Compagnie Generale Des Etablissements Michelin

Michelin Recherche Et Technique S.a.

Jimmy Jeter

William David Mawby

James Michael Traylor

Jonathan Sauls

Systems and methods for improving tire uniformity include identifying at least one candidate process harmonic and corresponding period. A set of uniformity waveforms is then collected for each test tire in a set of one or more test tires. To provide better data for analysis, the collection of waveforms may include multiple waveforms including measurements obtained before and/or after cure, in clockwise and/or counterclockwise rotational directions, and while the tire is loaded and/or unloaded. The uniformity waveforms may be re-indexed to the physical order of the at least one candidate process harmonic, and selected data points within the waveforms may optionally be deleted around a joint effect or other non-sinusoidal effect. The re-indexed, optionally partial, waveforms may then be analyzed to determine magnitude and azimuth estimates for the candidate process harmonics. Aspects of tire manufacture may then be modified in a variety of different ways to account for the estimated process harmonics.

Tire uniformity through identification of process harmonics using re-indexed partial uniformity waveforms

A system and related method for improving tire uniformity includes providing a number (n) of test tires manufactured in a known order and identifying at least one candidate cyclic process effect with a corresponding frequency of introduction (f). A given uniformity parameter, such as radial or lateral run-out, balance, mass variation, radial lateral or tangential force variation, is measured for each tire in the test set, and measured data points are combined into a concatenated composite waveform. At least one process harmonic associated with each identified cyclic process effect is separated from the tire harmonics, for example, by Fourier transformation with identification of the process harmonics as positive integer multiples of the mth harmonic of the measured uniformity parameter where m=n/f. Once the process harmonics are extracted, filtered uniformity measurements can be provided or new tires can be built with the process effect minimized.

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Jimmy Jeter