when needed.

The removable tread is compact, inexpensive and can have a label indicating the make, model and technical specifications. At the same time the removable tread can be used repeatedly during several seasons, and the set of four removable treads can be easily placed in a car trunk.

Good performance characteristics of the removable tread are observed even in case of using relatively narrow ring-shaped coverings as compared to the cap width. In this case with great load on the pneumatic tyre with a removable tread the adhesion between the covering and the tyre increases, which leads to the improved reliability of operation.

It would be expedient, if the tread pattern on the outer surface of the ring-shaped covering would correspond to any selected pattern of the pneumatic tyre.

The possibility of manufacturing the removable tread in several versions - with a winter, or an off-the-road, or all season, or summer, or sports, or wet, or any other tread pattern significantly extends the area of its application and gives the consumers the possibility to choose the version they need. For example, when mounting the removable tread onto the summer tyre it acquires the properties of a winter tyre and can be used during the whole winter. And when mounting the removable tread with a summer pattern onto the studded tyre, for example, during a shoulder period, the studded tyre does not wear or damage the road surface.

It should be especially emphasized, that the removable tread can be used for trucks, for which only summer tyres are manufactured mostly, and which become unmanageable in winter.

Besides, the removable tread can be mounted onto the worn pneumatic tyre tread and serve successfully for a long time.

It would be useful if the ring-shaped covering had a tread pattern corresponding to the pattern of a winter pneumatic tyre on the outer surface, and would have skid-resistant elements cured in the tread of the ring-shaped covering.

It is advisable that the skid-resistant elements are in the form of studs.

Preferably the skid-resistant elements are in the form of chains.

The removable tread with skid-resistant elements - studs or chains - could successfully be used on snow-covered or ice-covered roads, especially in the mountains, where the use of chains on the tyres is a must for the operation of a vehicle.

It would be useful, if there were at least one collar to allow mounting into at least one annular groove of the pneumatic tyre tread.

A collar mounted into the annular groove of the pneumatic tyre tread increases the adhesion between the ring-shaped covering and the pneumatic tyre.

The removable tread can be manufactured with the modem tyre manufacturing machinery using the available tread patterns and can bear a labeling including the make, model and technical properties like the labeling of a pneumatic tyre.

Mounting and demounting of the removable tread can be performed on the road quickly and easily by one person, and without special equipment. To this effect a double acting compressor can be used, this means the compressor, which can pump air in and out. Such compressor can come with the removable tread or be bought individually.

Mounting of such device can be performed within 5-10 minutes approximately even without demounting the pneumatic tyre from the vehicle. After putting the removable tread freely onto the pneumatic tyre cap, the pressure in the tyre should be increased to at least the nominal value, which ensures tight pressing of the removable tread to the pneumatic tyre cap.

The technical effect of this invention is the simplification of the removable tread design and the possibility of its multiple uses.

Another technical effect is the multi-functionality of the removable tread and the possibility of adjusting the pneumatic tyre of the vehicle to the operation conditions.

Still another technical effect is the possibility of easy and quick mounting and demounting on the road without using any special equipment.

The invention is described in detail in the example below, which is not exclusive or a one-off example within the framework of the invention; the references are given to the attached figures, where: Fig.l shows a fragment of the removable tread mounted onto a pneumatic tyre according to the invention; Fig. 2 shows a pneumatic tyre during mounting a removable tread according to the invention; Fig 3 (a, b, c, d, e, f) shows cross sections of the alternative designs of a removable tread according to the invention; Fig. 4 - the same as in Fig. 1, with skid-resistant elements in the form of chains according to the invention; Fig 5 (a, b, c, d, e, f, g) alternate designs of the removable tread with skid-resistant elements in the form of chains, cross section, according to the invention; Fig.6 (a, b, c, d, e, f, g) - alternate designs of the removable tread with skid-resistant elements in the form of studs, cross section, according to the invention.

The removable tread for a pneumatic tyre has a ring-shaped covering 1 (Fig. 1), mounted onto the pneumatic tyre 2. The outer surface of the ring-shaped covering 1 has a tread pattern 3, the inner diameter of the ring-shaped covering 1 is essentially equal to the overall diameter of the pneumatic tyre 2, and the width b of the ring-shaped covering 1 is equal to at least a part of the cap 4 of the pneumatic tyre 2 and preferably lies within the 0.03 -1.0 range of the width of the cap 4. In the described variant the width b of the ring-shaped covering 1 makes approximately 0.6 of the width of the cap 4 of the tyre 2.

