Devices with internal flexibility sipes, such as slits, provide improved flexibility, improved cushioning to absorb shock and/or shear forces, and improved stability of support. Siped devices can be used in any existing product that provides or utilizes cushioning and stability. These products include human and other footwear, both soles and uppers, as well as orthotics; athletic, occupational and medical equipment and apparel; padding or cushioning, such as for equipment or tool handles, as well as furniture; balls; tires; and any other structural or support elements in a mechanical, architectural, or any other product.

Tread for heavy-duty vehicle tire, having tread surface with at least one cavity forming a hidden channel which forms an additional groove after an amount of wear, each channel extended towards tread surface in the new state along its entire length by a sipe of small width, at least one channel having plurality of extensions from this channel towards tread surface to place the channel and the outside of the tread into communication from an amount of partial wear of the tread, each extension being a secondary channel having a first opening of elongate shape with a minimum dimension I0 and a maximum dimension Lo that opens onto tread surface and a second opening that opens into channel, wherein for at least one channel provided with extensions, each first opening of these extensions is formed by a side of the sipe that extends the channel.

A tire (1) comprising a tread (8), this tread comprising at least one channel (2), at least one wear indicator (3) disposed on the bottom of the channel (2), the wear indicator comprising a contact face (7) intended to come into contact with a road surface when the tire reaches a wear limit, the channel (2) comprising a texture (4) surrounding the wear indicator (3) and contrasting with the contact face (7) of the wear indicator.

The device for monitoring the wear of a tread during running comprises at least one internal cavity intended to form a void opening on to a tread surface after predefined partial wearing of the tread, this tread comprising a wear limit corresponding to a maximum thickness of wearable material, this device comprising a measurement well opening on to the tread surface, this measurement well having a bottom formed of a first part and of a second part which are offset from one another in the depth, these two parts of the bottom being situated at different distances with respect to the tread surface when new.

Provided is a motorcycle tire having improved wet performance during straight running without compromising other performances. The motorcycle tire is a motorcycle tire whose rotation direction when mounted on a vehicle is designated. A main groove (10) at least including a first groove (11) and a second groove (12) having different inclination directions, and a sub groove (20) are provided on a tire tread, the main groove and the sub groove are alternately repeatedly formed in the tire circumferential direction line symmetrically with respect to the tire equator and are arranged offset in the tire circumferential direction between one side and the other side in the tire width direction, and the main groove and the sub groove include, per one pitch of pattern on one side in the tire width direction within the contact region S during straight running, two or more outward grooves extending obliquely from the tire equator side to the outside in the tire width direction toward the designated reverse rotation direction of the rotation direction and one or more inward grooves extending obliquely from the outside in the tire width direction to the tire equator side toward the designated reverse rotation direction of the rotation direction.

A tire tread is provided having a layered design that includes bridged and unbridged circumferential grooves during earlier stages of tread life while transverse and unbridged circumferential grooves are provided at later stages of tread life. Together, the combination of grooves can provide desired wet adherence performance without unacceptable compromises of tread wear and/or rolling resistance. Pockets can also be provided at the end of the transverse grooves to increase the volume available for receipt of water during wet traction.

A tread (12) for a tire (10) which has a tread surface intended to contact a road surface during running. The tread (12) has at least one cavity opening onto the tread surface when new, called external cavity (14), which has length L, width W and central plane P. The external cavity (14) has bottom (16) and at least two opposite lateral walls (18a, 18b) extending from bottom (16) and a mechanism (20) for ejecting stones during running, which has two protuberances (22a, 22b) from bottom (16) of external cavity, which are disposed at least partially opposite one another at a distance d. Each protuberance (22a, 22b) is inclined respectively from a lateral wall (18a, 18b) of the external cavity (14) towards the central plane P. The distance d between the two protuberances (22a, 22b) is less than or equal to 10% of width W of external cavity (14).

Tread (1) for a tire of a heavy-duty vehicle, having a tread surface (10), this tread (1) comprising, near to each of its edges (11), a plurality of open wells (2) on the tread surface when new, these open wells (2) of depth Pmax being arranged circumferentially with a mean distance D between two consecutive open wells; each open well (2) being delimited by two main faces (21, 22) facing one another, this tread being such that each open well (2) is connected to at least one hidden cavity (32) formed within the tread, this hidden cavity (32) opening into a main face (21, 22) of said well.

A heavy truck tire tread (12) is provided that has a partially hidden longitudinal groove (22) with an undersurface channel (24) engaged by a longitudinal sipe (26). The partially hidden longitudinal groove (22) has a surface opening (28) that extends from a surface of the tread to the undersurface channel (24). The tread (12) has at least one of two features. The first feature is that the surface opening (28) extends from the surface to the undersurface channel (24) at an angle to the thickness direction such that the surface opening (28) at the surface is forward of the surface opening (28) at the undersurface channel (24) in the rolling direction (20). The second feature is that a lateral sipe (32) engages the surface opening (28) so that the first end is at the surface opening (28), and the second end is forward of the first end in the rolling direction (20).

A tire having a tread with a novel groove structure for enhanced wet and snow traction is provided. The groove includes an upper portion and a lower portion that can provide enhanced wet and snow traction over various stages of tread wear without unnecessary compromise to the tread rigidity. The lower portion includes one more voids for the accumulation and/or evacuation of fluids.