JP2014223915A - Pneumatic tire - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pneumatic tire for improving on-ice/snow performance, by enhancing a frictional characteristic in an ice/snow road of the tire, by making the whole compatible in security of grounding area of the tire, improvement in scratching effect of a road surface by an edge and improvement in snow column shearing force in a high dimension.SOLUTION: A pneumatic tire is formed by partitioning a plurality of blocks each having a projection part in a circumferential direction of a shape corresponding to a projecting shape of a lateral groove, by arranging one or more of main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction and a plurality of lateral grooves extending in a tire width direction with one bending point of becoming a projecting shape in the tire circumferential direction between the main grooves and/or the main groove and the tread end, in at least a part of a tread part tread positioned between both tread ends. The pneumatic tire is formed by arranging at least one lateral sipe extending in the tire width direction in the block. In at least one of block sidewalls positioned on both sides in the tire width direction of the block, at least a part of the one of block sidewalls is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction.

Description

  The present invention relates to a pneumatic tire, and more particularly to a pneumatic tire excellent in performance on ice and snow.

  Generally, tires with excellent performance on ice and snow, especially brake performance on ice and snow road (brake performance on ice and snow) and traction performance (traction performance on ice and snow) are required as pneumatic tires suitable for ice and snow roads (snow roads and frozen roads). ing.

  Here, usually, the braking performance and traction performance of the tire are affected by the friction characteristics of the tire. Therefore, in order to improve the braking performance on ice and snow and the traction performance on ice and snow, it is necessary to improve the friction characteristics of the tire on an ice and snow road.

And as a means to improve the friction characteristics of tires on both icy and snowy roads, especially snowy roads and frozen roads, it is necessary to secure the tire contact area, and the road surface by the edge of the block formed in the tread part and the edge of the sipe It is known to enhance the scratching effect.
Further, as another means for improving the frictional characteristics of the tire, particularly on a snowy road, it is formed in a groove disposed in the tread portion by improving the force with which the tire steps on and solidifies snow during load rolling of the tire. It is also known to increase the shear resistance of a snow column (that is, increase the snow column shear force).

However, a rectangular block is defined by forming a plurality of main grooves extending along the tire circumferential direction and a plurality of lateral grooves extending along the tire width direction on the tread portion tread surface, and sipes are formed on the blocks. In the conventional pneumatic tire formed (see, for example, Patent Document 1), as shown schematically in FIG. 8 (a), the rigidity of the block 90 in order to secure the ground contact area of the tire. If the block 90 is prevented from falling down, the effect of scratching the road surface (ice and snow road surface) G by the edge cannot be sufficiently obtained. On the other hand, in the conventional pneumatic tire, as shown in FIG. 8 (b), when the block 90 is pushed down to obtain the effect of scratching the road surface G by the edge, as shown schematically in FIG. As a result, the kicking end side of the door will be lifted up, and the ground contact area cannot be secured.
Further, in the conventional pneumatic tire described above, when the depth of the lateral groove is increased in order to increase the snow column shearing force, the rigidity of the block in the circumferential direction of the tire is reduced (that is, the collapse of the block is promoted). The area cannot be secured. On the other hand, in the conventional pneumatic tire, if the depth of the lateral groove is reduced in order to prevent the block from falling down, a sufficient snow column shear force cannot be obtained.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-186633

  For this reason, in conventional pneumatic tires, it is not possible to make all of the securing of the tire contact area, the improvement of the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge, and the improvement of the snow column shear force side by side at a high level. Sufficient friction characteristics could not be obtained. In other words, conventional pneumatic tires cannot sufficiently improve the performance on ice and snow such as braking performance on ice and snow and traction performance on ice and snow.

  Therefore, the present invention improves the friction characteristics of the tire on icy and snowy roads by ensuring that the contact area of the tire, the improvement of the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge, and the improvement of the snow column shear force are arranged side by side at a high level. An object of the present invention is to provide a pneumatic tire that is improved in performance on ice and snow.

An object of the present invention is to advantageously solve the above-described problems, and a pneumatic tire according to the present invention has a tire extending in the tire circumferential direction on at least a part of a tread portion tread located between both tread ends. There are provided at least one main groove and a plurality of lateral grooves extending in the tire width direction with one bending point that is convex in the tire circumferential direction between the main grooves and / or between the main grooves and the tread ends. A plurality of blocks having circumferential protrusions having a shape corresponding to the convex shape of the lateral groove, and at least one lateral sipe extending in the tire width direction is disposed on the block, At least one of the block side walls located on both sides in the tire width direction of the block is characterized in that at least a part thereof is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction.
In this way, if a lateral groove having one bending point that is convex in the tire circumferential direction is arranged on the tread surface, and a block having a circumferential protrusion is defined, a ground contact area can be secured. On the other hand, the effect of scratching the ice / snow road surface by the edge of the block can be improved. Further, if a horizontal sipe is provided in the block, a sufficient edge component can be secured, and the effect of scratching the ice / snow road surface by the edge of the horizontal sipe can be improved. Furthermore, if a part or all of at least one of the block side walls is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, the snow column shear force can be increased in the portion where the block side wall is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. The effect of scratching the icy and snowy road surface by the edge of the block can also be improved. Therefore, it is possible to improve the friction characteristics of the tire on the icy snow road by ensuring the contact area of the tire, improving the scratching effect of the icy snow road surface by the edge, and improving the snow column shear force. A pneumatic tire having excellent performance can be obtained.
In the present invention, “at least a part of the block side wall is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction” means that at least a part of the tire radial direction outer edge of the block side wall is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. It points to that. Further, “extending in the tire circumferential direction” means extending in the tire circumferential direction, and “extending in the tire circumferential direction” includes a case of extending in a direction parallel to the tire circumferential direction. It is. Furthermore, “extending in the tire width direction” means extending in the tire width direction, and “extending in the tire width direction” includes a case of extending in a direction parallel to the tire width direction. It is.

