MOTORBIKE TIRE

Abstract

A motorcycle tire having improved water draining capacity and achieving both excellent dry and wet performance. A motorcycle tire including an annularly formed tread; in which the tread has main grooves; and in which at least one main groove of the main grooves has two or more widened portions that are enlarged outward in the groove width direction in at least one of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction.

Claims

1. A motorcycle tire, comprising an annularly formed tread, wherein the tread has main grooves, and wherein at least one of the main grooves has two or more widened portions that are enlarged outward in a groove width direction in at least one of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction.

2. The motorcycle tire according to claim 1, wherein the at least one main groove becomes shallower outward in a tread width direction.

3. The motorcycle tire according to claim 1, wherein the at least one main groove has three or more widened portions enlarged outward in the groove width direction and has at least one section where the extending length along the groove wall between the tops of adjacent widened portions is 0.3 to 50% longer than the length of the virtual straight line connecting the tops of the adjacent widened portions.

4. The motorcycle tire according to claim 1, wherein the at least one main groove extends from a center area to a shoulder area.

5. The motorcycle tire according to claim 1, wherein the angles of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction are ±20° relative to the perpendicular direction at the bottom of the at least one main groove.

6. The motorcycle tire according to claim 1, wherein the number of the widened portions is 20 or less.

7. The motorcycle tire according to claim 1, wherein the at least one main groove is provided with a ridge in the bottom of the widened portions.

8. The motorcycle tire according to claim 2, wherein the at least one main groove extends from a center area to a shoulder area.

9. The motorcycle tire according to claim 2, wherein the angles of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction are ±20° relative to the perpendicular direction at the bottom of the at least one main groove.

10. The motorcycle tire according to claim 2, wherein the number of the widened portions is 20 or less.

11. The motorcycle tire according to claim 2, wherein the at least one main groove is provided with a ridge in the bottom of the widened portions.

12. The motorcycle tire according to claim 3, wherein the at least one main groove extends from a center area to a shoulder area.

13. The motorcycle tire according to claim 3, wherein the angles of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction are ±20° relative to the perpendicular direction at the bottom of the at least one main groove.

14. The motorcycle tire according to claim 3, wherein the number of the widened portions is 20 or less.

15. The motorcycle tire according to claim 3, wherein the at least one main groove is provided with a ridge in the bottom of the widened portions.

16. The motorcycle tire according to claim 4, wherein the angles of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction are ±20° relative to the perpendicular direction at the bottom of the at least one main groove.

17. The motorcycle tire according to claim 4, wherein the number of the widened portions is 20 or less.

18. The motorcycle tire according to claim 4, wherein the at least one main groove is provided with a ridge in the bottom of the widened portions.

19. The motorcycle tire according to claim 5, wherein the number of the widened portions is 20 or less.

20. The motorcycle tire according to claim 5, wherein the at least one main groove is provided with a ridge in the bottom of the widened portions.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] FIG. 1 is one exemplary partial developed view showing the tread in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0014] FIG. 2 is another exemplary partial developed view showing the tread in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0015] FIG. 3 is one exemplary plan view showing a main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0016] FIG. 4 is another exemplary plan view showing a main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0017] FIG. 5 is yet another exemplary plan view showing a main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0018] FIG. 6 is still another exemplary plan view showing a main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0019] FIG. 7 is a half cross-sectional view in the tire width direction of a motorcycle tire in one preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] FIG. 8 is a half cross-sectional view in the tire width direction of a motorcycle tire in another preferred embodiment of the present invention.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0021] Now, the motorcycle tire of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The tire of the present invention has an annularly formed tread. FIG. 1 is one exemplary partial developed view showing the tread in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention, which is a front tire. FIG. 2 is another exemplary partial developed view showing the tread in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention, which is a rear tire. The arrows in FIGS. 1 and 2 represent the rotational direction of the tire.

The tire 10 or 20 of the present invention has a tread 11 or 21 with main grooves 12 or 22. At least one of the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction of at least one main groove of the main grooves 12 or 22 in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention has two or more, preferably three or more, widened portions enlarged outward in the groove width direction (hereinafter also referred to as “main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions”). FIG. 3 depicts one exemplary plan view showing the main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention, while FIG. 4 depicts another exemplary plan view showing the main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention.

[0022] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, in the main groove 12a having two or more widened portions, a groove wall 12A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction is a curvilinear shape having widened portions 12aa, 12ab, and 12ac and a groove wall 12B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction is a curvilinear shape having widened portions 12ad, 12ae, and 12af. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, in the main groove 22a having two or more widened portions, a groove wall 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction is a curvilinear shape having widened portions 22aa, 22ab, 22ac, and 22ad and a groove wall 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction is a curvilinear shape having widened portions 22ae, 22af, 22ag, and 22ah.

