A tread pattern of a pneumatic tire includes: first and second circumferential main grooves; a first circumferential narrow groove between the first and second circumferential main grooves, the first circumferential narrow groove having a narrower width than the first and second circumferential main grooves; an intermediate lug groove extending from the second circumferential main groove toward the first circumferential narrow groove, the intermediate lug groove being closed without reaching the first circumferential narrow groove; and a sipe extending from the closed end of the intermediate lug groove to connect the closed end with the first circumferential narrow groove. No lug grooves are between the first circumferential main groove and the first circumferential narrow groove, and a groove wall of the first circumferential main groove on a side of the first circumferential narrow groove circumnavigates without interruption in the tire circumferential direction.

Disclosed herein is a tread for a tire. The tread includes at least one elongate block of rubbery material of width W and length L with L>>W. This elongate block extends in a circumferential direction (X) when the tread is mounted on the tire. The elongate block includes a contact surface intended to come into contact with the ground and a first lateral wall and a second lateral wall delimiting this contact surface. The elongate block includes a plurality of sipes opening onto the contact surface of the elongate block, with each sine extending in an oblique direction opening onto the first lateral wall and onto the second lateral wall. The sipes are distributed over the contact surface of the block in such a way that when one sipe reaches the second lateral wall another sipe starts out from the first lateral wall, at a same circumferential level (N) on the elongate block. With the sipes delimiting sub-blocks in the elongate block, at least two of these sub-blocks are configured differently in the tread.

In a pneumatic tire 10 according to the present invention, as an average block edge component Dball is defined by an average of edge components of all blocks against a tire circumferential direction, an average sipe edge component Dsall is defined by an average of edge components of all sipes against the tire circumferential direction and an average block rigidity G is defined by an average of the rigidity of all blocks, a relation of 2.20 (mm).sup.3/N?(Dball/Dsall)/G?4.00 (mm).sup.3/N is fulfilled.

In a pneumatic tire 10 according to the present invention, as an average sipe interval h is defined by an average interval of sipes adjacent to each other in a tire circumferential direction and an average pitch length L is defined by an average length of a repeating unit of blocks in the tire circumferential direction, a relation of 0.130?(h/L)?0.400 is fulfilled.

In a pneumatic tire 10 according to the present invention, as an average block edge component Dball is defined by an average of edge components of all blocks against a tire circumferential direction and an average sipe edge component Dsall is defined by an average of edge components of all sipes against the tire circumferential direction, a relation of 0.15?(Dball/Dsall)?0.48 is fulfilled.

A pneumatic tire comprises a tread surface comprising main grooves extending in a tire circumferential direction, at least two of the main grooves adjacent in the tire circumferential direction having a wave shape with periodic oscillation; adjacent land portions in a tire lateral direction formed by the main grooves; lug grooves disposed in a row in the tire circumferential direction in the land portion formed between the wave-shaped main grooves, the lug grooves intersecting the tire circumferential direction and communicating with the wave-shaped main grooves at both ends; and narrow grooves disposed between pairs of the lug grooves adjacent in the tire circumferential direction in a row in the tire circumferential direction, the narrow grooves intersecting the tire circumferential direction, communicating with one of the main grooves at a first end, terminating within the land portion at a second end, and having a narrower groove width than the lug grooves.

A method of mounting a tire on a vehicle includes providing a tire having a first side, a second side, and a circumferential tread disposed about the tire. The first side defines a first forward rotation direction that is a rotation of the tire in a counterclockwise direction when the tire is mounted on a vehicle in a first orientation and viewed from the first side. The second side defines a second forward rotation direction of the tire that is a rotation of the tire in the counterclockwise direction when the tire is mounted on the vehicle in a second orientation opposite the first orientation and viewed from the first side. The circumferential tread includes a plurality of tread elements. At least one of the tread elements includes a sipe arrangement that causes the tire to exhibit a first tire performance when the tire is mounted on the vehicle in the first orientation and rotated in the first forward rotation direction. The sipe arrangement causes the tire to exhibit a second tire performance that is different from the first tire performance when the tire is mounted on the vehicle in the second orientation and rotated in the second forward rotation direction. The method further includes mounting the tire on the vehicle in the first orientation for driving the vehicle in a first set of conditions, and mounting the tire on the vehicle in the second orientation for driving the vehicle in a second set of conditions.

A heavy duty pneumatic tire includes a tread surface having, on at least a section thereof, a plurality of circumferential-direction grooves extending along a tread circumferential line and land portions defined either by the circumferential-direction grooves or by the circumferential-direction grooves and tread ground contact edges. The land portions include at least one partitioned land portion in which a plurality of narrow width-direction grooves extending in a tread width direction are provided. A prescribed internal pressure is at least 750 kPa. A depth of the circumferential-direction grooves, represented by H, satisfies a relationship 7 mmH13 mm. A tread circumferential-direction spacing of the narrow width-direction grooves, represented by W, satisfies a relationship 5 mmW20 mm.

Tire tread having a central part (I) made from at least one first rubber compound and having at least one circumferential rib (121-123) formed of a plurality of blocks (1210) separated by sipes; a first and a second lateral part (II and III) made of at least a second and third rubber compound, and having a circumferential rib (131,141) formed by a plurality of blocks (1310,1410), separated by sipes, wherein the at least one second and third rubber compounds have a value of tan at 23 C.at a frequency of 10 Hz and an elongation of 10% of less than 0.25, wherein the complex modulus G*(T) of the at least one first rubber compound is greater than the complex moduli G*(T) of at least one second and third rubber compounds for all temperatures T greater than or equal to 0 and less than or equal to 60 C.

A pneumatic tire has a tread portion provided with an asymmetrical tread pattern and comprising an inboard shoulder land portion, an inboard shoulder main groove, an inboard middle land portion, an inboard crown main groove, a center land portion, an outboard crown main groove, an outboard middle land portion, an outboard shoulder main groove, and an outboard shoulder land portion. The inboard middle land portion is provided with inboard middle axial grooves extending from the inboard shoulder main groove and each comprising a main portion and a turnback portion. The inboard shoulder land portion is provided with inboard shoulder sipes extending from the inboard shoulder main groove.