(12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 6,908,587 B1 Balter Et Al
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USOO6908587B1 (12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 6,908,587 B1 Balter et al. (45) Date of Patent: Jun. 21, 2005 (54) POST CURE CORRECTION OF TIRE 3,926,704 A 12/1975 Sharp, Jr. UNIFORMITY 3.945,277 A 3/1976 McGehee et al. (75) Inventors: David John Balter, Cuyahoga Falls, (Continued) OH (US); Michael Alois Kolowski, FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS Mogodore, OH (US); Anthony J. Scarpitti,O O Uniontown, OH (US) DE 22596531729614 6/19746/1971 EP O888872 1/1999 (73) Assignee: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., EP 1023987 8/2000 Akron, OH (US) Primary Examiner Mathieu. D. Vargot (*) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this (74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Howard M. Cohn patent is extended or adjusted under 35 (57) ABSTRACT U.S.C. 154(b) by 538 days. Method and apparatus for post-cure correction (PCC), either (21) Appl. No.: 09/715,384 partial or Substantial, of various tire nonuniformities which have been detected during a tire manufacturing process by a (22) Filed: Nov. 17, 2000 tire uniformity machine (TUM), preferably testing a tire (51) Int. Cl. ................................................ B29C 71/02 which has been nominally cooled down (i.e., nominally (52) U.S. Cl. ...................... 264/501; 264/401; 264/235; completed curing) after removal from a tire curing mold. 264/346; 425/135; 425/446 The method comprises the Steps of: (1) Selecting the tire (58) Field of Search ................................. 264/501, 502 during a tire manufacturing process after the Selected tire has 264/236, 237, 348, 235,340, 346 401. been rejected by a tire uniformity test due to at least one tire 425/5s.1 13 5 445 446: 73/1 46 uniformity defect; (2) providing 360 degree circumferential s s s s tread restraint which holds the tread in an ideal tread shape, (56) References Cited concentric to the axis of rotation and nominally perpendicu lar to the equatorial plane; (3) Sealingly holding the beads U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS concentric to, and equidistant from, the axis of rotation, and 2.963.737 A 12/1960 Sod ist Symmetrically spaced about the equatorial plane; and (4) 3,039,8392- Y-a-2 A 6/1962f Watersoderquis et al. inflating the Selected tire to a controlled preSSure, and 3,120,571 A 2/1964 Wolfer holding the controlled pressure for a controlled time while 3,389,193 A 6/1968 Hughes the tread is restrained and the beads are Sealingly held. An 3,464,264 A 9/1969 French optional additional step before the inflating step (4) com 3,529,048 A 9/1970 Kovac prises heating the Selected tire, preferably to a controlled 3,605,182 A 9/1971 Ulm temperature above a glass transition temperature of the tire's 3,632,701 A * 1/1972 Devitt et al................ 264/40.1 ply cord material; and before the end of the controlled time 3,635,610 A 1/1972 Hall et al. cooling the Selected tire below the glass transition tempera 3,725,163 A 4/1973 Hofelt, Jr. 3,792,145 A 2/1974 Hugger et al. ture. The method steps can be repeated if the corrected tire 3.838,142 A 9/1974 Hochstein is still rejectable as determined by a repeated TUM test. An 3.848,368 A 11/1974 Toshioka et al. apparatus (PCC device) is provided suitable for implement 3,865,527 A 2/1975 McGehee et al. ing the inventive method. 3,872.208 A 3/1975 Brown et al. 3,880,556 A 4/1975 Brown et al. 20 Claims, 6 Drawing Sheets 111/ 47 Ry2nst i &M / . 5 Y | \, \ || 7 ( / 7 “T L US 6,908,587 B1 Page 2 U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS 5,365,781 A 11/1994 Rhyne 5,384,084 A 1/1995 Siegenthaler s: A C. Siber 5,441,393 A 8/1995 Fujieda et al. 2Y- - - 2 go 5458,176 A 10/1995 Rhyne 4.420,4534,173,850 A 12/198311/1979 AyersGormish et al. 3.2 : - Y - A 3.0. Rio 4,458,451 A 7/1984 Rogers et al. Y/ -- Y - 4,628,978 A 12/1986 Imai et al. 5,853,648 A 12/1998 Cleveland 4.736,546 A 4f1988 Ugo 5,879,484 A 3/1999 Spragg et al. 4767480 A 8/1988 asidstein 5,882,452 A 3/1999 Sakamoto et al. 4935.054 A 6/1990 Rogers et al 6,203,748 B1 * 3/2001 Kumagai .................... 264/502 5,022.186 A 6/1991 Rogers, Jr. 6,660,212 B1 12/2003 Balter et al. ................ 264/501 5,060510 A 10/1991 Rousseau 5,225,138 A 7/1993 Irie * cited by examiner U.S. Patent US 6,908,587 B1 7 V |Q00121vgl:|| R !!