JP2008254337A - Method and apparatus for manufacturing tire - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stably provide a sound material-containing tire of high quality by providing a method for uniformly and precisely fixing a sound absorbing material in a tire peripheral direction under high productivity, and to provide an apparatus therefor in attaching the sound absorbing material to the inner peripheral surface of the tread part of a tire. <P>SOLUTION: In attaching a strip of sound absorbing material at least to the inner peripheral surface of the tread part of the tire, the strip of sound absorbing material is bent while meandered along the circumference of a circle so that its maximum diameter becomes a size capable of passing the rim hole of the tire to be folded into an annular shape and the sound absorbing material having the folded shape is inserted in the tire from the rim hole of the tire. Subsequently, the sound absorbing material having the folded shape is increased in diameter within the tire to be brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread part and fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the tread part through an adhesive. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a tire manufacturing method and apparatus for reducing cavity resonance generated by vibration of filled air in a tire chamber.

  A pneumatic tire mounted on a vehicle has an internal shape or the like due to vibration of the tire tread portion caused by unevenness of the road surface and vibration of the filled air in the tire while the vehicle is running. The resulting cavity resonance results in noise called road noise in the car cabin.

  In order to avoid such road noise, Patent Document 1 discloses a tire formed by a rim and a pneumatic tire bonded to the rim in order to enhance the suppression effect of cavity resonance and greatly reduce road noise. A non-ring-shaped sound absorbing material using a sponge material is fixed to the inner cavity in the tire circumferential direction, and the sound absorbing material has a ratio S2 / S1 of the volume S2 to the total area S1 of the tire inner cavity of 0. 4% or more, and the sound absorbing material has a specific gravity of 0.005 to 0.06, and the surface of the sound absorbing material facing the tire cavity is an uneven surface, and the uneven surface is a protruding convex portion. There has been proposed an assembly of a pneumatic tire and a rim, in which recesses and recesses are scattered in the tire circumferential direction or the tire axial direction without being aligned and the irregularities are repeated.

  Further, Patent Documents 2 and 3 propose a tire having a sound absorbing material for reducing noise accompanying cavity resonance generated in the tire chamber.

  The tire with the sound absorbing material is usually provided with a sound absorbing material attached to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the product tire. In the above-mentioned Patent Documents 2 and 3, the sound absorbing material having a shape that gives rigidity ( A method is disclosed in which a sponge or the like is manually inserted and then fixed by the restoring force of the sound absorbing material itself.

Patent Document 4 proposes a method in which a narrow-width member (sponge material) is attached in a spiral shape inside a rotating tire while applying an adhesive.
Japanese Patent No. 3622957 JP 2004-276809 A JP 2004-291855 A JP 2002-347418A

  When the sound absorbing material is attached to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire, it is preferable to apply the integrally formed sound absorbing material along the inner peripheral surface of the tire at a time. However, in the examples of Patent Documents 2 and 3, when attaching a ring-shaped sound absorbing material having a large width so that sufficient characteristics can be obtained in one round on the inner peripheral surface of the tire, the diameter of the sound absorbing material is reduced, and then expanded. The work of diameter pasting is done manually. Therefore, this work takes time, so the productivity is low.Furthermore, it is difficult to arrange the sound-absorbing material uniformly and accurately in the tire circumferential direction and fix and adhere to it, and the quality is uneven. there were.

  In addition, in the example of Patent Document 4, a method of sticking a sound absorbing material having a narrow width in a spiral shape is proposed. However, in this method, the sound absorbing material is stretched more than necessary, and therefore, a sound absorbing material designed in advance is used. There arises a problem that the characteristics cannot be obtained and the film is easily peeled off. Further, when the sound absorbing material is spirally wound, a gap is generated between adjacent sound absorbing materials, and the sound absorbing effect may vary.

  Therefore, the object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems, and to attach the sound absorbing material to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire, the sound absorbing material is uniform and accurate in the tire circumferential direction, and under high productivity, By providing a fixing method and an apparatus therefor, it is to stably provide a high-quality sound-absorbing tire.

