US3554261A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Pneumatic tires
Assignee: UNIROYAL
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Filing: 1968-07-16
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Granted: 1971-01-12
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Expires: 1988-07-16
Abstract
Abstract Radial ply tires having good vertical flexibility as well as lateral stability even at high speeds are disclosed. The tires are characterized by a sidewall construction in which a radially inward zone in at least one sidewall is reinforced only by the ply structure of the radial carcass itself, and the respective adjacent radially outwardmost sidewall zone contiguous with the tread region of the tire is additionally reinforced by a supplementary ply structure of the carcass extending from the breaker region into the sidewall. In a preferred embodiment, the supplementary ply structure comprises sheet material folded back upon itself, with the folded edge defining the boundary between said sidewall zones. As a refinement of the invention, the respective adjacent radially inwardmost zone of the same sidewall contiguous with the associated bead region is also additionally reinforced by an extended bead turnup section folded back upon itself. The resultant intermediate sidewall zone of limited reinforcement, bounded by the proximate edges of the additional reinforcing plies in the two other zones, is of considerably reduced width with respect to the normal width of a sidewall between the proximate edges of the standard breaker and bead turnup, whereby the tire is somewhat rigidified but retains an optimum degree of flexibility. The sidewall region corresponding to the intermediate zone may also be reduced in thickness.
Inventors
- 👤 Henri Mirtain
- 👤 Andre Devienne
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-24 22:39
CPC Classifications
B; B60; B60C; B60C15/00; B60C15/0009; B60C15/0027; B60C13/00; B60C13/02; B60C9/00; B60C9/02; B60C9/0207; B60C9/04; B60C9/08; B60C9/09; B60C9/18; B60C9/20; B60C9/2003; B60C9/2006; B60C9/2009; B60C9/26; B60C9/28; B60C9/30; B29; B29D; B29D30/00; B29D30/06; B29D30/08; B29D2030/086; B60C2009/1892; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T152/00; Y10T152/10; Y10T152/10495; Y10T152/10504; Y10T152/10765; Y10T152/10855; Y10T152/10864
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 16
Claim 1
Independent Claim
252 words
In a pneumatic tire having a radial ply carcass terminating at its radially inwardmost ends in a pair of beads, a tread surrounding the crown region of said carcass, a breaker substantially coextensive in width with said tread interposed between said carcass and said tread for reinforcing the latter, and sidewalls overlying the lateral portions of said carcass from said tread to said beads; the improvement comprising a supplementary tire cord ply structure built into said carcass at least partly under said breaker and extending laterally from said crown region of said carcass into the radially outwardmost zone of at least one of said sidewalls for additionally reinforcing the same, said supplementary ply structure in at least said one radially outwardmost sidewall zone being constituted by at least one single sheet of tire cord material folded back upon itself, with the folded edge defining the radially inwardmost boundary of said radially outwardmost sidewall zone, the cord elements of said supplementary ply structurE being made of textile cord material and oriented at an angle between about 0 and 60* to the median equatorial plane of the tire, and the radial width of the portion of said supplementary ply structure within the confines of said radially outwardmost sidewall zone being sufficient to effect a marked reduction in the expanse of the contiguous radially inward sidewall zone reinforced only by said radial ply carcass, thereby to increase the lateral stability of the tire especially at high speed while maintaining optimum vertical flexibility and ride softness.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
252 words
In a pneumatic tire having a radial ply carcass terminating at its radially inwardmost ends in a pair of beads, a tread surrounding the crown region of said carcass, a breaker substantially coextensive in width with said tread interposed between said carcass and said tread for reinforcing the latter, and sidewalls overlying the lateral portions of said carcass from said tread to said beads; the improvement comprising a supplementary tire cord ply structure built into said carcass at least partly under said breaker and extending laterally from said crown region of said carcass into the radially outwardmost zone of at least one of said sidewalls for additionally reinforcing the same, said supplementary ply structure in at least said one radially outwardmost sidewall zone being constituted by at least one single sheet of tire cord material folded back upon itself, with the folded edge defining the radially inwardmost boundary of said radially outwardmost sidewall zone, the cord elements of said supplementary ply structurE being made of textile cord material and oriented at an angle between about 0 and 60* to the median equatorial plane of the tire, and the radial width of the portion of said supplementary ply structure within the confines of said radially outwardmost sidewall zone being sufficient to effect a marked reduction in the expanse of the contiguous radially inward sidewall zone reinforced only by said radial ply carcass, thereby to increase the lateral stability of the tire especially at high speed while maintaining optimum vertical flexibility and ride softness.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
39 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 1, wherein the folded back portion of said sheet extends back toward said breaker at least sufficiently to dispose the free edge of said portion under the lateral edge region of said breaker.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
43 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 1, wherein the folded back portion of said sheet extends back toward said breaker sufficiently to dispose the free edge of said portion under said breaker and in the vicinity of the crown centerline of said carcass.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
21 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 1, wherein said supplementary ply structure extends into both of said radially outwardmost sidewall zones.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
24 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 4, wherein said supplementary ply structure is symmetric with respect to the median equatorial plane of the tire.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
24 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 4, wherein said supplementary ply structure is asymmetric with respect to the median equatorial plane of the tire.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
64 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 4, wherein said supplementary ply structure in both said radially outwardmost sidewall zones is constituted by at least one common single sheet of tire cord material the opposite marginal regions of which are folded back upon itself, the folded edges defining the respective boundaries between said radially outwardmost sidewall zones and said radially inward sidewalls zones contiguous thereto.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
58 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 4, wherein said supplementary ply structure in each of said radially outwardmost sidewall zones is constituted by at least one separate single sheet of tire cord material folded back upon itself, the folded edges defining the respective boundaries between said radially outwardmost sidewall zones and said radially inward sidewall zones contiguous thereto.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
96 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 1, wherein at least that one of the radially inwardmost sidewall zones on the same side of the tire as said one radially outwardmost sidewall zone is additionally reinforced by the associated bead turnup portion of said radial ply carcass, said turnup portion being extended radially outwardly for a predetermined distance from the bead core and then folded back upon itself to define between its folded edge and the proximate folded edge of said supplementary ply structure a reduced width intermediate sidewall zone reinforced only by said radial ply carcass.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
64 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 9, wherein said supplementary ply structure extends into both of said radially outwardmost sidewall zones, and both of said radially inwardmost sidewall zones are additionally reinforced by folded over bead turnup portions, the proximate folded edges of said supplementary ply structure and said bead turnup portion in each sidewall defining the boundaries of the respective intermediate sidewall zones.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
43 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 10, wherein said supplementary ply structure in both said radially outwardmost sidewall zones is constituted by at least one common single sheet of tire cord material the opposite marginal regions of which are folded back upon itself.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
37 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 10, wherein said supplementary ply structure in each of said radially outwardmost sidewall zones is constituted by at least one separate single sheet of tire cord material folded back upon itself.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
42 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 9, wherein the folded back part of said bead turnuP portion extends back toward the associated bead sufficiently to dispose the free edge of said part in the region of the core of said associated bead.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
31 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 9, wherein the folded back part of said bead turnup portion extends only partly back toward the region of the core of said associated bead.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
26 words
A pneumatic tire according to claim 9, wherein the respective sidewall of the tire in the region of said intermediate sidewall zone is reduced in thickness.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US2976905A
Cited
US3095027A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1974-01-11 | 1974-07-13 | 1975-01-12 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1978-01-11 | 1978-07-13 | 1979-01-12 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1982-01-11 | 1982-07-13 | 1983-01-12 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |