Michelin Recherche Et Technique S.a.

Compagnie Generale Des Etablissements Michelin

Compagnie Generale Des Etablissments Michelin

Patrick Jon Buresh

Derick Lonell Harris

Corey Sullivan

Jason Zychiewicz

Matthew D Beres, Jr

Steven M Cron

Stephen J Lash

Sylvain M Leynaert

Jason Schoenmaker

William Marshall Thompson

Phillip Check

Robert Dillon

John Anthony Hutz

Kevin Ray Reim

Bernard Guerinon

Nicholas Mailhiot

Emmanuel Igier

Danny Austin Thrasher

Robin B Faulk

Wayne Carl Yount

Randy Kent Lewis

Jeffrey Al Pyle

Joseph Workman

Matthew Lincoln Hall

David Scott Morgan

Leonard Ricky Pruitt

Sylvian Marie Christian Leynaert

Steven Smith

Bernard Thevand

Miyabi Hanami

Tire

Embodiments of the disclosure include pneumatic tires having improved snow performance. Said tires include a cap ply extending at least partially across a full width of at least one of the belt plies and having a rupture force greater than 210 N per 15 mm of cap ply width. A shoulder rib includes a compliance groove or sipe extending primarily in a circumferential direction and to a depth equal to or less than 75% of the skid depth. The lateral sipes and grooves are arranged to provide an average lateral feature spacing of less than 15 mm. The average inclination angle for the lateral grooves is greater than 6 degrees in the shoulder ribs and is greater than 20 degrees in the central ribs. A longitudinal non-lateral sipe edge density is greater than 21.1 micrometers/mm. A longitudinal lateral sipe edge density for all lateral sipes is greater than 5.5 micrometers/mm.

Tire with improved snow performance without sacrificing dry braking or wear

Embodiments of the disclosure include a pneumatic tire having improved high speed limits while generally maintaining wear, traction, and handling performance. Said tires include a cap ply extending substantially across a full width of at least one of the belt plies and being arranged at least partially within each shoulder, the cap ply forming a layer of elastomeric material reinforced with a plurality of elongate reinforcements spaced apart in an array, the cap ply being characterized as having a rupture force greater than 210 N per 15 mm of the cap ply width. In each shoulder area of said tires, the tread is characterized as being flatter and having a greater tread thickness.

Tire with improved handling performance and speed durability

Tread

Tire tread

The present invention provides structures on the tread of a tire that improve the evacuation of mud, soil and the like. In particular, different tread features are provided that may improve the evacuation of mud, soil and the like by themselves or by strategically combining them. These different tread features may be tested to see how they affect mud evacuation at different rotational speeds by a test apparatus that mimics the performance of a tire. For example, a tread that has offset shoulder tread blocks, which shows good mud evacuation at lower speeds, may be combined with shoulder grooves with pockets that show good mud evacuation at intermediate speeds to see if this combination provides a solution that has the lowest change of speed necessary to evacuate 50-87% of the mud found in the grooves.

Tread surface structures for mud evacuation

A tire and a method for forming a tire tread are disclosed. The tire includes a tread defining an inferior tread profile and a superior tread profile, the superior tread profile having a generally continuous curvature between an edge of contact and a top center point. The superior tread profile includes a plurality of control points and a plurality of splines. Each of the plurality of splines extends between at least two of the plurality of control points. Curvatures of adjacent splines are generally equal at each of the plurality of control points.

Tire with tread profile having continuous curvature and method for forming tire

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Bend, OR, United States of America

Patrick Jon Buresh