JP3332337B2 - Pneumatic tire - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention can improve the durability of a tread portion and the rehabilitation rate of a tire by preventing breakage of a tread rubber and a cord reinforcing layer located inside a groove bottom due to a stone bite. Related to pneumatic tires.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In addition to pavement roads, gravel roads with many pebbles and trucks and construction vehicles with many opportunities to move on leveling sites, when traveling on unpaved roads, see FIG. (B)
As shown in (1), stones are often caught in the grooves a and b formed on the tread surface.

[0003] When the tire rolls in a state where such a stone bite occurs, a force for repeatedly pushing and expanding the groove portion acts on the stone bite portion, and a crack is generated at the groove bottom and the crack is formed. The cord reinforcing layer f such as a belt layer disposed inside the groove bottom is damaged. Stone biting occurs frequently in the tread central area Y1 near the tire equator C where the contact pressure is high, and in the vertical groove a extending in the circumferential direction.

[0004] In order to prevent such stone biting, for example, JP-A-60-189608 and JP-A-61-2.
No. 91203 discloses a projection e extending in the groove direction at the bottom of a vertical groove a as schematically shown by a dashed line in FIGS. 9 (A) and 9 (B).
Are formed intermittently to prevent the stone from being caught in the flutes a, and the stone once caught is discharged by the elastic force of the projection e.

[0005]

However, in the tread surface, in addition to the above-mentioned vertical groove a, a large number of horizontal grooves b intersecting with the vertical groove a exist. In particular, in the case of trucks and tires for construction vehicles that frequently travel on unpaved roads, the tread surface is formed as a block pattern, so that the lateral groove b
And the chance of stone biting increases.

In order to solve one end of such problems, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3-67706 discloses a vertical groove a and a horizontal groove b.
It is proposed to provide a projection e extending in the direction of each groove at the intersection d with. However, in this proposal, the projection e of the intersection d extends radially along both the vertical groove a and the horizontal groove b, so that the rigidity of the projection e itself is increased and the elasticity is lost. As a result, not only can the stone caught at the intersection d not be discharged, but also because the lateral groove b has no projection, the lateral groove b
There is a problem that stones that have entered the river cannot be discharged.

The inventor of the present invention has investigated the actual condition of the stone bite in detail and found that (1) stone bite can be efficiently prevented by connecting the ring-shaped projections e around the block, (2) The stone biting is particularly likely to occur at the intermediate position between the intersections d and d where the movement of the block is small, and therefore, at this intermediate position, it is necessary to increase the protrusion e to enhance the stone biting prevention effect. 3) As described above, stone biting occurs frequently in the tread central region Y1, but may also occur suddenly in the tread intermediate region Y2 between the tire equator C and the tread edge Te. It has been determined that it is necessary to surround all the blocks inside the outer blocks arranged along with the annular projections.

That is, the present invention is based on the principle that a protrusion is formed at the bottom of the groove to surround each of the inner blocks in a ring shape and that the height of the protrusion is increased at an intermediate position between the intersections. It is an object of the present invention to provide a pneumatic tire that can drastically reduce damage caused by tires and can solve the above-mentioned problems.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a tread surface having a main groove,
A plurality of inner blocks surrounded by the main groove, and a pneumatic tire of a block pattern provided with a plurality of outer blocks surrounded by the main groove and the tread edge, the main groove, A main portion extending along each of the inner blocks and a crossing portion where the main portions intersect with each other, and the main groove stands up from the bottom surface of the main groove with a gap with the groove wall surface of the block and Protrusions for preventing stone biting surrounding each of the blocks in a ring are provided, and each of the protrusions is continuous with each other. The main protrusion has a height H1 from the groove bottom surface of 10% or more of the groove depth GH of the main groove and 2 mm or less.
5% or less, the length L1 along the main groove is 3 mm or more and 10 mm or less, and the height H2 from the groove bottom is 5% or more and 10% of the groove depth GH of the main groove. Less than, the length L2 along the main groove is not less than 2 mm and not more than 8 mm, the width W2 perpendicular to the direction of the main groove is not less than 0.5 mm and not more than 2 mm, and the main protrusion is the first main protrusion. A second main projection which is separate from and lower than the first main projection, and wherein the first main projection is disposed at a substantially middle position of the main portion in the main groove. It is characterized by.

