Patents Examined by Adrienne C. Johnstone
  • Pneumatic tire with specified rim strip rubber arrangement
    Patent number: 9340074
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire has a bead filler, a carcass ply, a side wall rubber and a rim strip rubber. The rim strip rubber has a main portion arranged in an outer side in a tire width direction of the bead filler, and a thin portion arranged between the carcass ply and the side wall rubber. The main portion forms an outer surface of a bead portion. The thin portion extends in the tire diametrical direction at a substantially fixed thickness. An upper end of the thin portion is positioned in an outer side in the tire diametrical direction than an upper end of the bead filler and in an inner side in the tire diametrical direction than a roll-up end of the carcass ply.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2016
    Assignee: TOYO TIRE & RUBBER CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Ichiro Shima
  • Pneumatic run flat tire
    Patent number: 9340073
    Abstract: A pneumatic run flat tire includes an inner side reinforcing rubber layer having a falcated cross-section and an outer side reinforcing rubber layer having a center of gravity position in a meridian cross-section that is positioned inward in a tire radial direction of a tire maximum width position disposed in a side wall portion. Volumes of the inner side reinforcing rubber layer and the outer side reinforcing rubber layer are each different on a vehicle inner side and a vehicle outer side when mounted on a vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2016
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
    Inventor: Kenji Horiuchi
  • Tire having circumferential reinforcement layer with at least two spirally wound strips
    Patent number: 9321230
    Abstract: A tire with a circumferential reinforcement layer formed by spirally winding rubber strips in the same direction from different positions arranged in the width direction of the tire. The rubber strips (12A and 12B) are arranged with spaces in a part or the entirety of the tire in the width direction; among those end portions of the rubber strips, at least medial end portions (12Bs and 12Ae) that are located on the equatorial plane side of the tire are arranged at positions where the medial end portions completely overlap with rib-form land portions (2a) in the width direction of the tire; and the width of the rib-form land portions overlapping with the medial end portions is defined as W and the width of the rubber strips is defined as G, wherein a relationship G<W is satisfied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventor: Daisuke Maehara
  • Tire for heavy vehicles, comprising a layer of circumferential reinforcing elements consisting of a central part and two axially external parts
    Patent number: 9315073
    Abstract: The invention relates to a tire comprising at least two working layers (41, 43) and at least one layer of circumferential metal reinforcing elements (42). According to the invention, the layer of circumferential reinforcing elements consists of at least one central part (422) and two axially external parts (421), the reinforcing elements of the central part of at least one layer of circumferential reinforcing elements being reinforcing elements cut so as to form sections (6), the length of the sections being less than 550 mm, the distance (d) between the ends of two consecutive sections being greater than 25 mm, the length of the sections being between 1.1 and 13 times the distance between the ends of two consecutive sections and the reinforcing elements of the two axially external parts (421) being continuous.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2016
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventor: Jean-Marc Viller
  • Pneumatic vehicle tyre
    Patent number: 9315074
    Abstract: Vehicle pneumatic tire with belt and carcass. An inner working ply of the belt has first parallel steel strengtheners embedded in rubber oriented at an angle “?” relative to a circumferential direction and satisfy: 10°???45°. An outer working ply of the belt has second parallel steel strengtheners embedded in rubber oriented at an angle “?” and satisfy: 10°???45°. The inner working ply has a greater axial length. The angles “?” and “?” have opposite inclination. Another belt ply is arranged between the inner and outer working plies and has third parallel strengtheners embedded in rubber oriented at an angle “?” and satisfy: 0°???5°. The first and second strengtheners have a breaking force F greater than 1800 N and at 10% of the breaking force F, an extension D satisfies 0.22%?D?0.4%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2016
    Assignee: CONTINENTAL REIFEN DEUTSCHLAND GMBH
    Inventors: Christoph Bederna, Maike Schulte, Theresia Becker
  • Pneumatic tire having turn-up pad
    Patent number: 9308782
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire construction is described suitable for severe loading conditions. The tire includes a bead portion further having an apex which extends radially outward of the bead core, and a turn-up pad located adjacent said chafer. The turn-up pad has a minimum specified width and a maximum specified width at a Radius R as measured from the bead center. The turn-up pad is formed of a material having a specified G? and G?.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2016
    Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
    Inventors: Gayathri Venkataramani, Dale Eugene Wells
  • Pneumatic radial tire for use on passenger cars
    Patent number: 9308778
    Abstract: A belt cover layer is provided on an outer circumferential side of a belt layer. The belt cover layer is constituted by a band-like member in which steel cords are embedded in rubber. Adjacent revolution portions of the band-like member are wound spirally in a tire circumferential direction so as not to contact each other in a region of at least 50% of a belt width centered on a tire equator. A load-strain curve of the steel cords has an inflection point in a strain region of 1% to 3.5%. An average elastic modulus when the steel cords are subjected to a load from 50 N to 100 N is from 25 GPa to 100 GPa.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2016
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
    Inventors: Shinya Harikae, Masatoshi Kuriyama
  • Pneumatic tire with specified first and second carcass plies
    Patent number: 9296262
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire comprising: first carcass ply that is comprised of; a tire-inner-face part extending along inner face of the tire to span between the tire bead portions; and turned-up parts extended as turned up from outer faces of the tire bead portions up to inside beyond fringes of a belt layer; and second carcass ply that is substantially omitted at between the tire bead portions and extends as being turned up from outer faces of the tire bead portions up to inside beyond fringes of a belt layer; and cords forming the tire-inner-face part, the turned-up part and the second carcass ply having inclination to radial direction of the tire; and direction of the inclination of the cords being alternated in respect of leftward or rightward, between two adjacent ones of the tire-inner-face part, the turned-up part and the second carcass ply.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: TOYO TIRE & RUBBER CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tatsuya Kato
  • Motorcycle tire having a hybrid construction
    Patent number: 9254717
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire includes a tread, two circumferentially extending annular bead regions, a carcass structure, and an overlay ply. The tread is rotatable about an axis and contacts a road surface. The tread further has an equatorial plane intersecting the axis at 90°. The carcass structure extends between the tread and the bead regions. The carcass structure supports the tread about the axis. The carcass structure includes two or more carcass plies having reinforcing cords oriented to cross at opposite angles of 20° to 65° with respect to the equatorial plane. The overlay ply extends circumferentially and extends radially between the carcass structure and the tread. The overlay ply includes cords oriented between ?5° and +5° relative to the equatorial plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
    Inventors: Neill Rampton, Thomas Wood Whitney, Carolyn Marie Manning
  • Tire with beads including bead filler and outer strip
    Patent number: 9248703
    Abstract: In a tire having two beads, each bead has a bead filler situated at least partially between a main portion and a wrapped-around portion of a carcass reinforcement and an outer strip situated axially outside of the wrapped-around portion of the carcass reinforcement. The bead filler has a thickness E(r). An assembly formed by the bead filler and the outer strip has a thickness ET(r). For all the points of intersection of which the radial distance from the radially innermost point of the annular reinforcing structure is greater than or equal to 10% and less than or equal to 35% of the radial height H of the tire, the ratio E(r)/ET(r) is greater than or equal to 0.3 and less than or equal to 0.5.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2016
    Assignees: COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN, Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventors: François-Xavier Bruneau, Frédéric Bourgeois
  • Pneumatic tire with side wall run flat liners
    Patent number: 9242515
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire has a belt cross-sectional width BW as a total width in a tire width direction of a belt layer and a distance Wl as a distance in the tire width direction from an edge on the tread portion side of a run flat liner to an edge of the belt layer. The belt cross-sectional width BW and the distance Wl are such that 0.25?Wl/(BW/2)?0.45 is satisfied. A thickness Wr in each of the side wall portions of the pneumatic tire is a thickness in the tire width direction of the run flat liner at a maximum width position, a thickness Ws is a thickness in the tire width direction of a rubber layer at the maximum width position, and the thickness Wr and the thickness Ws are such that 1.2?Wr/Ws?1.9 is satisfied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2016
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD.