  Here, in the pneumatic tire of the present invention, it is preferable that at least a part of each of the block side walls located on both sides of the block in the tire width direction is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. If some or all of the side walls of the block located on both sides of the tire width direction are inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, the snow column shear force can be further increased, and the effect of scratching the ice and snow road surface by the edge of the block can be improved. It is because it can improve further.

  In the pneumatic tire of the present invention, it is preferable that the horizontal sipe is disposed across both ends of the block in the tire width direction. If the horizontal sipe is positioned in the entire tire width direction of the block when viewed from the tire circumferential direction, it is possible to sufficiently secure the edge component and improve the scratching effect of the ice and snow road surface by the edge of the horizontal sipe. is there.

  Furthermore, in the pneumatic tire of the present invention, at least one of the plurality of lateral grooves has a first lateral groove component having one end opened at one main groove or tread end, and one end at the other main groove or tread end. It is preferable that the first horizontal groove component is narrower than the second horizontal groove component. This is because if the groove width of the first transverse groove component is made narrower than the groove width of the second transverse groove component, the blocks adjacent in the tire circumferential direction can be brought closer to each other on the first transverse groove component side to increase the rigidity of the block. . In other words, it is possible to increase the rigidity of the block while improving the performance on ice and snow, and to improve the performance on the dry (DRY) road surface and the wet (WET) road surface, particularly the brake performance.

  Furthermore, in the pneumatic tire according to the present invention, the lateral sipe has a first sipe having one end opened in one main groove or a tread end and the other end terminated in the block or in the lateral groove, and one end of the other main groove. Or it includes a pair of compound horizontal sipes that are open at the tread end and the other end is a terminal end in the block or open at a horizontal groove, and the first sipes and the second sipes include a tire rotation axis. When projected onto a plane orthogonal to the block surface, it is preferable that the tire width direction dimension component of the first sipe and the tire width direction dimension component of the second sipe overlap. If the first sipe and the second sipe overlap each other in the block when viewed from the tire circumferential direction, a sufficient edge component can be secured and the effect of scratching the icy and snowy road surface by the edge of the horizontal sipe can be enhanced. Because.

And as for the pneumatic tire of this invention, it is preferable that the tire width direction dimension of the said block is larger than a tire circumferential direction dimension. If the tire width dimension of the block is made larger than the tire circumferential dimension, the length of both ends of the tire in the tire circumferential direction and the length of the horizontal sipe can be increased. This is because the effect can be improved. Moreover, it is because a block can be fallen down moderately and the effect of scratching the icy and snowy road surface by the edge can be improved.
In the present invention, the “dimension in the tire width direction of the block” refers to the dimension of the longest dimension in the tire width direction in the block. Further, the “dimension in the tire circumferential direction of the block” refers to the dimension of the longest dimension in the tire circumferential direction in the block.

  According to the pneumatic tire of the present invention, by ensuring that the contact area of the tire is improved, the effect of scratching the road surface by the edge, and the improvement of the snow column shear force are arranged side by side in a high dimension, It is possible to improve the on-ice performance of the tire by improving the friction characteristics.

FIG. 3 is a development view of a part of a tread portion of a typical pneumatic tire according to the present invention. It is explanatory drawing explaining the force which acts on a block when braking force is loaded about one of the blocks of the pneumatic tire shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a circumferential direction protrusion part in the stepped-in end side of a block It is explanatory drawing in the case of being located, (b) is explanatory drawing in case a circumferential direction protrusion part is located in the kicking-out end side of a block. It is explanatory drawing explaining the force which acts on a block when braking force is loaded about the other block of the pneumatic tire shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a circumferential direction protrusion part located in the stepping-end side of a block It is explanatory drawing in the case of doing, (b) is explanatory drawing when a circumferential direction protrusion part is located in the kicking-out end side of a block. (A) is sectional drawing which follows the II line of the block of the pneumatic tire shown in FIG. 1, (b) is II of FIG. 1 about the modification of the block of the pneumatic tire shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the cross section in the place which follows an I line. (A), (b) is an enlarged view which shows the modification of the block of the pneumatic tire according to this invention. (A) is an enlarged view which shows the other modification of the block of the pneumatic tire according to this invention, (b) is sectional drawing which follows the II-II line of the block shown to Fig.6 (a), (C) is sectional drawing which follows the III-III line of the block shown to Fig.6 (a), (d) is sectional drawing which follows the IV-IV line of the block shown to Fig.6 (a). It is a partial development view of the tread portion of the pneumatic tire of the comparative example. (A), (b) is explanatory drawing explaining the relationship between the fall of a block and the contact area of a tire in the conventional pneumatic tire.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a development view of a part of the tread portion of an example of the pneumatic tire of the present invention. The pneumatic tire shown in FIG. 1 is not particularly limited and can be suitably used as a studless tire.

  Here, in the pneumatic tire of this example, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of (four in FIG. 1) main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction on the tread portion tread 1 positioned between the tread ends E. 21, 22, 23, and 24 are arranged. The tread portion tread 1 includes a plurality of lateral grooves 31, 32 extending in the tire width direction between the main grooves and between the main grooves 22, 24 located on both outer sides in the tire width direction and the tread end E. 36, 39A, 39B are disposed. In the tread portion tread 1 of the pneumatic tire of this example, a plurality of blocks are defined by main grooves 21, 22, 23, 24 and lateral grooves 31, 32, 36, 39A, 39B.

