Patent ID: 6547548
Filing Date: 2003-04-15
Classification: B29D

Abstract:
A tire vulcanizing system comprising:a plurality of tire mold assemblies for use in vulcanizing tires, wherein each tire mold assembly has a tire mold for containing a tire, a bladder assembly for being located in the tire within the tire mold and being supplied with a heating/pressurizing medium, a heating chamber at an outer peripheral portion of the tire mold, and upper and lower heating plates of said tire mold, wherein each of the tire mold assemblies is movable, and wherein each of the tire mold assemblies is capable of remaining closed while the bladder therein is pressurized; and a mold transporter configured for reciprocating in a predetermined manner between at least one changing/preheating station and a plurality of vulcanizing stations for respectively transporting the tire mold assemblies between the changing/preheating station and the vulcanizing stations; wherein each vulcanizing station includes: a mold opening/closing mechanism mounted at the vulcanizing station and exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for opening and closing a tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station, so that the vulcanizing station can independently open and close the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station, a green tire loader exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for loading a green tire into the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station, a bladder operating/driving mechanism exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for operating/driving the bladder assembly of the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station; a vulcanized tire unloader exclusively dedicated to the vulcanizing station for unloading a vulcanized tire from the tire mold assembly that is located at the vulcanizing station; and wherein the changing/preheating station is operative for both changing the tire mold incorporated in a tire mold assembly that is located at the changing/preheating station and preheating the tire mold assembly that is located at the changing/preheating station.