    Inventor: Keisuke Nakazaki
  • Pneumatic tire having first and second turnup pads
    Patent number: 9139050
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire construction is described suitable for severe loading conditions. The tire includes a bead portion further having an apex which extends radially outward of the bead core, and a first turn-up pad located adjacent said chafer, and a second turn-up pad located adjacent said first turn-up pad, wherein the first turn-up pad has a G? less than the G? of the second turn-up pad. Alternatively, the first turn-up pad may be located adjacent to the rim flange and the second turn-up pad may be located axially inward of the first pad. The second turn-up pad is preferably thicker and longer than the first turn-up pad.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2015
    Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
    Inventors: Gayathri Venkataramani, Dale Eugene Wells
  • Tire and tire manufacturing method
    Patent number: 9138951
    Abstract: A tire configured from joining together plural tire frame members formed from a thermoplastic material in which sufficient strength of the joint portion is secured. Two tire halves 17A formed from a first thermoplastic material are supported by a tire supporting section 40 so as to be aligned with each other and abutting, while rotating this configuration melted welding thermoplastic material 43 is extruded from a nozzle 46 towards the joining location, and the welding thermoplastic material 43 is pressed by a flattening roller 48. The one tire half 17A and the other tire half 17A are thereby welded together with the welding thermoplastic material 43.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2015
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihide Kouno, Seiji Kon
  • Pneumatic vehicle tire
    Patent number: 9132701
    Abstract: A vehicle pneumatic tire for utility vehicles includes a carcass (5), a belt (9) and a profiled tread (10), wherein the belt (9) has three belt layers (13, 14, 15). The radial inner (13) and the radial outer (15) belt layers are working layers having reinforcements (23, 25) made of steel. The belt layer (14) is arranged between the two working layers (13, 15) and is a belt layer configured as a zero degree layer. The two working layers (13, 15) are wider than the belt layer (14) and are coupled to each other in the axial direction outside of the belt layer (14) at a length (p) of p>0 mm so that the distance (s) of the reinforcement (23) of the one working layer (13) to the reinforcement (25) of the other working layer (15) is given as s<1.5 mm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2015
    Assignee: Continental Reifen Deutschland GmbH
    Inventor: Theresia Becker
  • Pneumatic tire
    Patent number: 9132700
    Abstract: In tread-width-direction cross section under a standard internal pressure and no load condition, a point B is an outermost point of overlapping area in tread-width-direction, a line CC is a line passing through an outermost point CT of carcass layer in tread-width-direction and extending along tread-width-direction, a point C is a point of tire surface through the line CC, a line segment BW is a line segment extending in tread-width-direction from an equator center line to point B, a line segment CW is a line segment extending along tread-width-direction from equator center line to point C, and a line segment BC is a line segment connecting between point B and C. A ratio BW/CW between a length of BW and CW is not less than 0.6 and not more than 0.8. An angle ? formed by BC and CW is not less than 50° and not more than 70°.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2015
    Assignee: BRIDGESTONE CORPORATION
    Inventor: Eiji Ichihara
  • Pneumatic vehicle tire with specified bracing plies and bracing bandage
    Patent number: 9132703
    Abstract: Pneumatic vehicle tire includes at least two bracing plies arranged to intersect each other at an angle and including reinforcements of steel arranged substantially parallel to and at a distance from one another and embedded in a rubber material. Bracing ply reinforcements are oriented at an angle of 18° to 45° with the circumferential direction of the tire. A bracing bandage is also included having at least one ply with reinforcements of a non-metallic material arranged substantially parallel to and at a distance from one another and generally extending a circumferential direction of the tire. Bracing bandage reinforcements include a material with heat shrinkage properties. Under a predetermined extension of 1% in the longitudinal direction of the reinforcements, each bracing ply, has a tension of <17,500 N per dm of width, and the bracing bandage as a whole has a tension of >2,000 N per dm of width.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2015
