RU2785932C2 - Tire with wear indicator and wear testing system - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: vehicles.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to a tire for a vehicle. The tire contains a wear indicator, the appearance of which changes depending on the wear condition of the wearing part (1). The wear indicator comprises a multi-dimensional template (3; 9) which is placed on the wear part in such a way that different levels (3A, 3B, 3C) of the template are released depending on the wear condition.

EFFECT: improved reliability and improved tire wear monitoring.

12 cl, 10 dwg

Description

The invention relates to a wearing part, namely to a tire for a vehicle, with a wear indicator, the appearance of which changes depending on the state of wear of the wearing part. The invention further relates to a system for wear testing.

The invention relates to a tire as an example of a wearing part, which is equipped with a wear indicator according to the invention. It is known from practice that the wear condition of a tire must be checked regularly in order to monitor the functionality of the tire and comply with legal regulations. In trucks, after reaching the wear limit, tires can be re-treaded twice and retreaded once by applying a new tread. Wear signs and predictions are used to assess when a tire or profile needs to be replaced or retreaded.

Methods are known from the prior art, for example, which estimate the wear condition of a tire from the driver's driving behaviour. From EP 1798071 A3, US 6289958 B1 and US 7050017 B2 methods are known in which sensors are embedded in tires that measure the current state of the tire.

In addition, wear indicators are also known which provide feedback either acoustically (see DE 1803483 A1, US 2012/0010776 A1 and US 2012/0266649 A1) and are then evaluated by the driver himself or by the electronic system. Optical wear indicators are known from the prior art, which visualize only the final state of wear by color or final wear reference forms (see US 6220199 B1, DE 24 57334 C3) or visualize the process of increasing wear by continuously changing their shape (DE 36 27833 A1, US 8162014 B2, EP 1705034 B9, WO 2001/0012735 A1, US 2102784 A1).

Known campaigns have a number of disadvantages. The above evaluation methods, which calculate wear from driving performance, may not take into account all external conditions and are therefore inaccurate. The automatic storage and evaluation of the wear condition can only be realized with integrated tire sensors or optical systems. Sensors which are integrated in tires have, however, the disadvantage that they are expensive and must be robust in order to be able to be retreaded or regrooved.

The above systems, which can reliably detect and evaluate an optical feature, need to be made with high quality and thus are very expensive. In addition, a depression or elevation in a tire can only be detected with difficulty by simple optical systems. Wear marks in the form of pockets can also be filled with dirt, sludge or other contaminants and further make it difficult to measure and recognize the mark. Due to the dark coloration of the tyre, even without pollution, the contrast between the tread and wear is too small to be reliably recognized. Therefore, the methods known from the prior art are subject to measurement errors.

Thus, it is an object of the invention to provide a tire incorporating an improved wear indicator by which the disadvantages of conventional wear testing methods can be overcome. It is an object of the invention in particular to provide a wear indicator with which wear conditions can be reliably recognized and evaluated. It is also an object of the invention to provide a wear testing system that enables the wear condition of a tire to be reliably recorded and monitored.

These tasks are solved by means of a tire with a wear indicator according to the characteristics of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments and uses of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims and are explained in more detail in the following description, in part with reference to the drawings.

According to the invention, a wearing part, namely a tire for a vehicle, according to the prior art, has a wear indicator whose appearance changes depending on the wear condition of the wearing part.

According to the general aspects of the invention, the wear indicator comprises a multi-dimensional template which is placed on the wear part in such a way that different levels of the template are released depending on the wear condition.

The multidimensional pattern in the sense of the present invention includes a plurality of different levels (wear) arranged one above the other in the wear direction, which each contain a pattern associated with the corresponding wear condition. With increasing wear of the wearing part, the different levels of the multidimensional pattern are removed one after the other due to wear, so that different patterns are visible in the two-dimensional plane depending on the wear condition. The number of templates located one above the other in the wear direction is not limited to a certain number. The greater the number of templates arranged in this manner one above the other, the greater the number of different wear states that can be determined.

