A self-locking mold (100) includes sectors (108) circumferentially distributed around a shell (102) to resist internal pressure and remain in the closed position without the aid of additional components during curing. The mold (100) includes shoulder spacers (120) that, in the closed position of the mold, are arranged between the shell (102) and the sectors (108). An elastic means (130) is employed so as to avoid friction between them.

A segmented tire mold includes a device for controlling the expansion of the mold segments during the vulcanization of a tire. The expansion control device may be a cable or a ring that is wrapped around the outer circumference of the segmented tire mold and placed into tension in order to retain the mold segments in the proper position while the tire is vulcanized.

In manufacturing a pneumatic tire, a replaceable member having a smooth flat surface is attached to a mold body of a tire mold configured to vulcanize an unvulcanized tire into a predetermined shape by contact with the unvulcanized tire. A mold inner surface that forms the shape of a tire side surface portion includes a curved surface of the mold body and the flat surface surrounded by the curved surface. A vulcanized tire is produced by vulcanizing the unvulcanized tire by bringing the unvulcanized tire into contact with the mold inner surface. A two-dimensional code is engraved in a planar surface region of the vulcanized tire, which corresponds to the flat surface. In the two-dimensional code, a dot pattern is formed by two types of gray scale elements that are formed identifiable from each other by surface unevenness.

A mold for vulcanizing and molding a tire, this tire including a tread delimited by two sidewalls, the mold including a ring for molding the patterns of the tread of the tire and two shells for molding the sidewalls, the mold including an annular groove extending in a recessed manner in one of the shells and an insert housed in the groove, this insert having tire-molding surface features, characterized in that the molding surface features of the insert include tire tread pattern elements extending in line with the patterns of the tread.

A mold for vulcanizing and molding a tire, the tire having a tread delimited by two sidewalls, at least one of which is provided with a complex protuberance, the mold having a ring for molding the tread of the tire and two shells for molding the sidewalls, the mold having an annular insert that separates the mold into at least two portions, namely a ring portion and a shell portion in the radially lower region of the sidewalls, the insert having two adjacent concentric elements that are intended to mold the complex protuberance, namely a radially outer element associated with the ring, and a radially inner element associated with the shell.