As described above, the pneumatic tire according to the present invention is provided with the protrusion for preventing the stone from being bitten around the block in the groove bottom surface of the main groove. Since the protrusions are provided for all the inner blocks, they are effective not only in the center area of the tread near the equator of the tire where stone bites occur frequently, but also in the middle area of the tread where stone bites occur suddenly. Stone biting can be prevented. As a result, breakage of the cord reinforcing layer due to the stone biting can be drastically reduced, and not only can the durability and tire life be improved, but also the tire rehabilitation ratio can be improved.

The projections surround one block in an annular manner, and the projections are also continuous with each other. Thus, the elastic deformation of the projection when the stone is bitten can be varied not only in the radial direction but also in various directions along the tire peripheral surface, and the bitten stone can be efficiently discharged while rocking. In addition, since the projection is formed with a gap from the groove wall surface, the projection maintains the elastic force, and the stone that has entered the main groove can be repelled by the elastic force.

Further, since the projection has a structure in which a wide and high main projection and a small and low auxiliary projection are alternately connected, a rigidity difference is generated between the main projection and the sub projection.
Thereby, the elastic deformation of the main projection becomes larger than when it is continuous with a uniform cross-sectional shape, so that the repulsive force is increased and the stone can be repelled efficiently.

Further, in the main projection, a first main groove projection having a height higher than that of the second main projection is provided at a substantially intermediate position between intersections where the main grooves intersect. . This intersection is a place where the movement of the block is small and the stone is difficult to be discharged. Therefore, by arranging the first main projection having a high projection height at this intermediate position, the occurrence of stone biting is mainly prevented. It is possible to uniformly suppress over substantially the entire area of the groove.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the groove wall surface of the main groove has a height of 15 to 30% of the groove depth GH of the main groove from the groove bottom in a groove cross section perpendicular to the main groove direction. Sa KH
The lower vertical wall portion having a groove wall extending in a substantially radial direction, and an upper inclined wall portion extending in a C-shape toward the tread surface between the upper end of the lower vertical wall portion and the tread surface. Is preferred. As a result, the wedge effect of the groove wall due to the entered stone remains on the upper inclined wall portion, and the spreading force for widening the groove bottom is eased, so that the groove bottom portion and the cord reinforcing layer thereunder are reduced. Damage can be more effectively prevented.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings, taking as an example a case where a pneumatic tire is a heavy duty tire for trucks and buses.

In FIGS. 1 to 7, a pneumatic tire 1 includes:
In this example, the tire is a heavy-duty tire having a tire size of 11R24.5. As shown in FIG. 2, the bead 14 is turned around the bead core 15 of the bead portion 14 from the tread portion 12 to the sidewall portion 13 and locked. And a belt layer 17 disposed radially outside of the carcass 16 and on the tread portion 12.

The carcass 16 is a single carcass ply having a radial or semi-radial configuration in which organic fiber cords or steel cords such as nylon, rayon, and aromatic polyamide are arranged at an angle of 70 to 90 ° with respect to the tire equator C. Alternatively, it is formed by overlapping a plurality of sheets.

The number of the belt layers 17 is 2 to 4, in this embodiment, 2 to 4.
Belt plies 17A and 17B, and these belt plies 17A and 17B are made of organic fiber cords such as nylon, polyester, rayon, and aromatic polyamide.
Alternatively, the steel cords are arranged in a direction crossing each other between the plies.

By arranging the main groove 3 on the tread surface 2, a plurality of blocks 4 whose periphery is surrounded by the main groove 3 and the periphery is surrounded by the main groove 3 and the tread edge Te. A block pattern comprising a plurality of outer blocks 5 is formed.

The main groove 3 has a main portion M extending along the inner block 4 as shown in FIG.
Each main portion M has an intersection portion D intersecting with each other, and in this intersection portion D, the groove volume is increased as compared with the main portion M.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, in the present embodiment, the main groove 3 has a longitudinal groove 3A extending in the tire circumferential direction.
And a horizontal groove 3B intersecting with the vertical groove 3A, and each intersection of the vertical groove 3A and the horizontal groove 3B forms the intersection D.

In the present embodiment, the vertical groove 3A is formed by a pair of central vertical grooves 21, 21 disposed on both sides of the tire equator C, and between the central vertical groove 21 and the tread edge Te. It has longitudinal grooves 22, 22 on the side where it is arranged. The horizontal groove 3B includes a central horizontal groove 24 connecting the central vertical grooves 21 and 21, an intermediate horizontal groove 25 connecting the central vertical groove 21 and the side vertical groove 21, and Horizontal grooves 26 on the side extending from the vertical groove 21 to the tread edge Te are provided.