Preferably, the multidimensional template changes discretely in the wear direction in such a way that in each wear state it can be uniquely determined which of the superimposed templates is released. When the template is changed discretely, at least part of the template changes discretely, that is, not continuously, with a decrease in the wear height. Based on the discrete change, the wear state associated with a certain released pattern can be reliably determined.

According to a preferred embodiment, the respective released template level is optoelectronic readable. The template may be, for example, a 2D code, preferably a QR® code, or a 1D code, preferably a barcode, as described in more detail below. This makes it possible to quickly read the wear state with a suitable optical reader.

Accordingly, the released pattern layer may encode data that is indicative of the respective wear condition. In the various levels of the three-dimensional template, corresponding data relating to the associated wear state can thus be encoded, for example in binary form by means of a QR code or as symbols encoded by means of a bar code. This enables digital evaluation and thus less error proneness than with analogue evaluation methods. An additional advantage is that the data can accurately describe the state of wear, for example in the form of a percentage.

For example, the various levels of the 3D template may include 1D or 2D computer readable code.

According to a preferred embodiment, the different levels of the multidimensional template represent a corresponding 2D code, preferably a QR® code. According to this embodiment, the three-dimensional pattern is thus designed as a 2D code, for example a QR® code, which changes its shape or appearance in the wear direction, so that the information content of the 2D code changes as the wear height decreases. The wear indicator in the embodiment with a QR® code can thus consist of a plurality of two-dimensional QR® codes arranged one above the other. The QR® code according to this embodiment can thus be referred to as a three-dimensional QR code.

A wear indicator with a 3D QR® code is placed on the wearing part in such a way that, based on wear, the individual levels of the QR® code are removed one after the other and, depending on the wear condition, the corresponding 2D QR® code is always visible, which binary encodes information or data regarding the current state of wear. A QR® code can be a micro-QR® code or an iQR® code.

Alternatively, instead of a 2D code or a QR® code, a conventional 1D code, such as a barcode, is used, so that the different levels of the template represent the corresponding barcode.

A particular advantage of using the 2D multi-dimensional code or 1D code according to the invention is that the corresponding 2D 2D code or 1D code released in a certain wear condition can be read optoelectronically. For this, in particular, a conventional end user mobile device, such as a smartphone or a tablet computer, can be used, which are equipped with appropriate application software for reading a 2D code or a 1D code or a QR code or a barcode, respectively.

In a preferred embodiment of the above embodiments, the shape of the 2D code and/or 1D code in the wear direction can be changed in such a way that the number and/or shape and/or position and/or color of the information carriers is reduced. In the case of a 2D code, the information carriers are black areas, and in the case of a barcode, black bars, respectively, in relation to white areas or white bars. This enables a particularly simple production of a 3D 2D code or a 1D code.

In addition, the template can be designed in such a way that further, in particular wear-independent properties of the wearing part are additionally encoded. Such wear-independent properties can be, for example, data regarding the manufacturer, the date of manufacture and the type of wearing part. Particularly in the case of tires, the wear state-independent properties may also include whether and how often the tire has been retreaded or retreaded.

A particular advantage of the indicator according to the invention thus lies in the fact that both wear-dependent and wear-independent data can be encoded by means of a multi-dimensional template, for example a three-dimensional or multi-layer QR® code, which enables improved analysis of the wear condition. .

In a preferred embodiment of this embodiment, the wear indicator is designed in such a way that the wear-independent properties of the wearing part are encoded in a region that does not change in the wear direction. According to this embodiment, therefore, the arrangement of the respective information carriers, for example a QR code or a bar code, which encode wear-independent properties of the wearing part, can therefore be the same at each level.

It has already been mentioned above that in the invention the wearing part may be a tire in which the wear indicator is integrated into the tire tread.