|OOOOOO! NY U.S. Patent Jun. 21, 2005 Sheet 2 of 6 US 6,908,587 B1 N ( 1 O3 al PS NNN2 JO FIGURE 1A U.S. Patent Jun. 21, 2005 Sheet 3 of 6 US 6,908,587 B1 OOC) 2 &ZWZZ1 O1 O C2 S. 2 123 135 Š I (fAf 411. - WNM l, ""WN H5 H4 A7 WY SNSN2N.1 4, (124to 91136FIGURE 1B "106 130 l137 e 109 1 11 U- 3". 227% 2 1040 109 FIGURE 1C 355 1 O6 U.S. Patent Jun. 21, 2005 Sheet 4 of 6 US 6,908,587 B1 146N 1 OOb 25Ob 131 251 FIGURE 2 OOC 25037 U.S. Patent Jun. 21, 2005 Sheet 5 of 6 US 6,908,587 B1 103d 354 O 18O 360' O 18O 36O ROTATIONAL ANGLE ROTATIONAL ANGLE FIGURE 4A FIGURE 4B U.S. Patent Jun. 21, 2005 Sheet 6 of 6 US 6,908,587 B1 500 cuRED TREN 502 TIRE UNIFORMITY TESTNuSO4. 506 530 SE) YESS-ACCEPT TIRE 2 NO 508 54-O TIRE NO m CORRECTABLE SCRAP TRE p YES restrain Tire in Pcc Devicely HEAT TRE 512 (OPTIONAL) NFLATE TIRE AND HOLD 514 COOL TIRE 516 (OPTIONAL) DEFLATE AND REMovE TRE 518 FROM PCC DEVICE FIGURE 5 US 6,908,587 B1 1 2 POST CURE CORRECTION OF TRE Deformation Of Raw Components: The raw tire compo UNIFORMITY nents (tread, Sidewall innerliner, plies ply cords, beads and belts) either are rubber or have a rubber matrix and are CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED Stored on long rolls in the deformable green State. So, the tire APPLICATIONS components may not remain uniformly thick during Storage. This application relates to U.S. patent application entitled Nonuniform Placement On Building Drum: The ply cords CONSTRAINED POST CURE INFLATION Ser. No. may not be laid around the building drum with equal 09/715,277, filed on Nov. 17, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. Straightness and tension, and the two beads may not be 6,660,212. positioned in a plane which is perfectly perpendicular to the 1O drum (and tire) axis, or may otherwise not be parallel to each FIELD other over the ply on the building drum. The present invention relates to manufacturing pneumatic Nonuniform Placement On Second Stage Machine: On tires, and, more specifically, to a method and apparatus to the Second Stage machine, if the belt and tread are not improve or correct tire uniformity. positioned Symmetrically over the green carcass, the green 15 tire, and hence the cured tire, will not be uniform. Also, later BACKGROUND as the green rubber is blown up, the bead and ply positions A typical radial tire includes a tread, a belt Structure can shift nonuniformly. (“belts”) and a carcass. The carcass has an innerliner, a pair Components Shift In The Green Tire State: Before curing, of inextensible beads, an apex (rubber filler) over each bead, the beads and plies are held in place only by their green two sidewalls, and one or more plies (“radial plies”). The rubber matrix and the Surrounding green rubber. AS the plies have parallel reinforcing ply cords of typically nylon or green tire is handled, the bead and ply positions can shift polyester, which extend between, and wrap around, the nonuniformly. beads. Nonuniform Mounting In The Mold: If the green tire is Tire Making Process 25 not positioned symmetrically within the mold, the finished In the tire making process, a green carcass ("green” tire will not be uniform. meaning as yet uncured and still tacky) is built typically by Ply Splice: The ply is stiffer and heavier at its splice wrapping a length of green innerliner and at least one radial (where it is doubled due to the overlapping ply ends) ply over a “first Stage building drum' and Splicing the compared to other locations. innerliner and ply ends together to form a cylindrical shape Ply Stretching and Shrinkage: In the mold, the inflated around the building drum. Two beads (each comprising a bladder tensions (stretches) the ply outward, and heat cable of steel filaments encased in green rubber) are then shrinkage of the plys nylon or polyester fibers tension the positioned over the carcass, one at each Side. The portions of ply further. This tension (tensile stress) causes the ply to slip the ply that extend beyond the beads are then turned up around the bead, but to a different extent at different loca (wrapped around) the beads, forming “ply turnups'. The 35 tions around the bead, with a splice slipping around the bead resulting assembly, including the innerliner, ply, and beads, least. is called a green carcass. Then, green (uncured) Sidewalls are Nonuniform Curing: The rubber can “lock up” (stiffen applied around each Side of the plies. under cure) around the ply at different times at different The green carcass is removed from the first Stage building locations, thus locking in nonuniform ply Stresses.