Patents Examined by Adrienne C. Johnstone
  • Pneumatic tire with cord layer extending close to tire outer surface
    Patent number: 9821605
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire includes: an air permeation preventive layer disposed in the inner surface of the tire; a belt layer buried in a tread part; and a cord layer formed by arranging a plurality of cords. The cord layer is disposed between the air permeation preventive layer and the belt layer, and extends to a bead part side further from a tire maximum width position. At least a part of the cord layer is located close to the outer surface of the tire, at a position closer to the bead part side than the tire maximum width position, so that the distance between the cords and the outer surface of the tire is not more than 2 mm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2017
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Jun Matsuda, Yoshiaki Hashimura
  • Pneumatic tire
    Patent number: 9821607
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire comprises a carcass layer, a belt layer disposed on an outer side of the carcass layer in a tire radial direction, and a tread rubber disposed on the outer side of the belt layer in the tire radial direction. The belt layer formed by laminating an angle belt having a belt angle?45° and ?70° in absolute values, a pair of cross belts, having belt angles of ?10° and ?45° in absolute values and having belt angles of mutually opposite signs, and a circumferential reinforcing layer having a belt angle within a range of ±5° with respect to a tire circumferential direction. A tread width TW and a total tire width SW such that 0.79?TW/SW?0.89. A width Ws of the circumferential reinforcing layer and a cross-sectional width Wca of the carcass layer such that 0.60?Ws/Wca?0.70.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2017
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
    Inventor: Hideki Hamanaka
  • Heavy load tire
    Patent number: 9789732
    Abstract: A first belt layer includes a cord extending at an inclination angle of greater than 45° with respect to the tire circumferential direction, a second belt layer includes a cord extending in the tire circumferential direction, and a third belt layer includes a cord extending at an inclination angle of 30° or less in the opposite direction from the cord of the first belt layer with respect to the tire circumferential direction. The belt layers are arranged in order, with the first belt layer furthest inward in the tire radial direction, on the outer circumferential side of a crown region of a carcass extending toroidally between a pair of bead portions. The third belt layer width w3 is 80% or more of the tread width w, and w2<w1<w3, where w1 is the first belt layer width, and w2 is the second belt layer width.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventor: Yosuke Mori
  • Pneumatic tire with specified bead core and method for manufacturing the same
    Patent number: 9776460
    Abstract: Provided is a pneumatic tire having laminated reinforcement layers with organic fiber over a polygonal cross-section bead core, and in the layer, a rubber-coated organic fiber cord is tilted to the center line of the bead core in a transverse section and is spirally coiled, in which each organic fiber cord in an inner and outer adjacent reinforcement layers over the bead core extends such that an organic fiber cord in the inner reinforcement layer and an organic fiber cord in the outer reinforcement layer intersect each other relative to the center line of the bead core in the transverse section, in which in the inner reinforcement layer, the cord is coiled with space at least partially in a tire circumferential direction such that the cord does not overlap in the tire circumferential direction, and the outer reinforcement layer is arranged to cover at least a part of the space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventor: Keiichi Mita
  • Aeroplane tire with crown and carcass both having a concave portion
    Patent number: 9731557
    Abstract: The tire comprises a tread, a crown reinforcement and at least one crown layer. The crown layer has an axial width (L2) that is at least two-thirds of a maximum axial width (L1) of the tire and has a concave portion with axial limits (M2, M?2) on either side of an equatorial plane (XZ). The tire further includes a carcass reinforcement which has at least one carcass layer with a concave portion that has axial limits (M3, M?3) on either side of the equatorial plane (XZ). The radial distance (d) between the respective concave portions is at a maximum in the equatorial plane (XZ) and decreases continuously from the equatorial plane (XZ) as far as the axial limits (M2, M?2) of the said concave portions axially closest to the equatorial plane (XZ), where it reaches a minimum value (dM).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, MICHELIN RECHERCHE ET TECHNIQUE, S.A.