[0023] In this way, the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention can achieve improved water draining capacity by providing at least one of the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove walls 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction of at least one of the main grooves 12 with two or more widened portions. When driving on a wet ground, the tire allows water to be temporarily contained in the widened portions and compressed upon ground contact, thereby draining the water toward the shoulder area like a pump. In other words, water entering into a main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions moves along the main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions, and is drained along the extension lines of the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction, which results in improved water draining capacity as compared with a main groove 12 that linearly drains water.

[0024] Main grooves 12a and 12b having two or more widened portions have a larger amount (length) of edges than linear main grooves, allowing more edges to be in contact with the ground, which results in improvement of the grip performance, braking performance, and traction performance. Preferably, the tires 10 and 20 of the present invention have a structure comprising at least one section where the extending length along the groove wall between the tops of adjacent widened portions is 0.3 to 50% longer than the length of the virtual straight line connecting the tops of the adjacent widened portions. Preferably, for example, at least one main groove has three or more widened portions enlarged outward in the groove width direction and has at least one section where the extending length along the groove wall between the tops of adjacent widened portions is 0.3 to 50% longer than the length of the virtual straight line connecting the tops of the adjacent widened portions.

[0025] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a structure is preferable where at least one of the extending lengths along the groove walls between the top of the widened portion 12aa and the top of the widened portion 12ab, between the top of the widened portion 12ab and the top of the widened portion 12ac, between the top of the widened portion 12ad and the top of the widened portion 12ae, and between the top of the widened portion 12ae and the top of the widened portion 12af, in the main grooves 12a having two or more widened portions, are 0.3 to 50% longer than the corresponding virtual straight lines connecting the tops of the widened portions. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, a structure is preferable where at least one of the lengths along the groove walls between the top of the widened portion 22aa and the top of the widened portion 22ab, between the top of the widened portion 22ab and the top of the widened portion 22ac, between the top of the widened portion 22ac and the top of the widened portion 22ad, between the top of the widened portion 22ae and the top of the widened portion 22af, between the top of the widened portion 22af and the top of the widened portion 22ag, and between the top of the widened portion 22ag and the top of the widened portion 22ah, in the main groove 22a having two or more widened portions, are 0.3 to 50% longer than the corresponding virtual straight lines connecting the tops of the widened portions.

[0026] It is noted that, although the tires 10 and 20 of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, have the same numbers of widened portions in the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and of widened portions in the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction, the tire of the present invention does not necessarily have the same numbers of widened portions in the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and of widened portions in the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction. FIGS. 5 and 6 depict other exemplary plan views each showing a main groove in a motorcycle tire according to the present invention. The main groove 32a having two or more widened portions shown in FIG. 5 has two widened portions (widened portions 32aa and 32ab) in the groove wall 32A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction, and three widened portions (widened portions 32ac, 32ad, and 32ae) in the groove wall 32B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction. On the other hand, the main groove 42a having two or more widened portions shown in FIG. 6 has no widened portion in the groove wall 42A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction because of its monotonically linear shape, and three widened portions (widened portions 42aa, 42ab, and 42ac) in the groove wall 42B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction.

[0027] Preferably, main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention become shallow outward in the tread width direction. FIG. 7 shows the half cross-sectional view in the tire width direction of a motorcycle tire according to one preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 shows the half cross-sectional view in the tire width direction of a motorcycle tire according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention. This structure can ensure the grip performance of the tread 11 or 21 during cambering. To better obtain such an effect, a main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions preferably has about 40 to 95% groove depth at the outer end in the tread width direction as compared with that at the inner end in the tread width direction.

[0028] The depth of a main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention may gradually decrease outward in the tread width direction, or may stepwisely become shallow outward in the tread width direction. The tire 10 or 20 of the present invention may also have main grooves 12b or 22b other than the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions, which main grooves 12b or 22b may also have such a structure that the groove bottom becomes shallow outward in the tread width direction. In this case, all the main grooves 12b or 22b other than the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions may become shallow outward in the tread width direction, or only some of the main grooves 12b or 22b may become shallow outward in the tread width direction.

[0029] The positions of the main grooves 12a and 12b having two or more widened portions in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention are not particularly restricted. The main grooves 12a and 12b may be positioned only in the center area or the shoulder areas. Preferably, as shown, the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions extend from the center area to the shoulder areas. This structure can further improve the water draining capacity during straight driving and cambering.

[0030] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the main grooves 12a having two or more widened portions, which extend over the center line CL, may be ended before the center line CL. The main grooves 12a having two or more widened portions may also extend from one shoulder area to the other shoulder area over the center area in the tread 11. In this case, the main grooves 12a having two or more widened portions may be ended before the ends of the tread in the width direction, or may extend to the ends in the width direction to form an opening. Similarly in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the main grooves 22a having two or more widened portions, which are ended before the center line CL, may extend over the center line CL. The main grooves 22a having two or more widened portions may also extend from one shoulder area to the other shoulder area over the center area in the tread 21. Similarly in this case, the main grooves 22a having two or more widened portions may be ended before the ends of the tread in the width direction, or may extend to the ends in the width direction to form an opening.

