Patent ID: 9216620
Filing Date: 2015-12-22
Classification: B60C,Y10T

Abstract:
1. An air maintenance tire assembly comprising: a tire having a tire cavity defined by an inner liner, the inner liner bounded by first and second sidewalls extending to a tire tread region; an air inlet housing affixed to the inner liner; the first sidewall having an elongate sidewall groove therein containing an elongate air tube having an elongate internal air passageway, the air tube operatively located to compress segment by segment from an expanded diameter to a substantially reduced diameter responsive to a bending strain introduced into the first sidewall from a rolling tire footprint; whereby forcing air segment by segment along the air tube internal air passageway; wherein the air tube has a substantially on-side mushroom-shaped sectional profile extending radially into the first tire sidewall; the air tube having a radially inward cap of relatively larger diametric dimension affixed to a radially outward tube stem of relatively smaller diametric dimension, the inward tube cap residing within an a relatively larger diametric region of the sidewall groove and extending in a lateral outward direction from the tube stem in an orientation substantially parallel with an outward surface of the first sidewall; and the tube stem having a tapering sectional profile defined by converging sides extending in a radial direction outward from the tube cap to a radially outward stem end surface.