Method for ply application
AssigneeThe Firestone Tire & Rubber Company
InventorsDonald O. Still, Hubert T. Hovance, George J. Burley
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A means and method for applying a stabilizer ply to a tire building drum and more particularly a means and method for cutting and applying the stabilizer ply material and specifically means for cutting the stabilizer ply material between cords disposed therein and correcting for variations of the cord angles during the application process in order to provide an improved splice between the leading and trailing edges of the stabilizer ply material.
Claims12
A method of applying an elongated piece of elastomeric material, having substantially parallel cords disposed therein at a bias angle cut from a longer strip of such material, to a cylindrical drum comprising the steps of:
- (a) cutting through the strip between adjacent parallel cords to form a first edge extending at an acute angle to a longitudinal axis of said strip;
- (b) sensing the position of cutting means during cutting for determining the angle of said first edge with respect to a predetermined theoretical line on said strip;
- (c) applying the first edge of the strip to the cylindrical drum;
- (d) cutting through the strip between adjacent parallel cords to form a second edge extending at a second acute angle to the longitudinal axis of said strip;
- (e) sensing the position of cutting means during cutting for determining the angle of said second edge with respect to said predetermined theoretical line;
- and
- (f) stretching the strip to adjust the angle of one of said edges to coincide with the angle of the other of said edges with means for changing the angular orientation of one of said edges prior to its application to said cylindrical drum responsive to an angle difference between the first and second edges to form a splice wherein the angle of the second edge is substantially the same as the angle of the first edge.
A method of cutting an elongated strip of elastomeric material from a length of such elastomeric material having cords therein biased at an angle to a longitudinal axis of said elastomeric material for applying said strip to a tire building drum, including the steps of:
- (a) cutting through the strip between adjacent cords to form a first edge;
- (b) sensing the position of cutting means during cutting for determining the angle of said first edge with respect to a predetermined theoretical line;
- (c) applying the first edge of the strip to the tire building drum;
- (d) cutting through the strip between other adjacent cords to form a second edge and to form the elongated strip of elastomeric material, said strip being shorter in length than the circumference of the drum;
- (e) sensing the position of cutting means during cutting for determining the angle of said second edge with respect to said predetermined theoretical line;
- (f) stretching the strip to adjust one of said angles of one of said edges to coincide with the angle of the other of said edges with means for changing the angular orientation of one of said edges prior to its application to said cylindrical drum responsive to an angle difference between the first and second edges to form a splice wherein the angle of the second edge is substantially the same as the angle of the first edge.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.