[0031] Preferably, the angles of the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction in a main groove having two or more widened portions in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention are ±20° relative to the perpendicular direction at the bottom of the main groove having two or more widened portions. Formation of the groove walls of the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions in a nearly perpendicular state allows for appropriate rigidity of the tread 11 or 21, resulting in improvement of the braking performance and the traction performance.

[0032] Preferably, in addition, the number of widened portions of a main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention is 20 or less. This is because a larger number of widened portions may contrarily impair the water draining capacity of main grooves. The number of widened portions is more preferably 10 or less, and still more preferably 5 or less.

[0033] Preferably, in addition, the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention are provided with ridges in the bottoms of the widened portions. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions can be provided with ridges 13 or 23 in the groove bottoms of the widened portions, exhibiting better water draining along the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction. To better obtain such an effect, the shape of the ridge 13 or 23 is preferably along the extending direction of the main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions.

[0034] The height of a ridge 13 or 23 is not particularly limited as long as it is less than the depth of the main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions, and is preferably 90% or less of the depth of the main groove 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions. Preferably, in addition, the extending length of a ridge 13 or 23 is 30 to 50% of that of the widened portion. It is noted that ridges 13 or 23 may be provided in all or only some of widened portions present in the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions. In addition, the ridges 13 or 23 may be provided in all or only some of the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions present in the tread 11 or 21.

[0035] Preferably, as shown in the figures, the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention includes the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions, such that the numbers of the widened portions in the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and in the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction are equal; such that the widened portions in the groove wall 12A or 22A on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the widened portions in the groove wall 12B or 22B on the later grounding side in the rotational direction are positioned to be coupled with each other; and such that the thus-formed widened portions are provided with the ridges 13 or 23 in their groove bottoms. Similarly, in this case, all or some widened portions may be provided with the ridges 13 or 23 in their groove bottoms.

[0036] The structure of the tread 11 or 21 in the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention is not particularly restricted as long as at least one main groove has two or more widened portions. For example, such a structure is preferable that at least one main groove becomes shallow outward in the tread width direction; and/or that at least one main groove has three of more widened portions enlarged outward in the groove width direction and has at least one section where the extending length along the groove wall between the tops of adjacent widened portions is 0.3 to 50% longer than the length of the virtual straight line connecting the tops of the adjacent widened portions. For the other structures, known structures can be used.

[0037] As shown, in addition to the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions, the main grooves 12b or 22b not having two or more widened portions may be provided. The shape of the main grooves 12b or 22b not having two or more widened portions can be linear as in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, or may be curved. Similarly, as described above, the groove bottom of the main grooves 12b or 22b may become shallow outward in the tread width direction. In this case, all the main grooves 12b or 22b other than the main grooves 12a or 22a having two or more widened portions may become shallow outward in the tread width direction, or only some of the main grooves 12b or 22b may become shallow outward in the tread width direction.

[0038] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, two main grooves 12a having two or more widened portions and three main grooves 12b are cyclically arranged at approximately regular intervals, but the present invention is not restricted thereto. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, two main grooves 22a having two or more widened portions and two main grooves 22b are cyclically arranged at approximately regular intervals, but the present invention is not restricted thereto.

[0039] In addition, the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention may be provided with a shallow groove, depending on the purpose, that is shallower and narrower than the main grooves 12 or 22, for example, with a groove depth of 0.1 to 2.0 mm and a groove width of 0.5 to 2.0 mm. Again, no particular restriction is imposed on the shape of the shallow groove.

[0040] The tire 10 or 20 of the present invention may be provided with circumferential main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction. However, in motorcycles that turn by tilting the tire, main grooves provided from the center toward the shoulders can more efficiently promote water draining. When the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention has a spiral belt layer as an outermost reinforcing layer in which reinforcing cords exist in the substantially tire circumferential direction, circumferential main grooves provided in the center area may cause cracks in the groove bottom along the reinforcing cord layer. Therefore, in such a structure, any circumferential main grooves should not be provided in the center area.

[0041] For the configurations other than the tread 11 or 21, the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention can employ any known structures. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the tire 10 or 20 of the present invention includes the tread 11 or 21; a pair of side walls 14 or 24 adjacent to both sides of the tread 11 or 21; a pair of beads 15 or 25 each adjacent to the pair of side walls 14 or 24; and a carcass 16 or 26 composed of at least one carcass plies (one ply in the illustrated embodiments) for reinforcement of these members between the beads 15 or 25. In the illustrated embodiments, the end portion of the carcass 16 or 26 is engaged to the bead core 17, 27 by being wound around the bead core from the inside toward the outside of the tire, but may be engaged by being sandwiched with bead wires from both sides.