If the multi-dimensional pattern in the tire is configured as a 2D layered code, then the black portions of the 2D code may be formed by the tire material, and the space between the black portions of the 2D code may be formed as a pocket or elevation.

In a comparable manner, in an embodiment with a multi-layered 1D code, such as a barcode, the black bars of the 1D code may be formed by the tire material, and the intervening space between the black bars of the 1D code may be provided as a pocket and/or elevation.

In other words, the storage media are thus represented by the tire material. It should be emphasized that, however, the reverse variant of the above-mentioned embodiment is also possible, in which the intermediate space of the data carriers is formed by the tire material.

In addition, within the scope of the invention, it is possible that the wear indicator is manufactured as a separately manufactured part and then integrated into an existing wear part pocket.

In order to increase the readability of the 2D code or the entire pattern, it is preferable to provide the intermediate space of the data carriers with a contrast agent, for example by filling with a contrast mass, the wear property of the contrast agent or the contrast mass corresponding to the wear property of the tire material. The wear property of the contrasting mass may correspond to the wear property of the tire tread material. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the intervening space between the data carriers can, for example, be filled with white rubber.

According to another preferred variant, the contrast mass can be made fluorescent in order to enable reading also under poor lighting conditions. This is particularly advantageous in the case of tires that are not steerable and located in narrow wheel arches.

In addition to the above exemplary use of the tire wear indicator according to the invention, another preferred application of the invention includes the use of a wear indicator on a brake disc. According to this variant, the wear part is thus the brake disc, and the wear indicator is inserted into the working surface of the brake disc, also called the friction surface of the brake disc.

For example, the multi-dimensional pattern may be formed by a plurality of adjacent pockets and elevations that are inserted into the friction surface of the brake disc. The multi-dimensional template here again means that the template runs on a surface perpendicular to the wear direction and also in the wear direction. In addition, depending on the wear of the friction surface, the number, shape and/or position of pockets and elevations visible in plan view on the friction surface change discretely.

Thus, the contour of the wear indicator changes depending on the wear condition, and the wear condition may be determined based on the number, shape and/or position of pockets and/or elevations visible in plan view on the brake disc. According to another variant, the template can again be implemented as a multilayer QR® code or a multilayer barcode which is embedded in the brake disc. The term "multi-layered" means here and in connection with the subsequent presentation that the template, for example, the code has a plurality of levels located one above the other in the direction of wear, on which the template is designed in different ways. The concept of "layer" in this connection should not necessarily be understood as a materially closed unit of material.

Another aspect of the invention relates to a wear test system. The system contains a wear part with a wear indicator according to one of the previous aspects. The system also contains a multi-functional terminal user mobile device, which, using the application software, is configured to register in an optical-electronic way, respectively, the observed planar pattern of the wear indicator, for example, the observed 1D code or 2D pattern code, and, based on the registered three-dimensional pattern, set the state wear of the wearing part.

The multifunctional end user mobile device may, for example, be a portable mobile computer, such as a smartphone or tablet computer. In this case, the application software may be a so-called mobile application (App) for a smartphone or tablet computer. With the terminal user's mobile device, the wear indicator can be read at each departure control or at the driver's request using the device's camera.

In this case, the mobile device can be programmed in such a way that, in addition to the read-out wear-dependent and wear-independent information as described above, data regarding the current location and date are also automatically reported to the central point, for example, to the freight forwarder. In such a system, moreover, it can be guaranteed that the driver will regularly carry out control of the departure. In addition, it is possible to determine the remaining tire stability time by means of time-recurring evaluations in order to plan for a future tire replacement.

Thus, a particular advantage of the invention lies in the fact that the wear indicators displayed are machine-readable and can be read by a conventional smart phone, which is suitably equipped with an application software. The read wear data can also be sent by means of the telematics software to a central computer for storage, whereby the increase in wear can be documented and predicted.