  More specifically, in the tread portion tread 1 of the pneumatic tire of this example, a first main groove 21 that extends linearly along the tire circumferential direction, and an outer side in the tire width direction than the first main groove 21 (see FIG. The second main groove 22 is disposed on the left side 1 and extends linearly along the tire circumferential direction. Further, the tread portion tread 1 has a single bending point that is convex in one direction in the tire circumferential direction (downward in FIG. 1) between the first main groove 21 and the second main groove 22 in the tire width direction. A plurality of first lateral grooves 31 extending in the direction are arranged. The tread portion tread 1 is formed with a first block row composed of a plurality of first blocks 41 partitioned by the first main groove 21, the second main groove 22 and the first lateral groove 31. The first block 41 has an arrow-shaped shape in plan view, and the first block 41 is formed with a plurality of sipes 41A extending in the tire width direction.

  The tread portion tread 1 has a third main groove 23 located adjacent to the first main groove 21 (on the right side in FIG. 1) across the tire equator C and extending in a zigzag shape in the tire circumferential direction. It is arranged. The tread portion tread 1 is provided with a plurality of second lateral grooves 32 extending in the tire width direction between the first main groove 21 and the third main groove 23. The tread portion tread 1 is formed with a second block row composed of a plurality of second blocks 42 partitioned by the first main groove 21, the third main groove 23 and the second lateral groove 32. The second block 42 has a substantially square shape in plan view, and a plurality of sipes 42A extending in the tire width direction are formed in the second block 42.

  Further, the tread portion tread 1 is provided with a sawtooth-shaped fourth main groove 24 that is located on the outer side in the tire width direction (right side in FIG. 1) than the third main groove 23 and extends in the tire circumferential direction. Yes. Further, the tread portion tread 1 has a single bending point that is convex in the tire circumferential direction one side (upward in FIG. 1) between the third main groove 23 and the fourth main groove 24 in the tire width direction. A plurality of third lateral grooves 36 extending in the direction are arranged. The tread portion tread 1 is formed with a third block row composed of a plurality of third blocks 50 and 60 defined by the third main groove 23, the fourth main groove 24 and the third lateral groove 36. . In addition, the tire width direction dimension of the 3rd blocks 50 and 60 is made larger than the tire circumferential direction dimension.

Here, the third lateral grooves 36 are formed by alternately arranging fourth lateral grooves 34 and fifth lateral grooves 35 having different shapes in the tire circumferential direction at equal intervals. That is, at least one of the plurality of third lateral grooves 36 is formed by the fourth lateral groove 34.
The fourth lateral groove 34 includes a narrow first lateral groove component 37 having one end opened in the third main groove 23 located on one side in the tire width direction (left side in FIG. 1) and the other in the tire width direction (right side in FIG. 1). ) Located at one end of the fourth main groove 24, and a second lateral groove component 38 having a wider groove width than the first lateral groove component 37. In the fourth horizontal groove 34, a portion where the first horizontal groove component 37 and the second horizontal groove component 38 communicate with each other (intersection of the first horizontal groove component 37 and the second horizontal groove component 38) is a bending point, and the first horizontal groove 34 The component 37 and the second lateral groove component 38 have different inclination angles with respect to the tire width direction across the bending point.
Further, the fifth lateral groove 35 is composed of two lateral groove components having different inclination angles with respect to the tire width direction across the bending point and having the same groove width.

  Further, the third main groove 23 located on the tire equator C side of the third blocks 50 and 60 is inclined toward the tire equator C side, and the fourth block located on the tread end E side of the third blocks 50 and 60. The position in the tire circumferential direction is substantially equal to the portion where the main groove 24 is inclined toward the tread end E side. Therefore, the block side walls located on both sides in the tire width direction (the third main groove 23 side and the fourth main groove 24 side) of the third blocks 50 and 60 are mostly in the block circumferential direction with respect to the tire circumferential direction. Inclined toward opposite sides.

  That is, the third block 50 has a circumferential protrusion 51 having a shape corresponding to the convex shape of the fourth lateral groove 34. Moreover, the tire circumferential direction edge on the opposite side to the side where the circumferential direction protrusion part 51 of the 3rd block 50 is located consists of a convex bending line toward the circumferential direction protrusion part 51 side. Further, the block side wall 53 located on the tire equator C side of the third block 50 is inclined toward the tire equator C side (lower left in FIG. 1) from the fourth lateral groove 34 side toward the fifth lateral groove 35 side. . Further, the block side wall 54 located on the tread end E side of the third block 50 is, for the most part, from the fourth lateral groove 34 side toward the fifth lateral groove 35 side toward the tread end E side (in FIG. ) Inclined. A part of the block side wall 54 located on the tread end E side of the third block 50 (the fifth lateral groove 35 side) is inclined toward the tire equator C side (lower left in FIG. 1). That is, the block side wall 54 is bent and extends in the tire circumferential direction. Further, the vertex 52 of the circumferential protrusion 51 of the third block 50 is not particularly limited and is offset from the center of the third block 50 in the tire width direction on the tire equator C side.