The ring-shaped covering 1 is manufactured so as to allow free fitting onto the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4 by means of reducing the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2 below the atmospheric pressure, and its fastening onto the cap 4 by increasing the pressure in the tyre to at least the nominal value, and it allows multiple use and removal without damage to the pneumatic tyre 2 and the ring-shaped covering 1.

As seen from Fig. 1, the removable tread slightly rises over the pneumatic tyre 2 tread, and in this case the contact of the pneumatic tyre 2 with the road surface is ensured with the removable tread, and not with the own tread of the pneumatic tyre 2.

The pattern 3 of the removable tread can correspond to the tread pattern of any design of the pneumatic tyre 2, and is selected by the consumer depending on the assumed conditions for the tyre operation.

In the described design the winter-type removable tread is shown, which has the tread pattern 3, which is a raised arrangement formed by a great number of lateral and lengthway grooves 5, the combination of which forms a great number of block units 6 with drainage elements 7.

Drainage elements 7 are of special importance for driving on wet and snow covered roads, this means a set of small-sized sipes and grooves running circumferentially and oriented mainly perpendicular to the rolling direction. The principal function of the said drainage elements 7 is the evacuation of water on the wet road, accumulation and retention of snow in winter, which allows better traction on snow.

Mounting of the removable tread in the form of a ring-shaped covering implies that the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2 is reduced to below the atmospheric pressure, and the ring-shaped covering 1 is freely put onto at least a part of the cap 4 of the pneumatic tyre 2; and after that the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2 is increased up to at least the nominal value, and the ring-shaped covering 1 is then fixed onto the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4.

Fig. 2 illustrates the process of mounting the removable covering 1 on the pneumatic tyre 2 mounted onto the wheel disk 8, and the image corresponds to the moment when the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2 is below the atmospheric pressure. At this time the shape of the pneumatic tyre 2 changes, and some areas become depressed, due to which effect one can freely put the ring-shaped covering 1 onto a part of the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4. After the ringshaped covering 1 is put onto the cap 4, the pressure in the pneumatic tyre is increased to at least the nominal value for this type of the pneumatic tyre 2. The removable tread holds tightly onto the pneumatic tyre 2 due to the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2, which tightly presses the removable tread to the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4. In this case the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2 should not be lower than the nominal value for this tyre design, it means equal to the nominal or slightly exceeding it.

The reduction of the pressure below atmospheric and increasing the pressure up to at least the nominal value is performed with a double acting compressor. Mounting and demounting of the removable tread can be easily performed by one person even on the pneumatic tyre still mounted on the vehicle.

A distinguishing feature of this invention is that for holding the removable tread on the pneumatic tyre 2 no special fastening devices or vulcanization are needed, as the ringshaped covering is attached exclusively by pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2, which tightly presses the covering 1 to the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4 and excludes the penetration of snow, mud and water between the covering 1 and the pneumatic tyre 2.

The removable tread manufactured in accordance with this invention allows using such tread repeatedly without damage to the pneumatic tyre 2 and the removable tread itself.

Removable tread designs mounted on pneumatic tyre 2 are shown in Fig. 3 (a, b, c, d, e, f). The given drawings show that the structure of the removable tread 1 corresponds to the structure of the pneumatic tyre 2, i.e. there is an inner cover 11, 21} cord 12, 22 and tread ply I3 ,23, respectively. The thickness of the ring-shaped covering 1 in the radial direction makes 0.1 - 2.0 of the pneumatic tyre 2 thickness in the cap 4 area and is determined by the tyre type, onto which the removable tread is supposed to be mounted. For example, for a removable tread mounted onto sports cars and passenger cars, thickness of the ring-shaped covering 1 within the 0.1 - 0.4 range of the thickness of the pneumatic tyre 2 would be sufficient. For freight vehicles the thickness of the ring-shaped covering should lie within the 1.5 - 2.0 range of the thickness of the pneumatic tyre 2.

In Fig. 3 (a, b) there is a cross section of the pneumatic tyre 2 with ring-like grooves in the tread shoulder area, and the width of the ring-shaped covering 1 makes 0.18 and 0.35 of the width B of the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4, and its thickness h makes 0.35 and 0.7 of the thickness H of the pneumatic tyre 2 at its cap 4.

Such option corresponds to the tyre of a sports or a light-duty passenger car, for which it is sufficient to use a removable tread of a relatively small width and height.