Therefore, the main groove 3 is constituted by the vertical grooves 21 and 22 and the horizontal grooves 24, 25 and 26. The vertical groove 22 on the side, the horizontal groove 26 on the side, and the tread edge Te.
Thus, the outer block 5 is formed. The block 4A surrounded by the central vertical grooves 21, 21 and the central horizontal groove 24, and the block 4B surrounded by the central vertical groove 21, the side vertical groove 22, and the intermediate horizontal groove 25 constitute the inner block 4. Make up.

In this embodiment, the groove depth GH of the main groove 3 is 0.08 to 0.18 times the tread width TW which is the distance between the tread edges Te and Te in the tire axial direction. The groove width GW at the open end is 0.06 to 0.15 of the tread width TW.
Set to double range.

The main groove 3 has a groove bottom surface 6 of the main groove 3.
Are provided, and the projections 9 are provided to surround the blocks 4 in each ring in a ring shape, and the projections 9 are connected to each other. In other words, the outer block 5 of the main groove 3
In this example, the main grooves 3 other than the lateral grooves 26 are divided in the circumferential direction.
The protrusion 9 is formed continuously on the groove bottom surface 6.

The protrusions 9 are arranged with a gap G from the groove wall surface 7 of the inner block 4 so that the groove wall surface 7
And established independently.

The projection 9 comprises a main projection 10 and a sub-projection 11 having a width smaller than that of the main projection 10. In this example, the main projection 10 and the sub-projection 11 are aligned in the main groove direction. Are formed alternately.

As described above, by alternately arranging the main projections 10 and the sub-projections 11 having a smaller width, 1
The volume of the main projection 10 per key is reduced, thereby increasing the elastic force and using the repulsive force to discharge the stone that has entered the main groove 3. In addition, the sub-projections 11 are
By intervening between them, the protrusions 9 are continuously connected, and surround the blocks 4 in each ring in a ring shape. Therefore, not only the tread central region Y1 where stone bites occur frequently,
Stone biting can be effectively prevented even in the tread intermediate region Y2 where stone biting occurs suddenly.

Further, as shown in FIG.
Is to set the height H1 from the groove bottom surface 6 to the top surface to be 10% or more and 25% or less of the groove depth GH of the main groove 3 and the length L1 along the main groove 3 to be 3 mm or more and 10 mm or less. I have.

On the other hand, the sub-projection 11 has a height H2 from the groove bottom surface 6 of 5% or more and less than 10% of the groove depth GH of the main groove 3 and a length L2 along the main groove 3. The width W2 which is not less than 2 mm and not more than 8 mm, and which is perpendicular to the main groove direction,
It is 0.5 mm or more and 2 mm or less.

In the main protruding portion 10, it is preferable that the gap G is substantially equalized in the main portion M and the intersection D of the main groove 3. Therefore, at the intersection D, the volume of the main projection 10 is larger than that of the main projection M. However, in order to make the rigidity of the main projections 10 uniform, this intersection is used. It is preferable to equalize the volume of the main protruding portion 10 arranged in D, for example, by providing a recess at the center.

The main projection 10 has a height H
If 1 is less than 10% of the groove depth GH, stone biting is likely to occur, and if it exceeds 25%, the rigidity of the main projections 10 is reduced with respect to the compressive force, and the stone is discharged when the stone enters. The discharge function cannot be exhibited. Further, the length L1 of the main projection 10
Is less than 3 mm, the elastic energy stored inside the main protrusion 10 is insufficient, and the pushing force of the bitten stone is insufficient. On the other hand, if it exceeds 10 mm, the rigidity becomes excessive and the discharge function cannot be exhibited.

On the other hand, in the sub-projection 11, the height H2 is less than 5% of the groove depth GH of the main groove 3, or
The length L2 along the line is larger than 8 mm, or the width W2 is 0.5
mm, the rigidity is insufficient, and the sub-projection 11 is
Since the function of connecting between 0 and 10 cannot be performed, the pushing force of the stone at the main projection 10 is insufficient. If the height H2 is 10% or more of the groove depth GH of the main groove 3 or the length L2 along the main groove 3 is less than 2 mm or the width W2 is more than 2 mm, the main protrusion 10 And the rigidity of the entire projection body 9 becomes excessively large, so that the discharge function cannot be exhibited.