The third block 50 having a substantially arrow feather shape in plan view has an arrangement shape corresponding to the fourth lateral groove 34 and the fifth lateral groove 35 in the tire width direction across both ends of the third block 50 in the tire width direction. At least one (three in FIG. 1) horizontal sipe (combined horizontal sipe) extending is provided. Specifically, as shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 2, the third block 50 includes a first composite horizontal sipe 55 located on the circumferential protruding portion 51 side (that is, the fourth lateral groove 34 side), and a third block 50. A third composite horizontal sipe 57 located on the opposite side of the tire circumferential direction 51 of the block 50 from the circumferential direction of the tire, and a second composite horizontal sipe 57 located between the first composite horizontal sipe 55 and the third composite horizontal sipe 57. 56 are disposed. More specifically, at the circumferential protrusion 51 side of the third block 50, one end is open to the third main groove 23 located on the vertex 52 side of the circumferential protrusion 51 with respect to the block width center line, and the other. One end opens to the sipe 55A whose end terminates in the third block 50 and the fourth main groove 24 located on the opposite side of the block width center line from the apex 52 side of the circumferential protrusion 51, and the other end A first composite transverse sipe 55 is formed which is formed with a sipe 55B that opens to the first transverse groove component 37 of the fourth transverse groove 34. Further, one end of the third main groove 23 is opened at the opposite side of the circumferential protrusion 51 of the third block 50 (the lower side in FIG. 1), and the other end is terminated within the third block 50. A third composite horizontal sipe 57 is formed which includes a sipe 57A and a sipe 57B having one end opened in the fourth main groove 24 and the other end terminating in the third block 50. Furthermore, between the 1st compound horizontal sipe 55 and the 3rd compound horizontal sipe 57 (namely, the tire circumferential direction center part of the 3rd block 50) one end opens to the 3rd main groove 23, and the other end is the 1st. A second composite horizontal sipe 56 is formed which includes a sipe 56A that terminates in the third block 50, and a sipe 56B that has one end opened in the fourth main groove 24 and the other end terminated in the third block 50. Incidentally, the opening width of each composite horizontal sipe 55, 56, 57, that is, the opening width of sipes 55A, 55B, 56A, 56B, 57A, 57B constituting each composite horizontal sipe 55, 56, 57 is particularly limited. And 0.3 to 1.5 mm.
As shown in FIG. 4A, a cross section taken along line II in FIG. 1 is such that the sipes 55B, 56B, and 57B are bent in both the extending direction and the depth direction in the third block 50. It is formed three-dimensionally. The sipes 55A, 56A, and 57A are formed so as to be bent in the extending direction and linear in the depth direction. And each compound horizontal sipe 55,56,57 overlaps the tire width direction dimension component of the sipe which comprises a compound horizontal sipe, when it projects on the plane orthogonal to a block surface including a tire rotation axis (that is, The projections of the two sipes constituting the compound horizontal sipe overlap each other).

  Further, the third block 60 has a circumferential protrusion 61 having a shape corresponding to the convex shape of the fifth lateral groove 35. In addition, the tire circumferential end edge of the third block 60 opposite to the side where the circumferential protrusion 61 is located is a straight line corresponding to the groove wall of the first transverse groove component 37 and the groove wall of the second transverse groove component 38. Is formed by a bent line that protrudes toward the circumferential protrusion 61 side, and includes a straight line that connects the straight lines and extends in the tire circumferential direction. Further, the block side wall 63 located on the tire equator C side of the third block 60 is inclined toward the tire equator C side (lower left in FIG. 1) from the fifth lateral groove 35 side toward the fourth lateral groove 34 side. . Further, the block side wall 64 located on the tread end E side of the third block 60 is, for the most part, from the fifth lateral groove 35 side toward the fourth lateral groove 34 side toward the tread end E side (lower right in FIG. 1). ) Inclined. A part of the block side wall 64 (the fourth lateral groove 34 side) located on the tread end E side of the third block 60 is inclined toward the tire equator C side (lower left in FIG. 1). That is, the block side wall 64 is bent and extends in the tire circumferential direction. Further, the apex 62 of the circumferential protrusion 61 of the third block 60 is not particularly limited, and is offset from the center of the third block 60 in the tire width direction on the tire equator C side.

The third block 60 having a substantially arrow feather shape in plan view has an arrangement shape corresponding to the fourth lateral groove 34 and the fifth lateral groove 35 in the tire width direction across the both ends of the third block 60 in the tire width direction. At least one (three in FIG. 1) horizontal sipe (combined horizontal sipe) extending is provided. Specifically, as shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 3, the third block 60 includes a fourth composite horizontal sipe 65 positioned on the circumferential protrusion 61 side (that is, the fifth horizontal groove 35 side), and a third A sixth compound horizontal sipe 67 located between the circumferentially protruding portion 61 of the block 60 and the tire compound in the tire circumferential direction, and a fifth compound horizontal sipe located between the fourth compound horizontal sipe 65 and the sixth compound horizontal sipe 67. 66 are arranged. More specifically, on the circumferential protrusion 61 side of the third block 60, one end is opened to the third main groove 23 located on the apex 62 side of the circumferential protrusion 61 with respect to the block width center line, and the other One end opens in the sipe 65A whose end opens in the second horizontal groove component 38 of the fourth horizontal groove 34 and in the fourth main groove 24 located on the opposite side of the block 62 center line from the apex 62 side of the circumferential protrusion 61. In addition, a fourth composite horizontal sipe 65 having the other end and a sipe 65B terminating in the third block 50 is formed. Further, one end of the third main groove 23 is open at the opposite side of the circumferential protrusion 61 of the third block 60 (the lower side in FIG. 1), and the other end is terminated within the third block 60. The sixth composite horizontal sipe 67 is formed, which is composed of the sipe 67A and the sipe 67B having one end opened in the fourth main groove 24 and the other end terminating in the third block 60. Further, between the fourth composite lateral sipe 65 and the sixth composite lateral sipe 67 (that is, the tire circumferential direction central portion of the third block 60), one end is opened in the third main groove 23, and the other end is A fifth composite horizontal sipe 66 is formed which includes a sipe 66A that terminates in the third block 60, and a sipe 66B that has one end opened in the fourth main groove 24 and the other end terminated in the third block 60. Incidentally, the opening width of each composite horizontal sipe 65, 66, 67, that is, the opening width of sipes 65A, 65B, 66A, 66B, 67A, 67B constituting each composite horizontal sipe 65, 66, 67 is particularly limited. And 0.3 to 1.5 mm.
In the third block 60, the sipes 65B, 66B, and 67B are three-dimensionally bent so as to bend in both the extending direction and the depth direction, and the sipes 65A, 66A, and 67A are extended in the extending direction. It is formed to be bent in a straight line in the depth direction. In addition, when each composite lateral sipe 65, 66, 67 is projected onto a plane that includes the tire rotation axis and is orthogonal to the block surface, the dimension components in the tire width direction of the sipe constituting the composite lateral sipe overlap each other (that is, The projections of the two sipes constituting the compound horizontal sipe overlap each other).

