In order to improve tire production efficiency, there is provided a conveying apparatus that conveys a tire-accompanied rigid core in a lying-sideways position to a loading position P1, a preheating device for preheating at a preheating position P2, a vulcanizing device for vulcanizing at a vulcanizing position P3, a cooling device for cooling at a cooling position P4, and a transferring device. The transferring device has a turning arm capable of turning horizontally around an axis of turning and movable up and down, and transfers the tire-accompanied rigid core from and to the conveying device, the preheating device, the vulcanizing device, and the cooling device at the positions P1 to P4. The loading position P1, the preheating position P2, the vulcanizing position P3 and the cooling position P4 are arranged on the same circumferential line centered on the axis of turning.

A pneumatic tire for resonance noise reduction, which includes a plurality of resonance noise-reducing members that are disposed along the circumferential direction of the inner liner of a tire, and are formed to protrude from the inner liner so as to reduce the interference of the resonance noises generated inside the tire. The resonance noise-reducing members are formed at an irregular interval of disposition along the circumferential direction of the inner liner.

A tire is provided, which includes: a circular tire frame formed from a resin material containing an olefin resin; and an exterior member formed from a thermoplastic rubber vulcanizate which contains an ethylene-propylene-diene rubber and a polyethylene-based resin, and in which a content of the ethylene-propylene-diene rubber is from 20% by mass to 45% by mass with respect to a total mass of the thermoplastic rubber vulcanizate, and a fluidity is from 1.0 g/10 min to 60 g/10 min.

The facility comprises a tire-building station that is configured to form an uncured tire on a core. A curing station is configured to cure the assembly formed by the core and the uncured tire so as to obtain a cured annular tire. An extraction station is configured to separate, after the curing operation, the cured tire from the core. The curing station has a first, heating, thermal source which presses against the exchange face of the core for the curing operation and is then dissociated from the core and remains in the curing station in order to leave the exchange face free again when the core and the cured tire are transferred to the extraction station so that a second, refrigerating, thermal source of the extraction station takes the place of the first thermal source in contact with the exchange face of the core so as to cool the core.

A method for manufacturing a tire T comprises a step for forming a green tire on the outside of a rigid core mold 2, a step for vulcanization-molding and obtaining a tire-accompanying rigid core mold G, a step for setting, at an assembly station P3, a core 5 taken out from the tire-accompanied rigid core mold G, and a removal and assembly step for removing one core segment 3 from the tire T by moving in inwardly in the tire radial direction from the tire-accompanying rigid core mold G and mounting it on the core 5 set at the assembly station. The removal and assembly step is performed for every core segment in the tire, whereby a rigid core mold 2 is assembled at the assembly station P3, while removing the rigid core mold 2 from the tire T.

The tooling is suitable for manufacturing a toroidal tire that has a crown, a first annular bead and a second annular bead, together with a first sidewall and a second sidewall. The, tool has a core which is provided with groove-type passages that are suitable for receiving reinforcing elements, referred to as stays. The stays are designed to be permanently incorporated into the structure of the tire and to each extend in the cavity of the tire, thereby connecting a crown anchor point situated in the crown of the tire to a lateral anchor point situated in one of the sidewalls or beads of the tire.

An inner mold mechanism for molding an annular structure according to an aspect of the invention comprises first inner mold segments and second inner mold segments, the first and second inner mold segments alternating with each other about a mold axis; a first axially movable actuator, the first actuator being mechanically connected to the first inner mold segments so as to move the first inner mold segments radially when the first actuator is moved axially; a second axially movable actuator, the second actuator being mechanically connected to the second inner mold segments so as to move the second inner mold segments radially when the first actuator is moved axially.

A plant and a process for producing tires wherein the process includes the steps of: a) building a green tire on a toroidal support in a building line of a tire production plant; b) transferring the green tire and the relevant toroidal support from the building line of the production plant to a first holding unit; c) transferring the green tire and the relevant toroidal support from the first holding unit to a vulcanization line of the production plant; d) molding and vulcanization the green tire in the vulcanization line of the production plant; e) separating the molded and vulcanized tire from the relevant toroidal support; f) transferring the toroidal support, separated from the relevant tire, from the vulcanization line to the first holding unit; and g) transferring the toroidal support, separated from the relevant tire, from the first holding unit to the building line of the production plant, wherein steps b) and g) are carried out through a first transfer device and steps c) and f) are carried out through a second transfer device different from the first transfer device.

A technique for easily taking out a main body of a core mold is proposed. An annular core-mold main portion 11 having a molding surface 18 for shaping an inner surface of a pneumatic tire is included, and the core-mold main portion 11 is composed of a plurality of segments each of which is taken out toward the inside in a radial direction. In the molding surface 18 of the core-mold main portion 11, a ratio Bd/W of a maximum width W lying in regions for shaping sidewall portions and a width Bd in the tire axial direction measured at toe-end shaping positions 18e for shaping toe ends of bead portions is not less than 0.80. In an inside zone 30 from the toe-end shaping position 18e of the molding surface 18 to the position of the maximum width W, the angle of a tangent T drawn to the molding surface 18 is not more than 15 degrees. The inside zone 30 includes an oblique part 32 in which the angle of the tangent T is 30 to 45 degrees, and a ratio h/H of a length h in a radial direction of the oblique part 32 and a length H from the toe-end shaping position 18e to an intersecting point P of a line drawn in the tire radial direction from the toe-end shaping position 18e outwardly in the radial direction with the molding surface 18 is less than 0.25.

A process for manufacturing a tire by the steps of producing and assembling the tire structural elements on a toroidal support to form a green tire, and the step of precuring at least an inner surface of the green tire by heating the toroidal support. The radially inner surface of the toroidal support is provided with a plurality of protruding elements to reduce the time required for the outer surface of the toroidal support to reach a temperature which is suitable for ensuring a uniform and homogeneous precuring of the inner surface of the green tire, preferably of the inner surface and the bead regions of the green tire.