A method and a device for vulcanizing tires. An expandable bellows is used for pressing the tire being vulcanized against segments of a mold. The bellows is arranged on a carrier which has an annular shape.

After a support structure (12) has been circumferentially positioned around an annular component (11) of a tyre (2), gripping elements (16) carried by the support structure (12) and circumferentially distributed around a central axis (X) are radially approached to the annular component (11) bringing into contact therewith a plurality of feeler pins (22), slidably carried by each of said gripping elements (16). Once contact is made, the radially approaching of the gripping elements (16) to the annular component (11) continues by sliding the gripping elements themselves along the feeler pins (22). All the feeler pins (22) can therefore come into contact with the annular component (11), copying the shape of the outer surface. The feeler pins (22) are then locked with respect to the gripping elements (16) in order to allow the removal of a support drum (10) from the annular component (11) and support the latter in the absence of normal stresses.

A blank stand for receiving and/or temporarily storing at least one tire blank and to a logistics system for realizing a flow of material of tire blanks to tire manufacturing plants with at least one blank stand, wherein the blank stand and the further components of the logistics system are designed such that handling and transport functions are supported in different height levels relative to a floor level of the hall.

A transfer ring for use in the manufacture of vehicle tires, the transfer ring including a radially expandable and collapsible segmented cylindrical gripping surface defined by a plurality of inwardly facing arcuate surfaces mounted for radial movement toward and away from a central axis of the cylindrical gripping surface, wherein each arcuate surface is mounted to a corresponding set of driven linkages comprising first, second, and third members, each set of driven linkages further including a block-and-rail cam follower secured to at least one of the first, second, and third members and configured to cooperate with the first, second, and third members to limit movement of the arcuate surface to linear movement radially toward and away from the central axis of the cylindrical gripping surface.

A method of manufacturing a pneumatic tire includes placing a bladder device including a vulcanization bladder at a holding position outside a mold; inserting the vulcanization bladder in a green tire with a tire axis central position of the green tire and a shaft central position of the vulcanization bladder aligned; aligning a central position in a tire width direction of the green tire and a central position in a shaft direction of the vulcanization bladder; supporting the green tire with the vulcanization bladder by inflating the vulcanization bladder to a predetermined green tire supportable internal pressure; bringing the vulcanization bladder in contact with an inner surface of the green tire; transporting the green tire together with the bladder device to the vulcanization device; setting the green tire with the bladder device in the mold; inflating the vulcanization bladder to a predetermined vulcanization internal pressure; and vulcanizing the green tire.

A post-cure inflation machine for processing a tire may include a tire holder shaft. The tire holder shaft may include a chuck to secure the tire to the tire holder shaft. A hollow passage may be defined in the tire holder shaft. A spray nozzle may be connected to a spray shaft that is telescopically disposed in the hollow passage of the tire holder shaft. The spray nozzle may extend to spray an air barrier material onto the tire.

A green tyre (2) for bicycles is built, comprising at least one carcass ply (4) having axially opposite end flaps (4a) engaged with respective bead cores (5) and a tread band (6) applied in a radially outer position around said at least one carcass ply (4). The built tyre (2) removed from the building drum, is profiled so as to translate the tread band (6) in a radially outer direction with respect to the bead cores (5), so as to impart a cross-sectional convex profile to the tyre (2) in a radially outer direction. The profiled tire is engaged by means of a transfer member (31) comprising a gripping device (30) which holds it hanging and loads it into a vulcanisation mould (101) by axially positioning an axial centreline plane (M) of the green tyre at an axial reference (51) arranged at a predetermined height along a reference axis (K) of a central body (103) of the vulcanisation mould (101).

In building tyres, an intermediate portion of a carcass structure is built at a time on a respective forming drum within an intermediate forming line. The forming drum with the intermediate portion of the carcass structure is made available at a first transfer location. The intermediate portion of the carcass structure is completed through n completion locations with n1 and then transferred for the subsequent assembling with a crown structure to a second transfer location. At an operating moment in which the first transfer location is occupied by a forming drum coming from the intermediate forming line or intended for the intermediate forming line, from one to n locations selected from the n completion locations and the second transfer location are occupied by respective forming drums.

A transport system prevents swinging of a lift stage at the time of ascent and descent, while appropriately supporting an article shifted from the reference position. The transport system includes a transport device that transfers a green tire to and from a rack part. The transport device includes a lift stage, a support part, and a guided part. The lift stage is provided to be movable upward and downward. The support part is provided on the lift stage and supports an upper inner wall of the green tire from a lower side. The guided part is provided on the lift stage. The rack part is provided with a guide part having a lower portion defining a first gap with the guided part and an upper portion defining a second gap with the guided part.

Disclosed is a transport device, an applicator and a method for transporting a tire component in a transport direction. The transport device includes at least three conveyors extending mutually parallel in the transport direction and side-by-side in a lateral direction perpendicular to the transport direction to form a combined conveying surface for conveying the tire component in the transport direction, wherein the at least three conveyors include an intermediate conveyor, a first side conveyor on a first side of the intermediate conveyor in the lateral direction and a second side conveyor on a second side of the intermediate conveyor in the lateral direction, opposite to the first side, wherein the intermediate conveyor, the first side conveyor and the second side conveyor are movable at different speeds with respect to each other in a direction parallel to the transport direction.