In Fig. 3 (c, d, e) there is a cross section of the pneumatic tyre 2 given as an example with one, five and three annular grooves 9. The width of the ring-shaped covering 1 in options (c, d, e) varies from 0.55 up to 1.0 from the width of the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4.

Despite the diversity of the tread patterns of the pneumatic tyre 2, a tight contact between the inner surface of the ring-shaped covering 1 and the cap 4 of the pneumatic tyre 2 is ensured due to the pressure in the pneumatic tyre 2.

Fig. 3 (e) shows a ring-shaped covering 1, on the inner surface of which there is at least one collar 10, and in the described option - two collars. Such removable tread is intended for mounting onto the pneumatic tyre 2, the tread of which has similarly located annular grooves 9. In this case the said collars 10 fit into the corresponding annular grooves 9 of the pneumatic tyre 2. Such removable tread design increases the adhesion of the ring-shaped covering 1 to the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4. The removable tread designs described above are adapted to be mounted on passenger car tyres.

Fig. 3 (f) shows a ring-shaped covering 1, which completely covers the pneumatic tyre 2 cap 4, and the thickness h of the covering 1 is virtually equal to the thickness H of the pneumatic tyre 2. Such design is best adapted for mounting on the tyres of trucks.

To ensure a better traction on snow-covered or ice-covered roads, especially in the mountains, the removable tread with a winter pattern can go with skid-resistant inserts, for example, chains 11, cured into the tread of the ring-shaped covering 1 as shown in Fig. 4.

Such tread gives a passenger car the properties of an off-road vehicle, which allows driving the car in complex road conditions without the labour-consuming process of mounting chains on the wheels.

Fig. 5 (a, b, c, d, e, f, g) shows removable tread designs with skid-resistant elements in the form of chains. The variants shown here illustrate various versions of the removable tread with different number of chains 11 - from one to four depending on the width of the ring-shaped covering 1 and operating conditions. Also, as described above, removable tread designs with various width and thickness of the ring-shaped covering 1, with collars 10 and without them are shown here, and the sphere of application of such removable tread designs is similar to the one described before.

Fig 6 (a, b, c, d, e, f, g) shows removable tread designs with skid-resistant elements in the form of studs 12 cured into the tread of the ring-shaped covering 1. The advantages of 5 using studded tyres on snow-covered roads are well known, that is why the studded removable tread mounted onto a summer tyre will undoubtedly make driving the car in winter easier.

The designs of removable treads described above illustrate the most frequent combination - a summer pneumatic tyre with winter removable tread - and are not exclusive 10 or unique within the framework of the invention.

The availability of various removable tread designs - with a winter, off-the-road, or all seasons, or summer, or sports, or wet, or any other tread pattern greatly broadens the sphere of their application and allows the consumer selecting the design, which is necessary for the anticipated driving conditions.

The removable tread is compact, inexpensive, it can be manufactured with the modem tyre manufacturing machinery using the available tread patterns and can be used repeatedly during several seasons, and the method of mounting such tread allows its easy use on the road without using any special equipment.

Claims (5)

1. A removable tread for a pneumatic tyre, which is manufactured as a ring-shaped covering with a tread pattern on the outer surface and a structure similar to the pneumatic tyre structure, and which can be attached to the pneumatic tyre cap, characterised in that the ring-shaped covering has an internal diameter essentially equal to the overall diameter of the pneumatic tyre, radial thickness within the 0.1-2.0 range of the pneumatic tyre thickness in the cap area, and width lying within 0.03 1.0 range of the pneumatic tyre cap width, along with that the ring-shaped covering is manufactured so as to allow free fitting onto the pneumatic tyre cap by reducing pressure in the tyre below atmospheric, and its fastening onto the cap by increasing the pressure in the pneumatic tyre to at least the nominal value; and the covering is manufactured so as to allow multiple use and removal without damage to the pneumatic tyre and the ring-shaped covering.

2. A removable tread according to claim 1, characterised in that the tread pattern on the outer surface of the ring-shaped covering corresponds to any chosen pneumatic tyre tread pattern.

3. A removable tread according to claim 2, characterised in that the ring-shaped covering has the tread pattern corresponding to a winter pneumatic tyre tread on the outer surface and has skid-resistant elements cured into the tread of the ring-shaped covering.

4. A removable tread according to claim 3, characterised in that skid-resistant elements are made in the form of studs or chains.

5. A removable tread according to claim 1, characterised in that there is at least one collar on the inner surface of the ring-shaped covering, which allows fitting into at least one annular groove of the pneumatic tyre tread.