Apparatus and method for manufacturing an air maintenance tire

A method of assembling an air maintenance tire, the method comprising the steps of:

• constructing an air pumping tube sub-assembly within an air pumping tube assembly station, the air pumping tube sub-assembly comprising:
• an elongate air pumping tube including an internal air passageway, at least one component of an air inlet device for admitting air into the air passageway of the pumping tube, and at least one component of an air outlet device for conducting pressurized air from the air passageway into an internal air cavity of the air maintenance tire;
• moving a cured tire into a tire preparation station, the cured tire including an elongate groove formed to extend from a groove opening into a flexing region of a sidewall of the cured tire, the elongate groove configured to accept the air pumping tube;
• activating a tire-modifying apparatus within the tire preparation station to enlarge inlet and outlet regions of the elongate groove for respective receipt of the at least one inlet device component and the at least one outlet device component of the air pumping tube sub-assembly;
• installing the air pumping tube sub-assembly into the elongate groove at a pumping tube sub-assembly installation station, the installation operative to register the at least one inlet device component and the at least one outlet device component respectively with the enlarged inlet and the enlarged outlet regions of the elongate groove;
• and
• spreading the elongate groove to enlarge the elongate groove to operatively facilitate insertion of the air pumping tube, wherein the step of spreading the elongate groove comprises capturing a tire toe within a chuck channel and pushing a tire-depressing device against a region of the sidewall proximate to the elongate groove.