As shown in FIG. 4, the main projection 10 includes a first main projection 10A (shown by oblique lines in FIG. 1) and the first main projection 10A.
And a second main projection 10B whose height H1L is lower than the height H1H of the main projection 10A from the groove bottom surface 6.

The first projection 10A is disposed at a substantially intermediate position J between the intersections D of the main groove 3, and the second projections 10B are disposed at the remaining positions. . The heights H1L and H1H of each of the first protrusion 10A and the second protrusion 10B are 10 to 25% of the groove depth GH of the main groove 3.
In this example, it is assumed that the regulatory value is satisfied.
The height H1L of the projection 10B is 1.0 to 2.5 mm lower than that of the first projection 10A.

Here, the "substantially intermediate position J" refers to an intersection point N at which the center lines N of the main grooves 3 intersect each other as shown in FIG.
It means a groove region corresponding to the central division when the length of the center line between d and Nd is divided into three equal parts.

The substantially middle position J is located in the middle of the corners E of the block 4 facing the main groove 3.

The rigidity of the block itself is low at the corner E due to its shape, and becomes high in the middle of the corners E. Therefore, when a stone is bitten near the corner E of the block 4, the stone is repulsed by the elastic force of the block itself. There are many cases where the movement is so small that the stone cannot be discharged.

For this reason, the projection height H is set at the substantially middle position J.
That is, the tall first main projection 10A is provided. When the main protrusions 10 are formed only by the first main protrusions 10A having the high protrusion height H1, the appearance of the main groove 3 is reduced, and therefore the arrangement of the first main protrusions 10A is minimized. I'm staying.

Further, in this embodiment, in the main groove 3, the groove wall surface 7 is separated from the groove bottom surface 6 by the groove depth GH of the main groove 3.
A lower vertical wall portion 7A whose groove wall surface up to a height KH position of about 30% faces substantially in the tire radial direction, and a cross between the upper end of the lower vertical wall portion 7A and the tread surface 2 toward the tread surface 2 It is formed by the upper inclined wall portion 7B which is opened in the shape of a leg.

In the lower vertical wall portion 7A, the distance between the opposing groove wall surfaces is substantially the same size. While preventing the occurrence of stress concentration in the portion, the drain function is maintained by the upper inclined wall portion 7B.

If the boundary between the lower vertical wall portion 7A and the upper inclined wall portion 7B is less than 15% of the groove depth GH, there is a risk that the edge of the groove bottom surface 6 may be damaged at the time of rock biting, and 30% is reduced. If it exceeds, the drainage will be inferior.

In the present embodiment, the lateral groove 26 on the side is
Without forming a groove bottom. This is because the lateral groove 26 on the side is opened at the tread surface edge and the movement of the outer block 5 is large, so that there is no problem of stone biting. Note that the protrusion 9 may be provided in the lateral groove 26 on the side.

However, when the tire is running, the stone that has entered the main groove 3 abuts on the top surface of the main projection 10 of the projection 9, so that landing on the groove bottom surface 6 is prevented. Main projection 10
Since the sub-projections 11 having a smaller width than the main projections 10 are continuously provided on both sides in the main groove direction as described above, even when the top surface is pressed in the tire radial direction, the main projections 10 Rather than being uniformly compressed and deformed, it is complicatedly deformed because it is constrained by the sub-projection 11 and continues in an annular manner around the blocks 4 in each. That is, the main protrusion 10 is not only compressed in the tire radial direction, but also fluctuates in various directions along the tread surface 2 (tire peripheral surface). The stone that has entered the main groove 3 as described above is easily discharged from the main groove 3 by repeatedly receiving three-dimensional swings in the tire radial direction and the tread surface direction.

Further, the main protrusion 10 has a first main protrusion 10A having a high protrusion height H1 disposed at a substantially intermediate position J where the movement of the block is small. Can be uniformly suppressed over substantially the entire region.

[0046]

EXAMPLE A tire having a tire size of 11R24.5 and having a basic pattern shown in FIG. 2 was prototyped according to the specifications shown in Table 1, and each of the test tires was mounted on an actual vehicle and allowed to run. The situation and tire damage were investigated. It should be noted that a tire having a configuration other than that of the present application (comparative example) and a tire having a conventional configuration (conventional example) were run under the same conditions and compared.