The gist of the present invention is as follows.
(1) In attaching the band-shaped sound absorbing material to at least the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire,
The band-shaped sound absorbing material is bent while being meandered along the circumference so that the maximum diameter is a size that can pass through the rim hole of the tire, and is folded into an annular shape. Insert into the tire through the hole, then expand the diameter of the folding sound absorbing material inside the tire, contact the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion, and fix the sound absorbing material to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion with an adhesive A method of manufacturing a tire characterized by the above.
Note that “folding the sound absorbing material so that the maximum diameter can pass through the rim hole of the tire” means, of course, the folded sound absorbing material when the maximum diameter of the folded sound absorbing material is equal to or less than the rim diameter. Even when the maximum diameter of the material is equal to or larger than the rim diameter, when the folded sound absorbing material passes through the rim hole, for example, the sound absorbing material is compressed by contacting the edge of the rim hole, and is contacted with the edge of the rim hole. This includes the case where the maximum diameter of the sound absorbing material in the state is equal to or smaller than the rim diameter and passes through the rim hole.
Further, “expanding the folding-shaped sound absorbing material and bringing it into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion” includes not only the case where the sound absorbing material is brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion but also the case where the sound absorbing material is pressed against the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion. .
Furthermore, the rim hole is a hole for inserting and attaching the wheel into the tire.

(2) When attaching the band-shaped sound absorbing material to at least the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire,
The belt-shaped sound absorbing material is wound around a drum capable of expanding and contracting the diameter, and the sound absorbing material is locked to the circumferential surface of the drum at a plurality of points spaced in the longitudinal direction of the sound absorbing material,
In the process of shrinking the drum inward in the radial direction, the engaging portion of the sound absorbing material is moved in the axial direction of the drum and in a direction in which adjacent engaging portions are separated from each other, and the sound absorbing material is moved to the surface of the drum. The sound absorbing material is folded by being held and meandered, and the sound absorbing material is provided with a folding shape in which the maximum diameter can pass through the tire rim hole. Insert,
Next, the drum is expanded radially outward, the sound absorbing material is expanded, the sound absorbing material is brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion, and the sound absorbing material is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion through an adhesive. A method of manufacturing a tire characterized by the above.

(3) In attaching the band-shaped sound absorbing material to at least the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire,
A drum capable of expanding and contracting the diameter is reduced below the rim diameter of the tire;
After winding the sound absorbing material on the peripheral surface of the drum while meandering, the drum around which the sound absorbing material is wound is inserted into the tire from the rim hole of the tire,
Next, the drum is expanded radially outward, the sound absorbing material is expanded, the sound absorbing material is brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion, and the sound absorbing material is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion through an adhesive. A method of manufacturing a tire characterized by the above.

(4) The tire manufacturing method according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein the tire is a product tire after vulcanization molding.

(5) The tire manufacturing method according to any one of (1) to (3) above, wherein the tire is a green tire before vulcanization molding.

(6) having a drum that can be reduced to a diameter less than the rim diameter of the tire and that can be expanded to a diameter greater than or equal to the diameter of the inner peripheral surface of the sound absorbing material attached to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire;
The drum is provided with a plurality of engaging portions of the sound absorbing material wound around the peripheral surface of the drum, and the engaging portions are movable in the drum axial direction adjacent to each other when the diameter of the drum is reduced. Manufacturing equipment.

(7) The tire manufacturing apparatus according to (6), wherein the locking portion is a pin or a protrusion.

(8) The tire manufacturing apparatus according to (6), wherein the locking portion is a suction hole.

According to the present invention, when attaching the sound absorbing material to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire, a method and an apparatus for fixing the sound absorbing material in the tire circumferential direction uniformly and accurately and with high productivity are provided. A tire with a high quality sound absorbing material can be stably provided.
Further, in the tire manufacturing method and apparatus of the present invention, since it is not necessary to extend the sound absorbing material, there is no problem that the sound absorbing material is easily peeled off after being applied to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire.

  First, FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view in the width direction of a tire to which a sound absorbing material is attached using the method of the present invention. In addition, the structure of the tire to which the sound absorbing material is attached is not particularly limited, and may be a general structure. For example, in the illustrated tire 1, a bead core 3 is embedded in a bead portion 2, and a carcass 4 straddling between both bead portions 2 serves as a skeleton of the tire, and each side portion of the carcass 4 has a bead core 3. Wrapped around and fixed. On the radially outer side of the crown portion of the carcass 4, a belt 5 composed of three belt layers in which a large number of steel cords are covered with rubber is disposed in order from the inner layer side to the outer layer side. Both end portions of such a belt 5 are covered from the outer peripheral side by one or more layers 6 in the figure as a belt auxiliary layer. The tread portion 7 is disposed on the outer side in the radial direction of the belt 5, and there is a pair of sidewall portions 8 extending continuously inward in the radial direction on each side portion of the tread portion 7. E indicates the tire equatorial plane.