[0042] In addition, the tires shown in the figures are provided with a belt 18 or 28 composed of at least one (two in the illustrated embodiment) belt layers on the outer side of the carcass 16 or 26 in the tire radial direction. The belt cord in the belt layer 18 or 28 can be any known extensible and highly elastic cords, and can be selected as appropriate from, for example, organic fibers such as aromatic polyamides (Aramid, e.g., trade-named Kevlar, from DuPont de Nemours, Inc.), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), rayon, and nylon; and those made of materials such as steel, glass fibers, and carbon fibers. Such a belt 18 or 28 may be composed of two or more tilted belt layers arranged such that the directions of the cords in the layers intersect with each other, or may one or more spiral belt layer with the direction of the cord being substantially tire circumferential.

[0043] The tire 10 or 20 of the present invention can be applied to both tires with a radial structure and a bias structure. The tire 10 or 20 of the present invention is a motorcycle tire achieving both excellent dry and wet performance and can be particularly preferably applied to tires for motorcycles that are often affected by the weather.

EXAMPLES

[0044] Now, the motorcycle tire of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples.

Example

[0045] A front tire with the tread pattern shown in FIG. 1 and a tire size of 120/70ZR17 was prepared. The main grooves had a structure that gradually became shallow with the main groove depth at the center portion being 5 mm and the main groove depth at the shoulder portion being 3 mm. The height of ridges in the bottom of main grooves was 0.8 mm. The length along the groove wall between tops of adjacent widened portions was adjusted to be 0.5 to 5.0% longer than the length of the straight line connecting the adjacent widened portions. In addition, a rear tire with the tread pattern shown in FIG. 2 and a tire size of 180/55ZR17 was prepared. The main grooves had a structure that gradually became shallow with the depth at the center portion being 7 mm and the depth at the shoulder portion being 3 mm. The height of ridges in the bottom of main grooves was 0.8 mm. The length along the groove wall between tops of adjacent widened portions was adjusted to be 0.5 to 5% longer than the length of the straight line connecting the adjacent widened portions. The front tire obtained in Example was integrated into a wheel having a rim size of MT3.50×17 with the internal pressure being 250 kPa, while the rear tire was integrated into a wheel having a rim size of MT5.50×17 with the internal pressure being 290 kPa, which were then mounted on a motorcycle with a piston displacement of 1000 cc as front and rear wheels for evaluation as described below.

Comparative Example

[0046] Tires were prepared in the same manner as in Example except that all main grooves were linear. Similar to Example described above, they were mounted on a motorcycle as front and rear wheels.

Reference Example

[0047] Reference example shows estimated values on the assumption that main grooves with the groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction and the groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction each having two widened portions were arranged from the center portion to the shoulder portions, based on the results obtained from the main grooves that have two widened portions and are provided in the shoulder portions shown in FIG. 1.

<Evaluation>

[0048] The grip performance and straight-line acceleration performance (hydroplaning performance) on wet ground of the front and rear tires were evaluated based on the rider's impression. The obtained results were calculated by setting those from Comparative Example as an index value of 100. The critical behavior, traction performance during acceleration, and braking performance of the rear tire in a middle-to-low speed range were also evaluated based on the rider's impression. The obtained results were calculated by setting those from Comparative Example as an index value of 100. The straight-line acceleration performance (hydroplaning performance) was evaluated by performing driving with acceleration on wet ground, and measuring the motorcycle driving speed and number of tire revolution, considering the speed at which the number of tire revolution increased (at the time when the driving tire went into a skid causing the peripheral speed of the tire to exceed the motorcycle driving speed) as the hydroplaning occurrence speed.

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Comparative Reference Example Example Example Wet Front grip 100 102 103 performance performance Rear grip 100 100 101 performance Critical behavior 100 101 103 of rear tire Traction 100 102 103 performance during acceleration

[0049] Table 1 shows that the tire of the present invention has improved water draining capacity and can exert both excellent dry and wet performance.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS

[0050] 10 and 20 motorcycle tire (tire) [0051] 11 and 21 tread [0052] 12, 22, 32, and 42 main groove [0053] 12a, 22a, 32a, and 42a main groove having two or more widened portions [0054] 12A, 22A, 32A, and 42A groove wall on the first grounding side in the rotational direction [0055] 12B, 22B, 32B, and 42B groove wall on the later grounding side in the rotational direction [0056] 13, 23, 33, and 43 ridge [0057] 14 and 24 side wall [0058] 15 and 25 bead [0059] 16 and 26 carcass [0060] 17 and 27 bead core [0061] 18 and 28 belt