    Assignee: CONTINENTAL REIFEN DEUTSCHLAND GMBH
    Inventors: Rafal Nojek, Viktor Bluemel
  • Tire including an electronic member
    Patent number: 9114671
    Abstract: A tire is disclosed that includes at least one annular bead wire forming a body of revolution about a reference axis. A carcass ply of generally toroidal shape about the same axis as the bead wire has a portion that is folded around the wire. A materials interface is defined at least in part by the junction between a rubber first mass and a second mass that includes an electronic member. By way of example, the electronic member is a passive radiofrequency identification transponder. The interface extends from a free edge of the folded portion of the carcass ply radially away from the reference axis to a circumferential junction line between the interface and the carcass ply.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2015
    Assignee: Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
    Inventors: John David Adamson, Christopher B. Barton, Charles E. Kelly, Cameron Earl Smith, Denis Alff, Mickaël Lion, Mathieu Tupinier, Pierre Wiel
  • Tire comprising carcass reinforcing cords of low permeability and textile threads associated with the carcass reinforcement
    Patent number: 9108465
    Abstract: A tire having a radial carcass reinforcement, comprised of at least one layer of metal reinforcing elements, said tire comprising a crown reinforcement, which is itself covered radially with a tread, said tread being joined to two beads via two sidewalls. The metal reinforcing elements of at least one layer of the carcass reinforcement are non-hooped cords having, in the permeability test, a flow rate of less than 20 cm3/min and at least one layer of the carcass reinforcement being provided on at least one side with textile threads oriented mainly along a direction parallel to that of the metal reinforcing elements of said at least one carcass reinforcement layer, said textile threads being corrugated about this main direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignees: Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A., COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ETABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN
    Inventors: Michael Cogne, Bernard Jault, Laurent Nadreau
  • Tire bead mounting verification system
    Patent number: 9108468
    Abstract: The invention includes a tire having a pair of annular sidewalls each extending to a terminal end including a bottom surface for mounting onto a wheel. The tire further includes indicia arranged along each sidewall adjacent a bottom of each sidewall terminal end. The indicia extends radially outward from an initial position to extend from a top side of a rim flange of a tire wheel for indicating concentric mounting of the tire on a wheel. In particular embodiments, the tire is mounted on a rim of a wheel having rim flanges, each of the rim flanges extending along one of the tire sidewalls such that the indicia is adjacently arranged the rim flange along each sidewall such that the indicia extends radially outward from a top of the rim flange. Methods include using the indicia to determine whether the tire is concentrically mounted on the wheel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignees: Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A., Compagnie Generale Des Etablissments Michelin
    Inventors: Dennis D. Hodges, Fang Zhu
  • Tire with chafer and sidewall
    Patent number: 9096100
    Abstract: A pneumatic tire has a pair of sidewalls overlying a carcass connecting a pair of bead components and a rubber chafer adjacent to each sidewall, the chafer including 100 parts by weight of elastomer; 20 to 60 phr of a low surface area carbon black having an Iodine absorption value of from about 10 to about 50 g/kg; 20 to 60 phr of a high surface area carbon black having an Iodine absoption value of from about 100 to about 300 g/kg, each sidewall including 100 phr of the same elastomer used in the chafers; 20 to 60 phr of the same low surface area carbon black used in the chafers; 10 to 20 phr of the same high surface area carbon black used in the chafers, the weight ratio of high surface area carbon black in the chafers to high surface area carbon black in the sidewalls being greater than 1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2015
    Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
    Inventors: Luisa Fernanda Munoz Mejia, Manfred Josef Jung, Carlo Kanz