The test conditions are as follows. Each test tire was mounted on the driving wheel of a wood carrier with a 50% / 50% on-road / off-road running ratio and 50,000 under almost the same conditions.
After traveling km, the tires were removed and the damage was investigated. Table 1 shows the survey results.

[0048]

[Table 1]

As a result of the test, it was confirmed that the number of bites in the example of the example was drastically reduced as compared with the examples of the conventional example and the comparative example, and that the rehabilitation ratio of the used tire was improved.

[0050]

Since the pneumatic tire of the present invention is constructed as described above, it is possible to prevent stones from being caught and to discharge stones having entered the main groove irrespective of the position of the block. By preventing tire damage and improving durability and improving the tire rehabilitation ratio, it is suitably used as a heavy-duty tire used for trucks and the like that frequently travel on unpaved roads and as a tire for construction machinery. sell.

The tread portion can be further prevented from being damaged by the bite of the stone by forming the groove wall of the main groove into a two-stage structure of a lower vertical wall portion and an upper inclined wall portion. it can.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a developed plan view showing a tread surface of a tire according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing an AA section of the tire.

FIG. 3 is a partial plan view illustrating a main groove and its intersection.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a protrusion.

FIG. 5 is an end view showing an XX end face of the main groove in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an end view showing a ZZ end surface of the main groove in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is an end view showing a YY end surface of the main groove in FIG. 1;

8 is a developed plan view showing a tread pattern of a comparative example in Table 1. FIG.

9 (A) is a developed plan view showing a conventional tread pattern, and FIG. 9 (B) is a sectional view showing a vertical groove thereof.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 2 tread surface 3 main groove 4, main groove in 4A, 4B 5 outer block 6 groove bottom surface 7 groove wall surface 7A lower vertical wall surface 7B lower inclined wall portion 9 protrusion 10 main protrusion 11 sub-projection D intersection of main groove Part G Gap GH Groove depth of main groove GW Groove width of main groove H1 Height of main protrusion H2 Height of sub-projection J Approximately middle position L1 Length of main protrusion L2 Length of sub-projection M Main Groove main part TW Tread width W2 Secondary protrusion width

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-10-35224 (JP, A) JP-A-3-132403 (JP, A) JP-A-3-67706 (JP, A) 278414 (JP, A) JP-A-6-183212 (JP, A) JP-A-10-76813 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60C 11/11, 11 /13

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A main groove is provided on a tread surface to provide a plurality of inner blocks surrounded by the main groove and a plurality of outer blocks surrounded by the main groove and a tread edge. A pneumatic tire having a block pattern, wherein the main groove has a main portion extending along each of the blocks in the inner portion, and an intersection where the main portions intersect with each other. There is provided a protrusion for preventing stone biting that rises up from the groove bottom surface with a gap with the groove wall surface of the block and surrounds each of the blocks in an annular shape, and furthermore, each of the protrusions is continuous with each other, and the protrusion is The main projection includes a sub-projection that connects between the main projections and has a width smaller than that of the main projection. The main projection has a height H1 from the bottom surface of the groove that is a depth of the main groove. 10% or more and 25% or less of GH in the main groove The length L1 is 3 mm or more and 10 mm or less, and the sub-projection has a height H2 from the groove bottom surface of 5% or more and less than 10% of the groove depth GH of the main groove, and a length along the main groove. L
2 is 2mm or more and 8mm or less, width W perpendicular to the main groove direction
2 is not less than 0.5 mm and not more than 2 mm, and the main projection is a first main projection, and a second main projection separate from and lower than the first main projection. The pneumatic tire, wherein the first main protrusion is disposed at a substantially middle position of the main groove in the main groove. 2. The groove wall surface of the main groove has a groove wall from a groove bottom surface to a height KH of 15 to 30% of a groove depth GH of the main groove in a cross section perpendicular to the main groove direction. A lower vertical wall portion facing in a radial direction, and an upper inclined wall portion opened in a C-shape toward the tread surface between the upper end of the lower vertical wall portion and the tread surface. 2. The pneumatic tire according to 1. 3. The tire according to claim 1, wherein the tire is a heavy-duty tire, and the groove depth GH of the main groove is 0.08 to 0.8 of a tread width TW.
The pneumatic tire according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the groove width GW at an opening end thereof is 18 times and the tread width TW is 0.06 to 0.15 times.