An automatic tire loader/unloader for stacking/unstacking tires in a trailer is disclosed. In one embodiment, a mobile base structure provides a support framework for a drive subassembly, conveyance subassembly, an industrial robot, a distance measurement subassembly, and a control subassembly. Under the operation of the control subassembly, tires advance through a powered transportation path to an industrial robot which places the tires within the trailer in a vertical stacking pattern or a rick-stacking pattern, for example. The control subassembly coordinates the selective articulated movement of the industrial robot and the activation of the drive subassembly based upon the distance measurement subassembly detecting objects, including tires, within a detection space, dimensions of the trailer provided to the control subassembly, and dimensions of the tires provided to the control subassembly.

Provided is a conveyor for conveying a tire component, in particular a tread for retreading, wherein the conveyor includes a support surface that extends in a direction of conveyance to support the tire component during conveyance in the direction of conveyance, wherein the support surface is provided with a surface structure that is arranged to contact seventy-five percent or less than seventy-five percent of the downwardly facing surface area of the tire component, wherein the support surface is arranged to be held stationary during conveyance of the tire component and wherein the conveyor is provided with one or more manipulators to manipulate the position of the tire component on the stationary support surface by sliding the tire component over the stationary support surface.

A suspended tire manipulator for use by an operator in lifting a tire having a mounting aperture includes a first handle attached to a first proximal arm. The first proximal arm is connected to a first distal arm at an obtuse angle. The manipulator includes a rotary balancer pivotally mounted to the first distal arm. The rotary balancer provides a pivoting torque to the first distal arm in response to operator movements raising and lowering the manipulator via manual force applied at the handle. A vertical support has a lower end and an upper end. The lower end connects to the rotary balancer. The manipulator includes a pair of gripper shoes. The pair of gripper shoes are slidably mounted on a rail and move in opposite inboard and outboard directions on the rail.

An apparatus suitable for both loading and unloading a round body, for example a tire, relative to a stationary shelf comprises, for loading, a body locating member defining a contact surface which confines in fixed location the round body between same and a shelf edge of the stationary shelf and a body lifting arrangement on which the body locating member is movable carried so as to displace the locating member upwardly relative to the shelf edge. For unloading the apparatus comprises an unloading arm defining a body contact surface that is displaceable in movement arranged perpendicular to a rotational axis of the body from a location outside a shelf storage space defined vertically above the shelf where the body is received when on the shelf, to the shelf storage space so as to displace the body off the shelf.

An orientation switching apparatus capable of placing a pallet which is in a vertical orientation and holding a group of tires in a stacked state into a horizontal orientation, and placing a pallet which is in a horizontal orientation and holding a group of tires in a horizontally arranged state into the vertical orientation, includes: a base that holds the pallet; a switching drive device which switches the orientation of the pallet held, by rotating the base; a standing device which pushes a leaning tire located at one end of the group of tires toward the other end to cause the leaning tire to stand; and a restricting device which restricts movement of the tires.

A system and method are disclosed for the transporting and separating of tires. The system and method use a rotating singulator that receives a plurality of tires into a feed hopper. The singulator retrieves the tires from the hopper and separates them so that a single tire is positioned between the rotating spokes of the singulator. The tires are lifted by the spokes to a feed tray and pivoted onto their side and laid flat onto the feed tray and conveyor for further processing.

A tire comprises a toroidal carcass, which has a central cavity and at least one body ply, which is partially folded onto itself and, hence, laterally has two turn-ups, each having an edge of the body ply resting against an intermediate portion of the body ply. Two annular beads are each surrounded by the body ply and having a bead core and a bead filler. An identification label is fixed in a removable manner, for example by gluing, and arranged in the area of an annular bead and supports a temporary RFID device, which can be read from a distance.

An automatic tire loader/unloader for stacking/unstacking tires in a trailer is disclosed. In one embodiment, a mobile base structure provides a support framework for a drive subassembly, conveyance subassembly, an industrial robot, a distance measurement subassembly, and a control subassembly. Under the operation of the control subassembly, tires advance through a powered transportation path to an industrial robot which places the tires within the trailer in a vertical stacking pattern or a rick-stacking pattern, for example. The control subassembly coordinates the selective articulated movement of the industrial robot and the activation of the drive subassembly based upon the distance measurement subassembly detecting objects, including tires, within a detection space, dimensions of the trailer provided to the control subassembly, and dimensions of the tires provided to the control subassembly.

An automatic tire loader/unloader for stacking/unstacking tires in a trailer is disclosed. In one embodiment, a mobile base structure provides a support framework for a drive subassembly, conveyance subassembly, an industrial robot, a distance measurement subassembly, and a control subassembly. Under the operation of the control subassembly, tires advance through a powered transportation path to an industrial robot which places the tires within the trailer in a vertical stacking pattern or a rick-stacking pattern, for example. The control subassembly coordinates the selective articulated movement of the industrial robot and the activation of the drive subassembly based upon the distance measurement subassembly detecting objects, including tires, within a detection space, dimensions of the trailer provided to the control subassembly, and dimensions of the tires provided to the control subassembly.

A conveyor for transporting and elevating articles and a method and system for conveying articles up inclines is provided. The conveyor has a conveyor belt and a plurality of support elements extending outward from the article-conveying surface of the conveyor belt advancing upward along the incline. The support elements prevent conveyed articles from sliding down the conveyor belt on the incline. The article-conveying surface of the conveyor belt may provide a low-friction retention surface to articles leaning away from the conveyor belt on the incline.