Runflat tire
AssigneeSumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd.
InventorFumikazu Yamashita
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A runflat tire having an improved ride comfort performance without impairing the runflat durability, and comprising a carcass 6 and sidewall-reinforcing rubber layers 9 having a crescent-shaped cross section disposed axially inward of carcass 6 in sidewall portion 3, wherein each sidewall-reinforcing rubber layer 9 comprises at least a radially outermost first rubber portion 9a and a second rubber portion 9b which is contiguous to the first rubber portion 9a and extends toward a bead portion 4, and the second rubber portion 9b has a complex modulus E*2 of at least 1.1 times the complex modulus E*1 of the first rubber portion 9a.
Claims5
A runflat tire comprising
- a toroidal carcass which extends from a tread portion to each of bead cores in bead portions through sidewall portions, and
- a pair of sidewall-reinforcing rubber layers which are disposed axially inward of the carcass in the sidewall portions and which have an approximately crescent-shaped cross section, wherein
- each of the sidewall-reinforcing rubber layers comprises
- a radially outermost first rubber portion,
- a second rubber portion which is contiguous to the first rubber portion and extends therefrom toward the bead portion,
- a third rubber portion which is contiguous to the second rubber portion to substantially locate radially inward of the second rubber portion, and
- a fourth rubber portion which is contiguous to the third rubber portion to substantially locate radially inward of the third rubber portion,
- the second rubber portion has a complex modulus E*2 of at least 1.1 times the complex modulus E*1 of the first rubber portion,
- the third rubber portion has a complex modulus E*3 larger than the complex modulus E*2 of the second rubber portion, and
- the fourth rubber portion has a complex modulus E*4 larger than the complex modulus E*3 of the third rubber portion,
- in a meridian section of the tire including the rotational axis of the tire in a normal state that the tire is mounted on a standard rim and inflated to a normal internal pressure but is unloaded,
- the interface between the first rubber portion and second rubber portion,
- the interface between the second rubber portion and third rubber portion and
- the interface between the third rubber portion and fourth rubber portion
- lie substantially at right angles to the center line of the thickness of the sidewall-reinforcing rubber layer,
- when measured along the center line of the thickness of the sidewall-reinforcing rubber layer,
- the length Sa of the first rubber portion 9a is at least 25% but at most 50% of the full length S of said center line, and
- the length Sb of the second rubber portion is larger than the length Sc of the third rubber portion which is larger than the length Sd of the fourth rubber portion.
A runflat tire comprising:
- a toroidal carcass which extends from a tread portion to each of bead cores in bead portions through sidewall portions, and
- a pair of sidewall-reinforcing rubber layers which are disposed axially inward of the carcass in the sidewall portions and which have an approximately crescent-shaped cross section, wherein
- each of the sidewall-reinforcing rubber layers comprises
- a radially outermost first rubber portion,
- a second rubber portion which is contiguous to the first rubber portion and extends therefrom toward the bead portion,
- a third rubber portion which is contiguous to the second rubber portion to substantially locate radially inward of the second rubber portion, and
- a fourth rubber portion which is contiguous to the third rubber portion to substantially locate radially inward of the third rubber portion,
- the second rubber portion has a complex modulus E*2 of at least 1.1 times the complex modulus E*1 of the first rubber portion,
- the third rubber portion has a complex modulus E*3 larger than the complex modulus E*2 of the second rubber portion, and
- the fourth rubber portion has a complex modulus E*4 larger than the complex modulus E*3 of the third rubber portion,
- in a meridian section of the tire including the rotational axis of the tire in a normal state that the tire is mounted on a standard rim and inflated to a normal internal pressure but is unloaded,
- the entirety of the interface (e1) between the first rubber portion and second rubber portion is located radially outside the interface (e2) between the second rubber portion and third rubber portion, and
- the entirety of the interface (e2) is located radially outside the interface (e3) between the third rubber portion and fourth rubber portion and also radially outside a maximum width position (m) of the carcass, and further
- the entirety of the interface (e3) is located radially inside the maximum width position (m) of the carcass.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.