  Further, the tread portion tread surface 1 of the pneumatic tire of this example has a sixth lateral groove 39A extending in the tire width direction between the second main groove 22 and the tread end E, and a fourth main groove 24 and the tread. A seventh lateral groove 39B extending in the tire width direction with the end E is disposed. The tread portion tread 1 is formed with a fourth block row including a plurality of fourth blocks 43 defined by the second main groove 22, the sixth lateral groove 39A, and the tread end E. Further, the tread portion tread 1 is formed with a fifth block row including a plurality of fifth blocks 44 partitioned by the fourth main groove 24, the seventh lateral groove 39B, and the tread end E. The fourth block 43 has a substantially square shape in plan view, and the fourth block 43 is formed with a plurality of sipes 43A extending in the tire width direction and the tire circumferential direction. The fifth block 44 has a substantially square shape in plan view, and the fifth block 44 is formed with a plurality of sipes 44A extending in the tire width direction and the tire circumferential direction.

  Here, the pneumatic tire of this example is characterized in that the third blocks 50 and 60 are sectioned on at least a part of the tread surface 1.

  The third block 50 of the pneumatic tire of this example is such that, as shown in the enlarged view of the third block 50 in FIG. 2A, the circumferential protruding portion 51 side of the third block 50 is the stepping end side during tire braking. In this case, the wings corresponding to both width ends of the third block 50 having a substantially arrow-shaped shape fall down to the center (the part where the vertex 52 is located) (indicated by the arrow in FIG. 2A). Direction). Therefore, the center portion in the tire width direction of the third block 50 collapses and is difficult to be deformed, so that a tire contact area can be ensured. Further, since the wings (both ends in the tire width direction) of the third block 50 are slightly tilted and deformed, the effect of scratching the road surface (ice and snow road surface) by the edge of the third block 50 can be improved. Furthermore, in the third block 50 of the pneumatic tire of this example, the first to third composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, and 57 are arranged so as to be located across the both ends of the third block 50 in the tire width direction. Therefore, a sufficient edge component can be secured, and the effect of scratching the road surface by the edges of the first to third composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, 57 can be improved. Furthermore, since the first to third composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, and 57 each have sipe portions that overlap in the tire circumferential direction, the third block 50 can sufficiently secure an edge component.

  Further, the third block 50 of the pneumatic tire of this example is opposite to the circumferential projection 51 side of the third block 50 when braking the tire, as shown in the enlarged view of the third block 50 in FIG. When the side becomes the stepping-in end side, a force acts in the direction in which the substantially arrow-shaped third block 50 opens (the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 2B). Therefore, the wing portions (both ends in the tire width direction) of the third block 50 are slightly collapsed and deformed, and the effect of scratching the road surface by the edges of the third block 50 can be improved. Further, in the third block 50 of the pneumatic tire of this example, the first to third composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, and 57 are arranged so as to be located across both ends of the third block 50 in the tire width direction. Therefore, a sufficient edge component can be secured, and the effect of scratching the road surface by the edges of the first to third composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, 57 can be improved. Furthermore, since the first to third composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, and 57 each have sipe portions that overlap in the tire circumferential direction, the third block 50 can sufficiently secure an edge component.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the third block 60 of the pneumatic tire of this example is also secured in the same manner as the third block 50, and the contact area of the tire and the third block 60 are improved. It is possible to achieve both improvement of the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge.

  Therefore, according to the pneumatic tire of this example, the ground contact area can be secured at the center portion in the tire width direction of the third blocks 50 and 60, and the scratching effect of the road surface can be sufficiently obtained by the provision of the composite horizontal sipes 55, 56, and 57. Therefore, it is possible to achieve both the securing of the ground contact area of the tire and the improvement of the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge, and the friction characteristics of the tire on the icy and snowy road can be improved.

Furthermore, the block side walls 53, 54, 63, 64 located on both sides in the tire width direction of the third blocks 50, 60 of the pneumatic tire of this example are all inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. Therefore, in the pneumatic tire of this example, at the time of load rolling of the tire, a snow column is formed by stepping and solidifying snow at the portion of the third main groove 23 on the block side walls 53 and 63 side, and the snow column shear force is increased. Can be increased. Similarly, it is possible to step up and harden snow at the block side wall 54, 64 side portion of the fourth main groove 24 to form a snow column, and to increase the snow column shear force. Therefore, according to the pneumatic tire of this example, it is possible to increase the snow column shear force as compared with the case where the block side wall extends along the tire circumferential direction.
From the viewpoint of increasing the snow column shear force, the inclination angle of the block side walls 53, 54, 63, and 64 with respect to the tire circumferential direction (that is, the angle formed between the tire radial outer edge of the block side wall and the tire circumferential line). Is preferably 2 ° or more. Further, from the viewpoint of ensuring drainage performance and uneven wear resistance, the inclination angle of the block side walls 53, 54, 63, 64 with respect to the tire circumferential direction is preferably 30 ° or less. Furthermore, it is preferable that the block side walls 53, 54, 63, 64 extend in a zigzag shape in the tire circumferential direction from the viewpoint of increasing the snow column shear force.

  In addition, when the block side walls 53, 54, 63, 64 located on both sides in the tire width direction of the third blocks 50, 60 are inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, an edge component in the tire width direction of the third blocks 50, 60 is obtained. To improve the scratching effect of the road surface by the edges of the third blocks 50 and 60.

