A process and an apparatus for cutting a continuous rubber-covered belt in a process for building tyres for vehicle wheels, wherein the apparatus includes a cutting group, in turn comprising: a knife formed by a first half-part and a second half-part and movable along a cutting direction that is tilted with respect to a supply direction of a rubber-covered belt placed beneath the knife. The process includes: lifting a lifting element placed below the continuous rubber-covered belt and at the cutting zone, until a portion of rubber-covered belt is lifted, and lowering the single first-half part of the knife, making it slide with respect to the second half-part.

A process and an apparatus for cutting a continuous rubber-covered belt in a process for building tyres for vehicle wheels, wherein the apparatus includes a cutting group, in turn comprising: a knife formed by a first half-part and a second half-part and movable along a cutting direction that is tilted with respect to a supply direction of a rubber-covered belt placed beneath the knife. The process includes: lifting a lifting element placed below the continuous rubber-covered belt and at the cutting zone, until a portion of rubber-covered belt is lifted, and lowering the single first-half part of the knife, making it slide with respect to the second half-part.

A front end feeding device 23 between a cutter 10 and a fixed-length feeding hand 30 that feeds a strip member 5 on an upstream side of the cutter 10 feeds a front end of the strip member 5 a short distance to a downstream side of the cutter 10, a front end grasping hand 60 on the downstream of the cutter 10 holds the front end of the strip member 5 fed the short distance, the fixed-length feeding hand 30 holds a part of the strip member 5 fed the short distance on the upstream side of the cutter 10, the front end grasping hand 60 and the fixed-length feeding hand 30 synchronously feed the strip member 5 a long distance to the downstream side, and the cutter 10 cuts the strip member 5 having been fed the long distance.

A front end feeding device 23 between a cutter 10 and a fixed-length feeding hand 30 that feeds a strip member 5 on an upstream side of the cutter 10 feeds a front end of the strip member 5 a short distance to a downstream side of the cutter 10, a front end grasping hand 60 on the downstream of the cutter 10 holds the front end of the strip member 5 fed the short distance, the fixed-length feeding hand 30 holds a part of the strip member 5 fed the short distance on the upstream side of the cutter 10, the front end grasping hand 60 and the fixed-length feeding hand 30 synchronously feed the strip member 5 a long distance to the downstream side, and the cutter 10 cuts the strip member 5 having been fed the long distance.

The present invention concerns a method of cutting a rubber web by means of ultrasound, in which a sonotrode comes into contact with the rubber web and the rubber web and the sonotrode are moved relative to each other while the sonotrode is excited with an ultrasonic vibration. To provide a method of the kind set forth in the opening part of this specification which allows reliable cutting of a rubber web and at the same time ensures that the wear of the tool and the converter is markedly reduced according to the invention it is proposed that a sonotrode comprising steel, preferably hardened steel, is used.

To accurately cut a ply for a tire. It is a cutting device 1 for cutting a ply 10 for a tire in which a plurality of cords 12 parallelly arranged at fixed pitches are coated with an unvulcanized topping rubber 10. It has a pitch increasing means 2 for increasing the pitches of the cords 12 by pressing the ply 10 from a second surface 10b side to a first surface 10b side of the ply 10 so as to stretch the ply 10 toward the first surface 10a side; and a ply cutting means 3 disposed on the first surface 10a side of the ply 10, for cutting the stretched portion of the ply 10 along the cords 12.

To accurately cut a ply for a tire. It is a cutting device 1 for cutting a ply 10 for a tire in which a plurality of cords 12 parallelly arranged at fixed pitches are coated with an unvulcanized topping rubber 10. It has a pitch increasing means 2 for increasing the pitches of the cords 12 by pressing the ply 10 from a second surface 10b side to a first surface 10b side of the ply 10 so as to stretch the ply 10 toward the first surface 10a side; and a ply cutting means 3 disposed on the first surface 10a side of the ply 10, for cutting the stretched portion of the ply 10 along the cords 12.

In one embodiment, a transfer system is configured to move a portion of a strip within a belt forming system. The transfer system may comprise a first segment comprising a main body adapted to engage a strip. A plurality of slots may be disposed in a surface of the main body. Fluid communication may be provided from a fluid supply to the plurality of slots, such that the fluid communication with the plurality of slots enables holding the strip against the main body or blowing the strip off the main body. The plurality of slots may be arranged in a series of rows, wherein a first slot in a first row is positioned directly adjacent to a second slot in the first row. First and second strips of different dimensions may be transferred without any mechanical adjustments being made to the main body.

Disclosed is a tire building apparatus and a method for joining or cutting tire components. The tire building apparatus includes a rocking member that is movable in a rocking plane in a rocking motion along a rocking line, a translation guide extending parallel to the rocking line and a carriage that is displaceable along the translation guide, wherein the rocking member has a convex edge that defines a minor arc of a circle and extends up to a rotation center, wherein the rocking member is supported by the carriage at the rotation center and is angularly displaceable with respect to the carriage about a rotation axis extending through the rotation center.

Disclosed is an apparatus and method for correcting misalignment of a strip, wherein the apparatus includes a correction device with an alignment surface for supporting a strip in a support plane, wherein the support plane extends at a support angle with respect to a first vertical plane in a range of five to thirty degrees, wherein the support plane intersects with a second vertical plane that is perpendicular to the first vertical plane at an intersecting line, wherein the correction device further includes one or more correction elements for exerting a displacement force onto said strip in a correction direction parallel to the support plane and transverse to the intersecting line.