Another aspect of the invention relates to a vehicle, in particular a truck with a wear part according to one of the preceding aspects.

Other details and advantages of the invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show the following:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a tire bearing a QR® code as a wear indicator according to the first exemplary embodiment;

Fig. 2A and Fig. 2B show the shape of the QR code of Fig. 1 in a first wear condition;

Fig. 3A and Fig. 3B show the shape of the QR® code of Fig. 1 in a second wear condition;

Fig. 4A and Fig. 4B show the shape of the QR® code of Fig. 1 in the third wear condition;

Fig.5A - tire with a pocket for the wear indicator;

5B is a schematic representation of the layered structure of a QR® code;

6 is a sectional view of a brake disc with a QR® code entered as a wear indicator according to an illustrative example

7 shows the shape of the QR® code in the first wear state;

8 shows the shape of the QR® code in the second wear state;

9 shows the form of the QR® code in the third state of wear and

10A and 10B are schematic representations of the structure and placement of a QR® code in the friction surface of a brake disc.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a vehicle tire 1 in which a wear indicator in the form of a multilayer QR® code 3 is inserted into the tread 2. The QR® code is designed as an iQR code, which is particularly suitable for cylindrical surfaces.

Fig. 2A shows a three-dimensional enlarged view of fragment A according to Fig. 1, and Fig. 2B shows an enlarged plan view of fragment A according to Fig. 1. FIGS. 2A and 2B show, in particular, the uppermost layer 3A of the QR® code in the tire initial state.

The data carriers of the QR® code, ie the black dots and strokes 12 of the QR® code, are formed by the tire material. For reasons of simplified presentation and better visibility, only some of the dots or strokes of the QR® code are marked with reference numerals 12.

The intermediate space between the storage media 12 is designed as a pocket. The current form of the QR® code describes the wear status of the tire and additional information relating to the tire in digital form and can be read optoelectronically, for example with a smartphone via its camera.

The QR® code is multi-layered in such a way that as wear increases, individual information carriers (dots or strokes) disappear. With increased wear, therefore, the outline of the QR® code and thus the information content also change.

This is shown as an example in FIGS. 3A and 3B, which show fragment A of FIG. 1 in a state that corresponds to more wear compared to the wear condition shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Thus, FIGS. 3A and 3B show the QR code layer 3B which is released due to wear-related removal of layer 3A.

Compared with figa and 2B, the number of dots and strokes of the QR code 3A in figa and 3B is reduced. From the outline of the QR® code in FIGS. 3A and 3B, an increased state of wear can thus be inferred.

4A and 4B illustrate the next state with even more wear, with the 3C layer of the QR code being released. In the QR code 3C, the number of information carriers 12 is further reduced.

In this case, the three-dimensional QR® code is designed in such a way that the depth in the wear direction of the individual data carriers (lines and dots) is designed differently. While some media pass through all levels of the QR® code and are thus visible in any wear condition, other media have a shallower depth and thus disappear as the wearing height of the wearing part decreases.

In another embodiment (not shown), a portion of the storage media is used to encode data that is independent of the state of wear, such as the manufacturer or date of manufacture of the wear part. These storage media remain continuously stored and visible in all released levels of the QR® code.

It has already been mentioned above that for better recognition of black dots and streaks, the interspace can be filled with a contrasting mass, which, in terms of its wear properties, matches the tire material and thus wears out just as quickly and does not cause any technical deterioration of the tire. For example, rubber can be used for this. In principle, this contrast mass can be made fluorescent in order to enable reading also under poor visibility conditions. This is necessary just for tires that are not steerable and are placed in narrow wheel arches.

Figa and 5B schematically illustrate the installation of the wear indicator and its multilayer structure. As shown in FIG. 5A, the wear indicator can be inserted into a pocket 4 which is provided in the tire tread. This has the particular advantage that the wear indicator can be retrofitted and/or manufactured separately.