  In the tire 1, the sound absorbing material 30 is disposed at least on the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion 7. The end portions of the band-shaped sound absorbing material may be bonded to each other to form a ring shape, or may be used as a shape having a gap between the end portions.

  Here, the sound-absorbing material 30 can be composed of a synthetic resin such as an ether-based polyurethane foam, or a foamed material having open cells or closed cells formed by foaming synthetic rubber or the like, as well as organic fibers and inorganic fibers. It can also be constituted by a woven fabric, a nonwoven fabric, a knitted fabric or the like in which animal fibers, plant fibers, synthetic fibers and the like are intertwined and integrated.

Hereinafter, a method of attaching the sound absorbing material 30 to the inside of the tire 1 will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
2A to 2D are views for explaining the tire manufacturing method of the present invention. FIGS. 2A and 2B are perspective views, and FIGS. 2C and 2D. Shows a side view.
First, as shown in FIG. 2A, for example, the sound absorbing material 30 is annularly wound around the outside of the drum 10 slightly smaller than the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire to which the sound absorbing material is attached. The annular sound absorbing material 30 shown here is endless, the outer diameter of the ring is equal to the inner diameter of the tread portion of the tire, and has a length that can be attached to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion of the tire without being expanded or contracted.

  Next, the drum 10 around which the sound absorbing material 30 in FIG. 2A is wound is reduced inward in the radial direction of the drum as shown by an arrow, and is brought into a state shown in FIG. Here, the sound absorbing material 30 is locked to the drum peripheral surface at a plurality of points spaced in the longitudinal direction of the sound absorbing material. When the drum 10 is reduced inward in the radial direction, the sound absorbing material 30 is moved in a zigzag shape by moving the engaging portion of the sound absorbing material 30 in the axial direction of the drum and in a direction in which adjacent engaging portions are separated from each other. Hold on the surface of the reduced drum while meandering. The drum 10 is reduced until the diameter of the drum 10 is less than the rim diameter, and the sound absorbing material 30 is folded so that the maximum diameter is equal to or less than the rim diameter.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2 (c), the sound absorbing material 30 whose outer diameter is reduced to be equal to or smaller than the rim diameter of the tire 1 in FIG. 2 (b) is wound from the rim hole 1 RH while being wound around the drum 10. 1 Insert inside. Here, it is preferable that the tread portion inner peripheral surface 1IL of the tire 1 at the stage shown in FIG. 2C is subjected in advance to a treatment such as application of an adhesive or application of an adhesive tape. The adhesive or the like may be applied to the entire tread portion inner peripheral surface 1IL of the tire 1 or may be applied partially. The application of the adhesive or the like may be performed using a spray or may be directly applied with a brush or the like. Moreover, you may provide an adhesive agent and an adhesive tape in the surface which contacts the tread part inner peripheral surface of a sound-absorbing material.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2 (d), the drum 10 is expanded radially outward, the sound absorbing material 30 meanderingly wound around the drum is straightened and expanded in an annular shape, and the inner circumferential surface of the tread portion of the tire It is brought into contact with 1IL and fixed through an adhesive or an adhesive tape.

  The tire 1 used here may be a raw tire before vulcanization molding or a product tire after vulcanization molding. However, when a raw tire is used, since the raw tire is vulcanized and molded after the sound absorbing material is attached, the sound absorbing material needs to be able to withstand pressure and heat during vulcanization molding.

  As described above, the application of the adhesive to the tire tread inner peripheral surface 1IL may be performed manually, but for example, the apparatus shown in FIG. 3 may be used. That is, FIG. 3 shows an example of an adhesive applicator for applying an adhesive to the inner peripheral surface 1IL of the tread portion of the tire. The adhesive applicator 40 is inserted into the tire through the rim hole of the tire, the jet outlet 40N thereof is directed to the inner peripheral surface 1IL of the tread portion, the adhesive 50 is jetted from the jet outlet 40N, and the jet outlet 40N is made of the tire. By rotating in the circumferential direction, the adhesive is applied over the entire circumference of the inner circumferential surface 1IL of the tread portion of the tire 1. In this example, the jet outlet 40N is rotated. However, the tire 1 may be rotated with the jet outlet 40N fixed.