    Inventors: Vincent Estenne, Charlotte Caffeau
  • Pneumatic tire with specified tread thickness distribution
    Patent number: 9669660
    Abstract: When a pneumatic tire is in a reference state of being fitted with a rim that is one inch larger than a regular rim in width, of holding 15 kPa internal pressure, and of being under no load, then a tread thickness distribution curve represented by f(y)=1?t(y)/t(0) is 0.01 to 0.03 when y=0.3; 0.03 to 0.06 when y=0.4; and 0.06 to 0.10 when y=0.5, where y denotes a ratio of a distance in an axial direction from an equator surface relative to a distance L in the axial direction between the equator surface and a maximum width position of a carcass, and t(y) denotes a tread thickness corresponding to a distance in a radial direction between an outer surface of the carcass and an outer surface of a tread at an axial direction position corresponding to y.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2017
    Assignee: SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kazuo Asano, Yasuhiro Kubota
  • Tire manufacturing method using jig to fix covered bead inside tire mold
    Patent number: 9649819
    Abstract: A covered cord is formed by covering a cord with a resin material, and a covered bead is formed by welding or adhering together the resin material of the covered cord whilst shaping into a bead shape, such that resin material fills between the cord. The covered bead is placed in contact with a jig disposed inside a cavity of a tire mold for molding a tire frame member, the covered bead is fixed inside the mold, and the tire frame member is molded containing the covered bead in a tire bead portion by pouring molten resin material into the cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihide Kouno, Seiji Kon
  • Tire with bead having specified bead filler and rigidifying reinforcement
    Patent number: 9649891
    Abstract: Tire having two beads having an annular reinforcing structure and a carcass reinforcement anchored in the two beads by a turn-up. Each bead has a bead rubber filler extending a radial distance from the radially innermost point of the annular reinforcing structure of the bead. The radial distance is not more than 10% of the tire's radial height. A sidewall has rigidifying metal reinforcing elements oriented along an angle not more than 10° to the circumferential direction and positioned with the distance between the radially innermost point of the annular reinforcing structure and the radially outer end of the rigidifying reinforcement between 20% and 40%, inclusive, of the tire's radial height and with the distance between the radially innermost point of the annular reinforcing structure and the radially inner end of the rigidifying reinforcement not more than 20% of the tire's radial height.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventor: Frédéric Bourgeois
  • Pneumatic tire
    Patent number: 9630452
    Abstract: Provided is a pneumatic tire including: a belt reinforcing layer (12) having an outside end portion in the tire width direction disposed outside in the tire width direction than a tire circumferential groove (16) disposed at the outermost side in the tire width direction, in which a buttress portion (19) being positioned on the outside of a tread (15) in the tire width direction and connecting a surface (15a) of the tread (15) to a sidewall (20) is formed to have, in section in the tire width direction, an outer surface in a concave shape with a depth shallow enough not to be set into the inside in the tire width direction from the outside end of the surface (15a) of the tread (15) in the tire width direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventor: Hideaki Minowa
  • Tire with welded thermoplastic constituent members
    Patent number: 9623706
    Abstract: It is ensured the strength of a welded section in a tire that is configured by welding tire constituent members formed of a thermoplastic material. A tire has a first welded portion, in which one section of one tire constituent member and one section of another tire constituent member are both melted and welded, and a second welded portion, which is formed by welding a welding-use thermoplastic material to the surface of the first welded portion, whereby the strength of the joint section is ensured.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihide Kouno, Seiji Kon, Keiichi Hasegawa
  • Device and method for inserting a wire into a tire
    Patent number: 9610745
    Abstract: The needle (12) of the device for inserting a wire into a tire has: a piercing zone (18) having an axis of symmetry, and a duct (30) having a proximal opening and a distal opening (36) opening into the zone (18) and off-center relative to the axis, the duct consisting of the proximal opening and of a rectilinear profiled section including the distal opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2017
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventor: Jean-Marie Dettorre
  • Antistatic vehicle tire and method of manufacturing such a tire
    Patent number: 9586447
    Abstract: The invention relates to a vehicle tire comprising a tread portion and a package of reinforcement layers arranged underneath the tread portion. The tread portion comprises a tread base layer arranged underneath the tread layer, and at least one rubber member that extends in the radial direction of the tire from the ground contacting surface to the reinforcement package. The tread layer rubber composition has an electrical resistivity at room temperature of more than 108 ohm-cm, the tread base layer rubber composition of between 106 ohm-cm and 108 ohm-cm, the member rubber composition of less than 106 ohm-cm; and the rubber composition of at least one layer of the reinforcement package has a electrical resistivity at room temperature of less than 106 ohm-cm. The vehicle tire combines a low rolling resistance with improved conductivity to avoid build-up of static electricity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignee: Apollo Tyres Global R&D B.V.
    Inventors: Evert-Jan Jitse Van Der Meulen, Peter Jaap Snel, Walter Johannes Maria Roerdink, Harmen Hepkema
  • Tire with dissymmetrical beads
    Patent number: 9579933
    Abstract: A tire intended to be mounted on a drop-center rim with a flange height G and a radius of curvature R1 has first and second beads each having an annular reinforcing structure having a radially innermost point, the radial distance between the radially innermost point and the mounting rim being A, and a carcass reinforcement anchored in the two beads by being turned back around the annular reinforcing structure forming, within each bead, a main strand and a turned-back strand, in which the thicknesses EB1 of the first bead and EB2 of the second bead are the distance separating (i) the point on the main strand that is at a distance R from the radially innermost point, where R=G+(R1)/2?A, and (ii) the point on the exterior surface of the bead that is at the distance R from the radially innermost point, and in which |EB1?EB2|?1 mm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, MICHELIN RECHERCHE ET TECHNIQUE S.A.