  In addition, the third blocks 50 and 60 of the pneumatic tire of this example have a maximum dimension in the tire width direction larger than a maximum dimension in the tire circumferential direction. Therefore, in the pneumatic tire of this example, the length of both ends in the tire circumferential direction of the third blocks 50 and 60 and the length of the composite lateral sipe can be increased, and the effect of scratching the road surface by the edges can be improved. In the pneumatic tire of this example, the third block 50, 60 can be appropriately fallen to improve the effect of scratching the road surface by the edge.

  Further, in this example pneumatic tire, the fourth transverse groove 34 located between the third blocks 50, 60 has the narrow first transverse groove component 37, so that the third blocks 50, 60 are collapsed and deformed. In this case, the third blocks 50 and 60 adjacent to each other in the tire circumferential direction across the fourth lateral groove 34 can contact each other and support each other. Therefore, according to the pneumatic tire of this example, while improving the performance on ice and snow as described above, the rigidity of the third blocks 50 and 60 is increased, so that the dry (DRY) road surface and the wet (WET) road surface are improved. Performance, particularly braking performance can be improved. The groove width in the tire circumferential direction of the first lateral groove component 37 is such that when the third blocks 50 and 60 are collapsed and deformed, blocks adjacent in the tire circumferential direction are in contact with each other across the fourth lateral groove 34. The groove width can be set to, for example, about 0.3 to 1.0 mm. Moreover, the groove width in the tire circumferential direction of the second lateral groove component 38 is not particularly limited and can be set to, for example, about 1.5 to 5.0 mm.

  As is apparent from the above description, according to an example of the pneumatic tire according to the present invention, the third blocks 50 and 60 are provided on at least a part of the tread portion tread surface. The improvement of the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge and the improvement of the snow column shear force can be arranged side by side at a high level. Therefore, in this example pneumatic tire, it is possible to improve the on-snow performance by improving the friction characteristics of the tire on the snowy road.

  Here, in the pneumatic tire of the above example, in order to improve the performance on ice and snow and ensure the drainage performance of the tire, one side in the tire width direction of the tread portion tread 1 around the tire equator C (right side in FIG. 1) The third blocks 50 and 60 are disposed on the other side, and the main grooves 21 and 22 with good drainage extending along the tire circumferential direction are disposed on the other side in the tire width direction. However, in the pneumatic tire of the present invention, the performance on ice and snow may be further improved by arranging a substantially arrow-shaped block on the entire tread surface. Further, the pneumatic tire of the present invention may have a symmetrical pattern in which the pattern shape from the tire equator C to the ends of both treads is the same.

  In the pneumatic tire of the present invention, only one side of the block side wall of the substantially arrow-shaped block may be inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, and only a part of the block side wall is tire circumferential. It may be inclined with respect to the direction.

  Furthermore, in the pneumatic tire of the above example, the fourth lateral grooves 34 and the fifth lateral grooves 35 are alternately arranged in the tire circumferential direction, and the shape of the third block 50 and the shape of the third block 60 are slightly different. However, in the pneumatic tire of the present invention, the same shape of the lateral groove may be provided so that the shape of the substantially arrow-shaped block is the same.

  Moreover, the pneumatic tire of this invention may have a block as shown in FIGS. 5-6 in a tread part tread without being specifically limited.

Here, the block 70A shown in FIG. 5A has a substantially arrow feather shape in plan view, and the vertex 72A of the circumferential protrusion 71A is positioned on the block width center line WC. And block side wall 73A, 74A located in the tire width direction both sides of the block 70A is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. The block 70A is formed with three horizontal sipes 75A, 76A, and 77A that are bent so as to protrude toward one side in the tire circumferential direction and that extend continuously in the tire width direction. Of these three lateral sipes 75A, 76A, 77A, the lateral sipe 76A located at the center in the tire circumferential direction has a cross section along the tire circumferential direction of the block 70A expanded to the bottom as shown in FIG. 4B. It is a bottom enlarged sipe having a portion 78A. That is, the bottom portion of the lateral sipe 76A, lateral sipe 76A enlarged portion 78A of larger width D ₂ than the opening width D ₁ of the are formed.

  And in the pneumatic tire which has this block 70A on the tread part tread, securing the contact area of the tire, improving the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge, and the snow column shearing force in the same manner as the pneumatic tire of the previous example. All of the improvements can be lined up in a higher dimension. Further, in the pneumatic tire having the block 70A on the tread surface, the water film generated between the snowy road surface and the tire can be sufficiently removed by the lateral sipe 76A which is the bottom enlarged sipe. Therefore, in the pneumatic tire having the block 70A on the tread portion tread, the tire can be brought into close contact with the icy and snowy road surface, and the grip force of the tire can be sufficiently secured.

  The block 70B shown in FIG. 5 (b) has a substantially arrow feather shape in plan view, and the apex 72B of the circumferential protrusion 71B is one in the tire width direction from the block width center line WC (right side in FIG. 5 (b)). Are offset by a distance O. The block side walls 73B and 74B located on both sides of the block 70B in the tire width direction are inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. The block 70B includes a first composite lateral sipe 75B located on the circumferential protrusion 71B side, a third composite transverse sipe 77B located on the opposite side of the tire circumferential direction from the circumferential protrusion 71B of the block 70B, and A second composite horizontal sipe 76B is disposed between the first composite horizontal sipe 75B and the third composite horizontal sipe 77B. The first composite horizontal sipe 75B is a straight line having one end opened at the main groove or tread end located on the apex 72B side of the circumferential protrusion 71B with respect to the block width center line WC and the other end terminating in the block 70B. One end is open at the main groove or tread end located on the opposite side to the apex 72B side of the circumferential protrusion 71B from the block width center line WC, and the other end is located on the circumferential protrusion 71B side. And a three-dimensional sipe that opens in the lateral groove. In addition, the second composite horizontal sipe 76B and the third composite horizontal sipe 77B have one end opened at the main groove or tread end located on the apex 72B side of the circumferential protrusion 71B with respect to the block width center line WC, and the other end A straight sipe that terminates in the block 70B and a main groove or tread end that is located on the opposite side of the block-width center line WC from the apex 72B side of the circumferential protrusion 71B, one end is open and the other end is a block It consists of a three-dimensional sipe that terminates in 70B.