  Furthermore, an apparatus configuration suitable for use in the above tire manufacturing method will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 (a) to (c) to FIGS. 6 (a) to (c).

4A to 4C are perspective views of a drum as an example of the tire manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.
The drum 10 shown in FIG. 4 is provided with a plurality of pins 11 at intervals in the longitudinal direction of the sound absorbing material in order to hold the sound absorbing material in a zigzag manner on the peripheral surface thereof. For example, a guide 12 such as a slit is provided.
As shown in FIG. 4A, the sound absorbing material 40 is wound around the drum 10 in an annular shape, and the pins 11 provided on the peripheral surface of the drum 10 are connected to each other along the guide 12 in the axial direction of the drum. The sound absorbing material 40 is forced to meander in a zigzag manner. At the same time, the drum 10 is moved inward in the radial direction, the diameter of the drum 10 is made smaller than the rim diameter, and the maximum outer diameter of the sound absorbing material 40 is also made smaller than the rim diameter. As shown in FIG. 4B, the sound absorbing material 40 meandering in a zigzag manner is wound around the surface of the drum 10, and is held on the surface of the drum 10 by the pins 11.
Next, after the sound absorbing material 30 whose outer diameter is reduced to be equal to or smaller than the rim diameter of the tire is inserted into the tire through the rim hole together with the drum 10, the pin 11 is moved along the guide 12 as shown in FIG. Then, while moving to the initial position shown in FIG. 4A, the drum 10 is expanded radially outward to straighten the sound absorbing material 40, expand the diameter of the sound absorbing material, and expand it again in an annular shape. .
The width of the drum 10 to be used needs to be slightly narrower than the width of the tread portion so that the drum can be inserted into the tire and the diameter can be increased inside the tire.

  In the description of FIG. 4, an example of a pin has been described as a mechanism for moving and holding the sound absorbing material. However, as shown in FIG. 5, a suction hole 13 is provided on the drum surface, and the sound absorbing material is removed from the drum by a suction means. While sucking from the inside in the direction and holding the sound absorbing material on the surface of the drum, it can function in the same manner as the above-described pin.

Incidentally, the above-described expansion / contraction of the drum can be realized by a mechanism shown in FIG. 6, for example. That is, the drum 10 is composed of a plurality of segments as shown by the reference numerals 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, and 10e in FIG. Specifically, the expansion / contraction mechanism of the drum 10 will be described using the segments 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d and 10e shown in the drawing.
First, as shown in FIG. 6B, every other segment arranged at the time of diameter expansion is moved radially inward. That is, the segments 10a, 10c, and 10e move inward in the radial direction of the drum, and the segments 10b and 10d hold the sound absorbing material without moving.
Next, as shown in FIG. 6 (c), the segments 10b and 10d are also moved inward in the radial direction of the drum, and the pins 11 provided on the surface of the drum are alternately arranged in the axial direction of the drum so as to be interlocked therewith. The sound absorbing material 30 is meandered in a zigzag shape to reduce the maximum diameter of the sound absorbing material to a rim diameter or less of the tire.
In the description of FIG. 6, every other segment, the segment is moved inward in the radial direction of the drum in two stages, and the drum is reduced in diameter. It can be changed as appropriate.

FIG. 7 shows another example of the tire manufacturing method of the present invention.
In the above-described example, after the sound absorbing material is wound around the drum, the sound absorbing material is meandered in the axial direction of the drum while reducing the diameter of the drum. However, in the method shown in FIG. A method for winding the sound absorbing material after reducing the diameter will be described.
That is, the band-shaped sound absorbing material 30 is supplied from the server 60 to the drum 10. Here, the end of the sound absorbing material 30 needs to be locked to the drum 10. Next, when the drum 10 is rotated in the circumferential direction of the drum and the server 60 is moved back and forth in parallel with the axial direction of the drum 10, the sound absorbing material 30 wraps around the circumferential surface of the drum 10 while meandering. Become. In order to hold the sound absorbing material 30 on the drum surface, it is preferable that the drum is provided with a sound absorbing material locking portion or an adhesive is applied to a plurality of points on the back surface of the sound absorbing material 30.
The server may be fixed and the drum may be moved back and forth in the axial direction.

