A plant for building tyres of at least two different models for vehicle wheels, includes at least a tyre building line, which in turn, includes: a plurality of work stations arranged according to a sequential series, each work station being adapted for building at least one structural component of each tyre and assembling at least one elementary component; at least one handling device for the tyres being processed on the respective forming supports associated to each work station; and at least one transfer device adapted for transferring the tyre being processed on its forming support from any first work station of the sequential series to any other second work station not adjacent thereto of the sequential series, so that the tyre being processed on its forming support only passes in the first and second work stations.

A tire production device includes a supply unit to supply a ribbon strip molded into a ribbon shape; and a tire molding unit to stick the ribbon strip onto an outer periphery of a drum having an inner peripheral shape of a tire, while rotating the drum, in which the supply unit has a sticking position at which the ribbon strip is stuck onto the outer periphery of the drum. The tire molding unit includes: the drum with a horizontal rotation axis; a turning table that turns the drum around a vertical axis while maintaining a horizontal rotation axis of the drum; and a parallel movement mechanism provided on the turning table to move the drum in parallel along a horizontal surface set to the turning table, and in which the rotation axis extends in a tangential direction centered on the axis line about which the turning table turns.

In a method of manufacturing a pneumatic tire, a placement unit is moved relative to a forming drum in a drum circumferential direction to repeatedly perform a one-side step of delivering a reinforcing wire in a folded back state in a length from a central portion toward one side in the width direction of the forming drum and compression bonding the reinforcing wire to an innerliner of an outer surface of the forming drum, and after delivering the reinforcing wire in the length toward the one side in the width direction as described above, perform an other-side step of delivering the reinforcing wire in a folded back state in a length from the central portion toward an other side in the width direction of the forming drum and compression bonding the reinforcing wire to an outer surface of the innerliner.

A toroidal forming drum and a process for building tyres. The toroidal forming drum (23) is expanded within a shaped carcass sleeve (12), for supporting the carcass sleeve (12) against an abutment surface (“S”) externally provided by the forming drum (23). An elementary semi-finished product (54a, 54b) is applied around the shaped carcass sleeve (12), by pressing the elementary semi-finished product (54a, 54b) towards the abutment surface (“S”). The abutment surface (“S”) has circumferential rows of solid portions (40) alternated with hollow portions (41). The solid portions (40), arranged along axially opposite circumferential edges of the abutment surface (“S”), have a transverse size comprised between 10% and 60% of a transverse size presented by the solid portions (40) arranged in proximity to an axial centreline plane of the abutment surface (“S”).

A toroidal forming drum and a process for building tyres. The toroidal forming drum (23) is expanded within a shaped carcass sleeve (12), for supporting the carcass sleeve (12) against an abutment surface (“S”) externally provided by the forming drum (23). An elementary semi-finished product (54a, 54b) is applied around the shaped carcass sleeve (12), by pressing the elementary semi-finished product (54a, 54b) towards the abutment surface (“S”). The abutment surface (“S”) has circumferential rows of solid portions (40) alternated with hollow portions (41). The solid portions (40), arranged along axially opposite circumferential edges of the abutment surface (“S”), have a transverse size comprised between 10% and 60% of a transverse size presented by the solid portions (40) arranged in proximity to an axial centreline plane of the abutment surface (“S”).

A method of manufacturing a tire including a reinforcing cord continuously wound a plurality of times in a tire circumferential direction or wound in the tire circumferential direction while continuously extending in a tire width direction.

A preceding carcass cord from one feeding unit is used to form a carcass layer while being fed to a forming drum, and a leading edge portion of a next carcass cord is paid out from another feeding unit in advance. When a predetermined length of the preceding carcass cord is fed, a splice mechanism is used to join the leading edge portion of the next carcass cord to the preceding carcass cord to make the leading edge portion of the next carcass cord continuous with the preceding carcass cord. Then, with the next carcass cord fed to the forming drum, formation of the carcass layer is continued to complete the carcass layer.

A curing press for tires includes an upper cavity having a vertically separable upper housing and a top mold. A lower cavity is mounted on a base and forms an arrangement to provide mold height adjustment during curing. The base includes a bottom bolster structure and a bottom mold. An indexing lock ring is rotatably arranged with the bottom bolster structure for closing or opening of the top and bottom molds. The bolster structure includes squeeze cylinders having piston rods to provide mold height adjustment. A squeeze retract stop assembly is provided to restrict vertically downward movement of the bottom mold during a tire curing process. The press includes at least one locking lever and at least one indexing lock pin adapted to connect the at least one locking lever to lock holes in the bottom bolster structure wherein each lock hole corresponds to a particular mold height.

A curing press for tires includes an upper cavity having a vertically separable upper housing and a top mold. A lower cavity is mounted on a base and forms an arrangement to provide mold height adjustment during curing. The base includes a bottom bolster structure and a bottom mold. An indexing lock ring is rotatably arranged with the bottom bolster structure for closing or opening of the top and bottom molds. The bolster structure includes squeeze cylinders having piston rods to provide mold height adjustment. A squeeze retract stop assembly is provided to restrict vertically downward movement of the bottom mold during a tire curing process. The press includes at least one locking lever and at least one indexing lock pin adapted to connect the at least one locking lever to lock holes in the bottom bolster structure wherein each lock hole corresponds to a particular mold height.

A method of manufacturing a tire product comprising: a step of preparing a core-assembly 4 of a rigid core 2 and a rubber member 3 formed on the rigid core 2, wherein the rigid core 2 is attached to a spindle device 7, and the rubber member 3 is to be vulcanization-molded, and constitutes all or a portion of a green tire, a step of conveying the core-assembly 4 from the spindle device 7 into a mold 50, and a step of vulcanization-molding the rubber member 3 on the rigid core 2 in the mold 50. The conveying of the core-assembly includes obtaining the weight of the rubber member 3 included in the core-assembly 4.

A method of manufacturing a tire product comprising: a step of preparing a core-assembly 4 of a rigid core 2 and a rubber member 3 formed on the rigid core 2, wherein the rigid core 2 is attached to a spindle device 7, and the rubber member 3 is to be vulcanization-molded, and constitutes all or a portion of a green tire, a step of conveying the core-assembly 4 from the spindle device 7 into a mold 50, and a step of vulcanization-molding the rubber member 3 on the rigid core 2 in the mold 50. The conveying of the core-assembly includes obtaining the weight of the rubber member 3 included in the core-assembly 4.