The Goodyear & Tire Rubber Company

Russell A Carolla

Peter Ross Shepler

Thomas H Wells

William M Hopkins

Nathan A Gammon

Perry W Bell

Jon A Gerspacher

A pneumatic tire has first and second carcass plies. The first carcass ply has outer portions that are folded around axially spaced annular tensile members (bead cores) and terminate under a belt structure. A pair of shoulder plies are disposed in the upper sidewalls of the tire between the central portion of the second carcass ply and the lateral edge portions of the first carcass ply. A pair of lower sidewall plies are disposed in the lower sidewalls, and are folded around their respective annular tensile members, terminating radially inwardly of the axially widest part of the tire.

Pneumatic tire

The tread (28) of a tire (10) has a plurality of traction elements (34), each of which has a ground-engaging surface. The ground-engaging surfaces are convex in either an axial direction, a circumferential direction, or both directions. The convex paths followed by the ground-engaging surfaces vary between ground-engaging surfaces across the axial width of the tread in relationship to the unit tread pressure of the tire, and may also vary between ground-engaging surfaces that are axially aligned but located at different places around the circumference of the tire.

Tire treads with convex elements

A pneumatic vehicle tire (10) has a plurality of radial carcass plies (16,18). One of the carcass plies (16) has a high turn-up that ends under the belt reinforcing structure (42). The other carcass ply (18) has its lateral edges (34,36) located radially inwardly of the widest part of the tire (SD).

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Akron, OH, United States of America

Russell A Carolla