The wear indicator can thus be produced separately, for example by injection molding, and then filled with a filling mass. The filling mass also has the advantage that dirt cannot accumulate in pockets between data carriers.

FIG. 5B illustrates the layered structure of the wear indicator 3, in this example, for ease of presentation, only three levels 3A, 3B and 3C of the QR® code, which represent wear-dependent types of the wear indicator or QR® code, are shown.

5B shows that the number of storage media 12 in the upper layer is greater than in the lower layers.

The wear feature can in particular be made from a single part or from a plurality of parts. A multi-part feature may be applied in layers or first joined and then applied as a single piece. In the case of a multi-layer wear part, levels with QR codes or bar codes are applied one after the other, which are already in black and in a contrasting color. Finally, the wear part can be inserted into the provided pocket 4 in the tire cover 2 .

It should be emphasized that the representation with three levels and three different versions of the QR® code is only for example, and a three-dimensional QR® code or a three-dimensional template in general can also have a different number of different two-dimensional QR codes or templates.

6-10B illustrate another application of the invention in which a wear indicator according to the invention is used in a brake disc.

6 shows a cross-sectional view of a ventilated brake disc 5 with two annular brake discs 7, 8. A wear indicator 9 is inserted into at least one of the friction surfaces 6 .

FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of section A in FIG. 6. FIG. A three-dimensional structure is introduced into the friction surface 6, for example by drilling or milling, the recesses introduced being the information carriers 12, 12a of the three-dimensional QR® code 9. In plan view, the corresponding two-dimensional level of the QR® code is visible on the friction surface 6.

For reasons of simplified presentation and better visibility, again only some of the recesses or data carriers of the QR® code are designated by reference numerals.

FIG. 7 shows that the individual data carriers 12, 12a extend to different depths in the wear direction, i.e. perpendicular to the friction surface 6, so that the outline of the QR code 9 changes depending on the wear condition of the brake disc.

FIG. 8 shows a state of greater wear compared to FIG. 7. FIG. Therefore, in the wear state of FIG. 8, another QR code layer 9B is released, since the layer 9A above it has been removed due to wear.

The layer 9B of the QR code in FIG. 8 shows fewer storage media 12 than layer 9A in FIG. Due to the changed contour of the released level, the information content of the QR® code is changed. Level loop 9B is associated with a higher wear condition than level loop 9A in FIG. If the smart phone recognizes the level contour 9B by photographing the location A of the friction surface 6, the smart phone can determine the corresponding wear condition and display it to the user.

In the simplified example of FIG. 3, three depths t1, t2 and t3 of the information carriers 12, 12a are shown. Thus, as wear increases, first the data carriers 12 with depth t1 disappear, which are no longer visible in FIG. 8, and then the data carriers 12 with depth t2, which are no longer visible in FIG. 9. Thus, in FIG. 9 only the data carriers 12a with depth t3 are visible.

The released wear state level 9C in FIG. 9 contains only the QR® code elements 12A that have the greatest depth. If, therefore, the brake disc is so worn due to wear that only the QR code 9C is visible, then it can be concluded that the brake disc has very severe wear and must be rebuilt.

10A and 10B schematically illustrate the layered structure of the wear indicator 9 and the insertion of the wear indicator 9 into the pocket 11 which is provided in the friction surface 6 of the brake disc. The levels 9A, 9B and 9C of the QR® code represent wear dependent types of wear indicator or QR code.

In one embodiment of the invention, certain recesses 11, such as pockets or channels, can be provided in the brake discs, in which a wear indicator in the form of a multilayer QR® code 9 is then fixed. This can be done by pressing, welding or screwing.

The wear indicator itself can be made in-house. Due to the layered construction of the wear indicator, possible complex three-dimensional shapes for the presentation of the QR code can be more simply realized. Alternatively, shaping actions can also be used to enter a feature.