  And in the pneumatic tire which has this block 70B on the tread part tread, securing the contact area of the tire, improving the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge, and the snow column shear force All of the improvements can be lined up in a higher dimension. Further, in the pneumatic tire having the block 70B on the tread portion tread surface, a so-called three-dimensional sipe (extension direction and depth direction) is located in a region closer to the block width center line WC than the vertex 72B of the circumferential protrusion 71B of the block 70B. Therefore, securing the ground contact area and the effect of scratching the road surface by the edges can be achieved more efficiently.

  Note that the distance O for offsetting the vertex 72B of the circumferential protrusion 71B from the block width center line WC in the block 70B is preferably 10 to 30% of the block width W. This is because if the distance O is 10 to 30% of the block width W, the effect of scratching the icy and snowy road surface by the edge can be further enhanced. The “block width” refers to a dimension in the tire width direction of a projected view obtained when a block is projected onto a plane that includes the tire rotation axis and is orthogonal to the block surface.

  The block 70C shown in FIG. 6A is a cross section taken along line II-II, FIG. 6B is a cross section taken along line III-III, and FIG. 6C is a cross section taken along line IV-IV. 6 (d) has the same structure as the block 70B shown in FIG. 5 (b) except that the depth of a part of the compound horizontal sipe is reduced (that is, the bottom raised portion 78 is provided). ing. Here, in this block 70C, bottom raised portions 78 are provided on both sides in the tire width direction of the first composite lateral sipe 75C and the third composite lateral sipe 77C (for example, a range of 2 mm or more and 6 mm or less from the opening in the extending direction of the sipe). It has been. Further, two bottom raised portions 78 are provided in the vicinity of the center in the extending direction of the sipe located on the block side wall 73C side of the first to third composite horizontal sipes 75C, 76C, and 77C.

  And in the pneumatic tire which has this block 70C on the tread part tread, securing the contact area of the tire, improving the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge, and the snow column shearing force in the same manner as the pneumatic tire of the previous example. All of the improvements can be lined up in a higher dimension. Further, in the pneumatic tire having the block 70C on the tread surface, the securing of the contact area and the scratching effect of the road surface by the edge are more efficiently achieved in the same manner as the pneumatic tire having the previous block 70B. be able to. Furthermore, in the pneumatic tire having the block 70C, the rigidity of the block can be adjusted by the bottom raising portion 78, and the block can be prevented from falling down excessively, so that a sufficient ground contact area can be secured.

In the third blocks 50 and 60 and the blocks 70A, 70B, and 70C described above, the side wall portion of the block side wall including the two side wall portions that are located on the circumferential protruding portion side and have different arrangement directions protrudes in the circumferential direction. It is preferable that the arrangement angles θ ₁ and θ ₂ toward the top of the part are both in the range of 15 to 45 ° with respect to the tire width direction. This is because the effect of scratching the road surface by the edge can be particularly enhanced if the arrangement angles θ ₁ and θ ₂ of the side wall portions with respect to the tire width direction are within the range of 15 to 45 °, respectively. Incidentally, the arrangement angles θ ₁ and θ ₂ may be equal to or different from each other.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described with reference to drawings, the pneumatic tire of this invention is not limited to the example mentioned above, A change can be added suitably. Further, the block shape and sipe shape described above can be used in appropriate combination.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example demonstrates this invention further in detail, this invention is not limited to the following Example at all.

Example 1
A pneumatic tire having a size of 195 / 65R15 having the tread portion tread 1 configured as shown in FIG. 1 and having the specifications shown in FIG. 1 was prototyped, and performance evaluation was performed by the following method. The results are shown in Table 1. The manufactured tire was a mounting direction designation tire that is mounted so that the third blocks 50 and 60 are located outside the vehicle.

(Comparative Example 1)
A pneumatic tire having a size of 195 / 65R15 having a tread portion tread having a configuration as shown in FIG. 7 having the specifications shown in Table 1 was prototyped, and performance evaluation was performed by the following method. The results are shown in Table 1. In FIG. 7, 80A to 80D indicate blocks, and 81A to 81D indicate sipes.

<Brake performance on ice>
The produced tires were each attached to a rim having a rim size of 15 × 6 J, and the internal pressure was set to 200 kPa, and the tires were attached to the vehicle. Then, the braking distance from the speed of 20 km / h until full braking was applied on the icy road (frozen road) until it became a stationary state was measured, and the average deceleration was calculated from the speed before the full brake and the braking distance. Then, the average deceleration of Comparative Example 1 was taken as 100 and indexed. In the table, the larger the value, the better the friction characteristics of the tire and the better the braking performance on ice.
<Ice traction performance>
The produced tires were each attached to a rim having a rim size of 15 × 6 J, and the internal pressure was set to 200 kPa, and the tires were attached to the vehicle. Then, on the icy road (frozen road), the time required for acceleration from the speed of 10 km / h to the speed of 30 km / h was measured and the average acceleration was calculated. Then, the average acceleration of Comparative Example 1 was indexed as 100. In the table, the larger the value, the better the friction characteristics of the tire and the better the traction performance on ice.
<Snow traction performance>
The produced tires were each attached to a rim having a rim size of 15 × 6 J, and the internal pressure was set to 200 kPa, and the tires were attached to the vehicle. Then, on the snowy road, the time required for accelerating from the speed of 10 km / h to the speed of 45 km / h was measured, and the average acceleration was calculated. Then, the average acceleration of Comparative Example 1 was indexed as 100. In the table, the larger the value, the better the friction characteristics of the tire and the better the snow traction performance.

