Abstract: A method for indoor wear testing tires includes the steps of characterizing a vehicle and a wear test course and combining the characterized data to create input data for an indoor wear test machine. The input data allows the indoor wear test machine to accurately simulate an outdoor wear test course for the characterized vehicle. The method allows multiple wear test courses to be used with a single characterized vehicle and allows a single wear test course to be used with multiple characterized vehicles. The method allows tires to be wear tested in relatively short time periods in the controlled environment of the indoor laboratory. In addition, the method is relatively easy to set up and perform.

Abstract: A monitoring assembly for a pneumatic tire includes an electronic monitoring device having at least one sensor disposed in a protective body. The monitoring assembly is configured to float on a variety of liquids that are typically disposed within a tire. The protective body is liquid-tight and includes an encapsulation layer that encapsulates the substrate and sensors, a cushion, and a skin on the outside of the cushion. The protective body is substantially spherical allowing the assembly to roll about the inside of a tire without being permanently connected to the tire. The monitoring assembly is simply placed in a tire before the tire is mounted on a vehicle rim and allowed to move about loosely in the tire chamber when the tire is in use.

Abstract: A method of designing a tread unit that may be repeated in succession about the circumference of a tire to produce an acoustically acceptable tread pattern. The impact of an initial design of a tread unit on a road surface is simulated so that a determination of the number of pulses contained in the impact may be made. An analysis is then performed, based on the number of pulses, as to whether the tread unit design satisfies a predetermined acoustic criteria. If the tread unit design satisfies the acoustic criteria, it may be incorporated into the tire tread pattern. Otherwise, the method may be repeated with a modified tread unit design until the predetermined acoustic criteria is satisfied.

Abstract: An indoor tire testing apparatus has a rotatable road wheel with an abrasive surface and a tire support mechanism for rotatably supporting and moving a tread of a tire into contact with the abrasive surface. A vacuum chamber having a pair of nozzles is located adjacent the area of contact between the abrasive surface and tire tread. A movably mounted shroud is formed by a plurality of metal panels and forms a chamber for receiving a tire therein during testing. Temperature and moisture is controlled within the shroud interior and vacuum chamber through a duct connected to the shroud. A plurality of brushes partially close open sides in the vacuum chamber and shroud to prevent the escape of powder and particles from within the chambers. The vacuum nozzles remove the powder and particles to a remote location to prevent their dispersion into the surrounding atmosphere.

Abstract: A first stage tire building drum for building a run flat tire has a cylindrical central portion for receiving the strip components thereon for fabricating a first stage body ply carcass and has a pair of bead receiving areas adjacent the central portion for receiving bead rings thereon. The central portion and bead areas preferably are formed by a plurality of moveable arcuate segments. A spacer or sleeve is formed by a plurality of arcuate segments and is mounted on the center of the cylindrical drum portion and forms a pair of adjacent recesses. The spacer has a smooth outer cylindrical surface. The spacer has a height equal to the thickness of run flat tire sidewall inserts and a width equal to the distance between the inside edges of the opposed sidewall inserts.

Abstract: A method for preparing an innerliner of a pneumatic tire and adhering an electronic monitoring device to the innerliner includes the step of providing a patch having a cover and a layer of uncured rubber. The patch is placed at a selected area of the innerliner of a green tire before the green tire is cured. At least a portion of the patch is removed after the tire is cured to provide a prepared area at the selected area of the tire. The electronic monitoring device is then adhered to the prepared area.

Abstract: An air spring has a pair of axially spaced end members and an intervening elastomeric flexible sleeve extending therebetween which forms a fluid pressure chamber. A plurality of axially spaced ribs and intervening grooves are formed on an inner surface of a ring which align with corresponding ribs and grooves formed on an axial sealing surface of one of the end members to form a fluid tight seal with the elastomeric sleeve clamped therebetween. An annular radially extending projection is formed on each of the ring and end member which cooperatively mate with each other to provide a mechanical interlock therebetween which is free of intervening elastomeric material, to securely retain the ring in position with respect to the end member sealing surface.

Abstract: A pneumatic tire and monitoring device for monitoring an engineering condition of a pneumatic tire includes a pneumatic tire having a sidewall and a plurality of reinforcing cords carried in the sidewall. The monitoring device includes a sensing element that senses at least an engineering condition of a pneumatic tire and transmits the gathered data from the monitoring device to a data gathering device outside of the tire. The transmission occurs through a dipole antenna that is in communication with the sensing element. The dipole antenna is disposed substantially perpendicular to the reinforcing cords in order to maximize the probability of signal propagation through the tire sidewall.

Abstract: A run flat pneumatic tire has a thin annular band embedded in the crown portion of the tire. The band is formed of a composite material such as tows of fiberglass and/or graphite material impregnated with a resin. The resin coated tows are wound about a mandrel having at least one concave recess to provide the band with an anticlastic shape with an arcuate cross section and a concave surface facing radially outwardly.

Abstract: A pneumatic tire includes a body, a belt package, and a tread package. The tire includes a layer of rubber disposed between the body and the tread package. The layer of rubber creates a thickness of between about 0.5 millimeters and about 1.5 millimeters between the cords in the body and the cords in the belt package. The layer of rubber is fabricated from a rubber having a stiffness greater than the rubber in the body of the tire. This configuration provides a tire having improved cornering coefficient, reduced vibrational levels, and less coarse road noise with only a small increase in rolling loss.

Abstract: A vibration damping device is mounted between two spaced portions of a vehicle for absorbing road forces exerted on the vehicle. A cylindrical housing forms an internal piston chamber and is connected at one end to one portion of the vehicle, with an outer end of the rod of a piston which is slidably mounted within the piston chamber, being connected to another portion of the vehicle. A fluid transfer duct is formed between the housing and piston and provides communication between fluid subchambers formed on opposite sides of the piston within the piston chamber. An electrode is attached to either the housing or piston for applying a voltage across the duct to affect the rheological response of an electrorheological (ER) fluid flowing therethrough to provide a controllable mechanism to modify the damping force characteristics of the device. Each end of the piston rod is slidably supported by a slide bushing assembly which is mounted within an end of the housing.

Abstract: A run flat pneumatic tire includes a thin annular band embedded in the crown portion of the tire wherein the band is formed with three distinct regions. Radially spaced inner and outer regions are formed of high modulus materials and a central region is formed of a material more elastic than the other two regions providing a band having high interlaminar shear strength. Reinforcing fibers are placed in various orientations in certain of the regions to enable various materials to achieve the required band stiffness for load carrying capability and the interlaminar shear strength at the central axis of the band.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for bonding an active tag to a patch and assembling the patch to a tire is set forth. A patch assembly and a method for securing an electronic monitoring device having electronic and mechanical components for monitoring at least one engineering condition within a tire, comprising an rigid tag assembly encapsulating the electronic monitoring device, bonded to a vulcanized rubber patch which is secured to the inner cavity of a tire utilizing a layer of dual cure bonding rubber.

Abstract: A run flat pneumatic tire has a thin annular band embedded in the crown portion of the tire. The band is formed of a multilayer composite formed of wound layers of a material such as fiberglass and/or graphite impregnated with a resin. The band has a radial cross-sectional thickness with a neutral axis extending through the center in an axial direction. The radial thickness of the band decreases from an axial midpoint toward outer ends of the band to provide greater thickness in the center of the band to reduce interlaminar shear fatigue.