In addition, it should be noted that in addition to the QR code, a bar code can also be used. In addition to wear-dependent information, such codes can also be used to encode information about the brake disc itself that does not change during wear, such as date of manufacture, axle, vehicle side, unique manufacturer identification (ID), etc. d.

Another advantage of using a QR® code is the ability to encode the data in a redundant form, so that measurement inaccuracies due to dirt or the like can also be avoided due to the plurality of points.

Although the invention has been described with reference to certain exemplary embodiments, many variations and deviations are possible, which also use the idea of the invention and therefore fall within the scope of protection. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, but should cover all embodiments that fall within the scope of the appended claims.

List of reference positions

1 tire

2 protectors

3 wear indicator, QR code

3A, 3B, 3C wear-dependent levels of wear indicator or QR code

4 pocket for bookmarking details

5 brake disc

6 friction surface

7, 8 disc brake rings

9 wear indicator, QR code

9A, 9B, 9C wear dependent levels of wear indicator or QR code

10 intermediate space for internal ventilation

11 pocket for bookmarking details

12, 12A storage media

t1, t2, t3 media depth

Claims (21)

1. Tire (1), preferably for a vehicle, containing a wear indicator, which is inserted into the tread (2) of the tire (1) and whose appearance changes depending on the wear condition of the tire, moreover, the wear indicator contains a multi-dimensional pattern (3; 9), with a plurality of different levels located one above the other in the wear direction, which respectively contain a pattern associated with the corresponding wear condition, and the multi-dimensional pattern is placed on the tire in such a way that, depending on the wear condition different levels (3A, 3B, 3C) of the pattern are released, wherein the different levels (3A, 3B, 3C) of the multidimensional pattern (3; 9) represent respectively a 2D code or a 1D code, respectively, characterized in that the black sections of the 2D code are formed by the tire material, and the intermediate space between the black sections of the 2D code is made as a pocket and/or elevation, and/or the black strokes of the 1D code are formed by the tire material, and the intermediate space between the black strokes of the 1D the code is made as a pocket and/or elevation, and the intermediate space is provided with a contrast agent by filling with a contrasting mass, and the wear property of the contrast agent corresponds to the wear property of the tire material. 2. Tire according to claim 1, characterized in that a) the corresponding released template level is optoelectronic readable; and/or b) The correspondingly released template layer encodes data that is indicative of the corresponding wear condition. 3. Tire according to claim. 1 or 2, characterized in that the template (3; 9) changes discretely in the direction of wear. 4. Tire according to any one of paragraphs. 1-3, characterized in that the different levels of the multidimensional template include one-dimensional or two-dimensional machine-readable code. 5. Tire according to any one of paragraphs. 1-4, characterized in that different levels (3A, 3B, 3C) of the multidimensional template (3; 9) represent respectively a QR code or a bar code. 6. The tire according to claim 5, characterized in that the shape of the 2D code and/or the 1D code in the direction of wear changes in such a way that the number and/or shape and/or position and/or color of the information carriers (12) varies. 7. Tire according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the template further encodes other wear-independent properties of the tire. 8. The tire according to claim 7, characterized in that the pattern portion, which encodes the wear-independent properties of the tire, does not change in the wear direction. 9. Tire according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the wear indicator, as a separately manufactured part, is additionally inserted into the existing pocket. 10. Tire according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a) that the contrasting mass is white rubber; and/or b) that the contrast material is fluorescent. 11. System for testing a tire for wear, containing tire (1) according to any one of the preceding paragraphs and a multifunctionally used terminal user mobile device, wherein the mobile device with the help of application software is configured to register a visible 1D code or a 2D code (3A, 3B, 3C) of the wear indicator (3; 9) in an optical-electronic way and based on the registered 1D -code or 2D code (3A, 3B, 3C) to set the wear condition and/or other properties of the tire (1). 12. Vehicle, in particular a truck, with a tire (1) according to any of the preceding paragraphs. 1-10.

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