    Inventors: Pascal Pirotte, Christophe Egerszegi
  • Pneumatic vehicle tire with specified circumferential side wall groove
    Patent number: 9487053
    Abstract: A vehicle tire has a pattern visible in the side wall located in a groove thereof extending across the entire circumference of the tire and oriented in a circumferential direction (U). The groove is formed of first groove segments and second groove segments, which in the circumferential direction are arranged in alternating sequence one behind the other. Radially outwardly, the groove segments are each defined by a radially outward defining flank and radially inwardly, are defined by a radially inward defining flank defining the groove radially inward. The first groove segments are arranged radially outside the second groove segments and the transition between a first groove segment and the adjacent second groove segment is configured as a radial offset of the groove by the amount of displacement (a).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2016
    Assignee: Continental Reifen Deutschland GmbH
    Inventor: Stefan Rittweger
  • Tire and tire manufacturing method
    Patent number: 9440407
    Abstract: A tire includes a ring shaped tire case formed from a resin material, a reinforcement cord having a higher rigidity that that of the resin material, wound in a spiral shape on the outer peripheral section of the tire case and having at least a portion of the reinforcement cord embedded in and making close contact with the outer peripheral section of the tire case when viewed in a cross-section along the axial direction of the tire case and a tread provided on the radial direction outside of a reinforcement cord layer formed by the reinforcement cord.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihide Kouno, Seiji Kon
  • Geodesic belted tire
    Patent number: 9421825
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire having a pair of beads, a tread, a pair of sidewalls, and a carcass including a plurality of plies of tire cord fabric, said tire having one or more belt plies, wherein at least one of said belt plies has cords being defined by the equation ?[cos ?]n=K, when ? is the radius from the rotational axis of the tire to a point on the carcass, ? is the cord angle of said at least one ply at said point, n is a positive real number between 0.1 and 1, and K is a constant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
    Inventors: Samuel Patrick Landers, Thulasiram Gobinath
  • Pneumatic tire with specified outer surface
    Patent number: 9393719
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire has an outer surface with an arithmetical mean roughness Ra in the range of 0.1 ?m to 0.6 ?m when a reference length Lr is 20 ?m, wherein the outer surface has an irregularity diameter in the range of 40-230 ?m and an irregularity depth in the range of 3-22 ?m. A method of manufacturing a tire vulcanization mold includes propelling spherical abrasive grains onto the surface of the mold under the condition that a propelling pressure is in the range of 0.1-0.6 MPa, so as to process the surface of the mold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2016
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventor: Koji Ikemura
  • Tire with greater resistance to unseating
    Patent number: 9358844
    Abstract: Tire comprising two beads and a carcass reinforcement anchored in each bead, each bead comprising a plurality of annular reinforcing structures forming at least one anchoring alignment, parallel to a portion of the carcass reinforcement, and an additional stiffening reinforcement formed by one single alignment of at least two annular reinforcing structures and extending between a first end situated a distance H1 from the tangent to the seat-forming bead portion being 20-70% of the anchoring alignment minimum distance H0, the first end lying an axial distance L1 from the interior surface of the tire being 50-85% of the maximum axial width L0 of the bead; and a second end, the second end being radially and axially at the same level as or on the outside of the first end such that the distance LA separating the first and second ends is ?30% of the mean anchoring alignment length.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 7, 2016
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventor: Luc Schaffhauser
  • Tyre with specified belt structure
    Patent number: 9346320
    Abstract: A tire includes a carcass, a belt structure, and a tread band. The belt structure includes at least two belt plies and at least one belt layer radially external to the belt plies. The at least one belt layer extends at least for an axial width of the at least two belt plies and includes at least one first elongated element and at least one second elongated element. The elongated elements form turns substantially oriented in a circumferential direction of the tire. The turns are alternately disposed along an axial development of the at least one belt layer. The at least one first elongated element is a hybrid cord including at least one high-elastic-modulus filament and at least one low-elastic-modulus filament that are twisted together. An elastic modulus of the at least one second elongated element is lower than an elastic modulus of the at least one first elongated element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2016
    Assignee: PIRELLI PNEUMATICI S.P.A.
    Inventors: Cèline Almonacil, Stefano Bizzi, Maurizio Boiocchi, Guido Riva, Giancarlo Cucco
  • Puncture-proof structure for tire
    Patent number: 9346328
    Abstract: A spare tire body for the tire cavity of run-flat tires comprises: a plurality of circumferentially arranged combining blocks each being a hollow member that has two lateral sides each with a through hole, a bottom, two lengthwise ends on the bottom diagonally formed with projecting portions, and a top formed as an engaging valley; and either a) a C-shaped lining piece and two C-shaped holding pieces or b) a C-shaped lining piece or c) two C-shaped holding pieces or d) a C-shaped lining piece and one C-shaped holding piece. A connecting assembly of two pairs of fine tuning members, an adjusting member, a pressing bolt, a pressing screw bolt, and two reinforcing plates may be provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 24, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2016
    Inventor: Shut Chen Hsu