  In the above-described example, the sound absorbing material formed in a ring shape by connecting both ends in the longitudinal direction of the band-shaped sound absorbing material has been mainly described. However, the both ends of the band-shaped sound absorbing material are formed into an annular shape by locking them on the drum. You may affix a sound-absorbing material to the tread part inner peripheral surface of a tire. An endless ring-shaped sound absorbing material is more preferable from the viewpoint of tire uniformity. However, the ring-shaped sound absorbing material is difficult to be fixed by a conventional hand-pasting method as compared to the band shape. In addition, it is possible to attach a ring-shaped sound absorbing material.

The width direction sectional view of the tire which attached the sound-absorbing material using the method of the present invention is shown. (A)-(d) is a figure for demonstrating the manufacturing method of the tire of this invention. An example of the adhesive applicator for apply | coating an adhesive agent to the tread part inner peripheral surface of a tire is shown. (A)-(c) is a perspective view of the drum which is an example of the manufacturing apparatus of the tire of this invention. It is a perspective view of the drum which is the other example of the manufacturing apparatus of the tire of this invention. (A)-(c) is a figure for demonstrating expansion / contraction of the drum which is an example of the manufacturing apparatus of the tire of this invention. The other example of the manufacturing method of the tire of this invention is shown.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Tire 1IL Tread part internal peripheral surface 1RH Rim hole 2 Bead part 3 Bead core 4 Carcass 5 Belt 6 Layer 7 Tread part 8 Side wall part 10 Drum 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d, 10e Segment 11 Pin 12 Guide 13 Suction hole 30 Sound absorbing material 40 Adhesive Applicator 40N Spout 50 Adhesive 60 Server E Tire Equatorial Surface

Claims (8)

When attaching the band-shaped sound absorbing material to at least the inner surface of the tread portion of the tire,
The band-shaped sound absorbing material is bent while being meandered along the circumference so that the maximum diameter is a size that can pass through the rim hole of the tire, and is folded into an annular shape. Inserting into the tire through the hole, then expanding the diameter of the folding sound absorbing material inside the tire, bringing it into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion, and fixing the sound absorbing material to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion with an adhesive A method of manufacturing a tire characterized by the above. When attaching the band-shaped sound absorbing material to at least the inner surface of the tread portion of the tire,
The belt-shaped sound absorbing material is wound around a drum capable of expanding and contracting the diameter, and the sound absorbing material is locked to the circumferential surface of the drum at a plurality of points spaced in the longitudinal direction of the sound absorbing material,
In the process of shrinking the drum inward in the radial direction, the engaging portion of the sound absorbing material is moved in the axial direction of the drum and in a direction in which adjacent engaging portions are separated from each other, and the sound absorbing material is moved to the surface of the drum. The sound absorbing material is folded by being held and meandered, and the sound absorbing material is provided with a folding shape in which the maximum diameter can pass through the tire rim hole. Insert,
Next, the drum is expanded radially outward, the sound absorbing material is expanded, the sound absorbing material is brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion, and the sound absorbing material is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion through an adhesive. A method of manufacturing a tire characterized by the above. When attaching the band-shaped sound absorbing material to at least the inner surface of the tread portion of the tire,
A drum capable of expanding and contracting the diameter is reduced below the rim diameter of the tire;
After winding the sound absorbing material on the peripheral surface of the drum while meandering, the drum around which the sound absorbing material is wound is inserted into the tire from the rim hole of the tire,
Next, the drum is expanded radially outward, the sound absorbing material is expanded, the sound absorbing material is brought into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion, and the sound absorbing material is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the tread portion through an adhesive. A method of manufacturing a tire characterized by the above.   The tire manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the tire is a product tire after vulcanization molding.   The tire manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the tire is a green tire before vulcanization molding. It has a drum that can be reduced to a diameter smaller than the tire rim diameter and that can be expanded to a diameter greater than or equal to the diameter of the inner peripheral surface of the sound absorbing material attached to the inner peripheral surface of the tire tread.
The drum is provided with a plurality of engaging portions of the sound absorbing material wound around the peripheral surface of the drum, and the engaging portions are movable in the drum axial direction adjacent to each other when the diameter of the drum is reduced. Manufacturing equipment.   The tire manufacturing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the locking portion is a pin or a protrusion.   The tire manufacturing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the locking portion is a suction hole.

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