US 6,547,548 B1Granted

Tire vulcanizing system and mold opening/closing and vulcanizing station therefor

AssigneeMitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

InventorNobuhiko Irie

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

A tire vulcanizing system has a mold assembly M for vulcanizing a tire, which has a bladder assembly M300 which is supplied with a heating/pressurizing medium, a heating chamber C1a at the outer peripheral portion of a tire mold C, and upper and lower heating plates M100A and M200A of the tire mold, and is configured movably and so as to be capable of overcoming a force to open the mold by means of the pressure in a bladder BL; a plurality of mold opening/closing and vulcanizing stations 300 each of which receives the mold assembly M and opens and closes the same, and has a vulcanized tire unloader 302, a green tire loader 301, and a bladder operating/driving device 314; a changing/preheating station 200 which performs the change and preheating of the tire mold C incorporated in the mold assembly M and a bladder assembly 300; and mold transportation apparatus 100 which reciprocates between these two stations 300 and 200 to transport the mold assembly M. Also, the mold opening/closing and vulcanizing station 300 comprises a base frame 305, a pillar 306 for elevation and guidance, which is erected on the base frame 305, an upper movable plate 310 which can freely be moved vertically by being guided by the pillar 306, and connecting/disconnecting device 312 for connecting and disconnecting the upper movable plate 310 to and from the tire mold assembly M.

A tire vulcanizing system comprising:

a plurality of tire mold assemblies for use in vulcanizing tires, wherein each tire mold assembly has a tire mold for containing a tire, a bladder assembly for being located in the tire within the tire mold and being supplied with a heating/pressurizing medium, a heating chamber at an outer peripheral portion of the tire mold, and upper and lower heating plates of said tire mold, wherein each of the tire mold assemblies is movable, and wherein each of the tire mold assemblies is capable of remaining closed while the bladder therein is pressurized;
and
a mold transporter configured for reciprocating in a predetermined manner between at least one changing/preheating station and a plurality of vulcanizing stations for respectively transporting the tire mold assemblies between the changing/preheating station and the vulcanizing stations;
wherein each vulcanizing station includes:
a mold opening/closing mechanism mounted at the vulcanizing station and exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for opening and closing a tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station, so that the vulcanizing station can independently open and close the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station,
a green tire loader exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for loading a green tire into the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station,
a bladder operating/driving mechanism exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for operating/driving the bladder assembly of the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station;
a vulcanized tire unloader exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for unloading a vulcanized tire from the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station;
and
wherein the changing/preheating station is operative for both changing the tire mold incorporated in a tire mold assembly that is located at the changing/preheating station and preheating the tire mold assembly that is located at the changing/preheating station.

7 more elements

Abstract

Claims20