Tire building apparatus

Abstract

A tire building apparatus includes a forming drum to which tire constituting members are attached, annular bead setting rings movable in axial directions of the forming drum for grasping beads on their inner circumferential sides and driving the tire beads into predetermined positions on a tire constituting member, and annular turning-up holders movable in the axial directions of the forming drum for turning up parts of the tire constituting member on axially outer sides of bead driven positions about the tire beads with the aid of bladders. The bead setting rings and the turning-up holders are divided into a plurality of arcuate segments circumferentially spaced. The apparatus further comprises guiding units for supporting the arcuate segments radially movably, moving unit for moving the arcuate segments in radial directions in synchronism with each other into radial positions corresponding to a size of a tire to be formed and causing movements of the arcuate segments required for forming tires of various sizes, and regulating unit for regulating radially outward movements of the arcuate segments against reactions to which the arcuate segments are subjected from the bladders. The annular bead setting ring and the annular turning-up holder are integrally formed as a composite assembly having simultaneously functions of the guiding unit, moving unit and regulating unit.