  From Table 1, it can be seen that the tire of Example 1 is superior in performance on ice and snow as compared to the tire of Comparative Example 1 that does not have an arrow-shaped block.

  According to the pneumatic tire of the present invention, by ensuring that the contact area of the tire is improved, the effect of scratching the road surface by the edge, and the improvement of the snow column shear force are arranged side by side in a high dimension, It is possible to improve the on-ice performance of the tire by improving the friction characteristics.

1 Tread part tread 21, 22, 23, 24 Main grooves 31, 32, 34, 35, 36, 39A, 39B Cross grooves 37 First cross groove components 38 Second cross groove components 41, 42, 43 Blocks 41A, 42A, 43A, 44A Sipe 50, 60 Block 51, 61 Circumferential protrusions 52, 62 Vertex 53, 54, 63, 64 Block side wall 55, 56, 57 Composite lateral sipe 55A, 55B, 56A, 56B, 57A, 57B Sipe 65, 66, 65 Compound horizontal sipe 65A, 65B, 66A, 66B, 67A, 67B Sipe 70A Block 71A Circumferential protrusion 72A Vertex 73A, 74A Block side wall 75A, 76A, 77A Horizontal sipe 70B, 70C Block 71B, 71C Circumferential protrusion 72B, 72C Vertex 73B, 74B, 73C, 74C Block side wall 75B, 76B 77B, 75C, 76C, 77C composite transverse sipe 78 raised bottom portion 78A enlarged portion 80A, 80B, 80C, 80D blocks 81A, 81B, 81C, 81D sipes 90 block

An object of the present invention is to advantageously solve the above-described problems, and a pneumatic tire according to the present invention has a tire extending in the tire circumferential direction on at least a part of a tread portion tread located between both tread ends. There are provided at least one main groove and a plurality of lateral grooves extending in the tire width direction with one bending point that is convex in the tire circumferential direction between the main grooves and / or between the main grooves and the tread ends. A plurality of blocks having circumferential protrusions having a shape corresponding to the convex shape of the lateral groove, and at least one lateral surface extending in the tire width direction in an arrangement shape corresponding to the lateral groove. will be disposed sipes, each block sidewall positioned in the tire width direction on both sides of said block, said blanking at least partially inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, it is located in the tire width direction on one side of the block At least a part of the rack side wall is inclined from the circumferential projecting portion side toward the tire circumferential direction opposite side to the circumferential projecting portion side, and the other side in the tire width direction of the block At least a part of the block side wall located at the side is inclined from the circumferential protruding portion side toward the other side in the tire width direction toward the opposite side of the circumferential protruding portion side from the circumferential protruding portion side. To do.
In this way, if a lateral groove having one bending point that is convex in the tire circumferential direction is arranged on the tread surface, and a block having a circumferential protrusion is defined, a ground contact area can be secured. On the other hand, the effect of scratching the ice / snow road surface by the edge of the block can be improved. Further, if a horizontal sipe is provided in the block, a sufficient edge component can be secured, and the effect of scratching the ice / snow road surface by the edge of the horizontal sipe can be improved. Furthermore, if part or all of both of the block side walls are inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, the snow column shear force can be increased at the portion where the block side walls are inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction, and The effect of scratching the icy and snowy road surface by the edge can also be improved. Therefore, it is possible to improve the friction characteristics of the tire on the icy snow road by ensuring the contact area of the tire, improving the scratching effect of the icy snow road surface by the edge, and improving the snow column shear force. A pneumatic tire having excellent performance can be obtained .

In the present invention, “at least a part of the block side wall is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction” means that at least a part of the tire radial direction outer edge of the block side wall is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction. It points to that. Further, “extending in the tire circumferential direction” means extending in the tire circumferential direction, and “extending in the tire circumferential direction” includes a case of extending in a direction parallel to the tire circumferential direction. It is. Furthermore, “extending in the tire width direction” means extending in the tire width direction, and “extending in the tire width direction” includes a case of extending in a direction parallel to the tire width direction. It is.

Claims (6)

One or more main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction on at least a part of the tread portion tread located between both tread ends, and / or a convex shape in the tire circumferential direction between the main grooves and / or between the main grooves and the tread ends A plurality of transverse grooves extending in the tire width direction with a single bending point, and forming a plurality of blocks having circumferential protrusions having a shape corresponding to the convex shape of the transverse grooves, The block is provided with at least one horizontal sipe extending in the tire width direction,
At least one of the block side walls located on both sides of the block in the tire width direction is at least partially inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction.   2. The pneumatic tire according to claim 1, wherein at least a part of each of the block side walls located on both sides of the block in the tire width direction is inclined with respect to the tire circumferential direction.   The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the horizontal sipe is disposed across both ends of the block in the tire width direction. At least one of the plurality of lateral grooves is composed of a first lateral groove component having one end opened at one main groove or tread end and a second lateral groove component having one end opened at the other main groove or tread end. ,
The pneumatic tire according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a groove width of the first transverse groove component is narrower than a groove width of the second transverse groove component. The horizontal sipe has a first sipe having one end opened in one main groove or tread end and the other end terminated or opened in the horizontal groove in the block, and one end opened in the other main groove or tread end and the other end blocked. A pair of compound transverse sipe comprising a second sipe that opens into a terminal or transverse groove within,
When the first sipe and the second sipe are projected onto a plane including the tire rotation axis and perpendicular to the block surface, the tire width direction dimension component of the first sipe and the tire width direction dimension component of the second sipe are over. The pneumatic tire according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the pneumatic tire is wrapped.   The pneumatic tire according to claim 1, wherein a tire width direction dimension of the block is larger than a tire circumferential direction dimension.

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