Control for integrated tire building system

The principal object of the invention is to provide a novel system for assembling green tires according to the two-stage process, together with a programmable control which allows the system to perform most of its functions automatically. The system assembles a first stage tire carcass essentially automatically, then removes and transfers completed carcasses automatically to a unique tire assembly drum, onto which the carcasses are automatically loaded. The assembly drum then acts to form each carcass into the desired toroidal shape. Second stage belt-tread stock assemblies are, in the meantime, completed and then automatically transferred into position surrounding the shaped carcasses, joined thereto, and the joined first and second stage assemblies are stitched together forming a green tire. The completed green tires are then taken automatically from the tire assembly drum and launched onto a unique discharge chute device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a system for assembly of radial tires and to 
methods and apparatus incorporated in such system. 
The basic elements of modern radial ply pneumatic tires consist of an 
innerliner, one or more radial plies, sidewalls, beads and fillers, etc., 
all combined to form a carcass, and one or more belts made of steel cord 
or other cord materials combined with tread stock material to form a 
belt-tread stock assembly. These two assemblies are then combined to form 
a green tire, which is subsequently vulcanized in a mold. 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782 issued Sep. 6, 1983 to the assignee of this 
application, describes a method and apparatus for constructing such radial 
ply pneumatic tires by producing major assemblies on two distinct and 
separate types of apparatus, and combining those assemblies into a green 
tire, which is then vulcanized in a mold. 
The first assembly, referred to herein as the "first stage carcass" 
consists of an innerliner plus one or more body plies of rubber coated 
cord material, a pair of axially spaced parallel bead assemblies 
encompassed by layers of ply material, and side wall stock material, all 
of which when combined comprise a first stage assembly. These tire 
elements are assembled and consolidated on a cylindrical carcass building 
drum such that the body plies (in the case of a radial tire) have ply 
cords essentially parallel to the rotational axis of the building drum as 
the carcass is assembled thereon, e.g. extending along the cylindrical 
carcass. The two bead assemblies (hereinafter referred to as "beads") are 
anchored to the opposing axial extremities of the first stage carcass, for 
example by folding part of the plies inward around the respective beads, 
the beads being parallel one to the other and coaxial with the rotational 
axis of the carcass, and two layers of sidewall stock are 
circumferentially consolidated to the outer surface of the carcass, 
axially disposed one from the other and each adjacent to one of the beads. 
Upon completion the carcass is transformed from its cylindrical shape to 
that of a toroid so the radial body cords are made to assume the 
configuration of meridians to the rotational axis of the carcass. 
The second assembly is prepared by consolidating one or more relatively 
nonextensible belts, of suitable cord (e.g. steel wire in the case of a 
steel belted tire) incorporated into uncured rubber stock, with a band of 
tread stock. Then the belt/tread stock assembly is consolidated with the 
toroidal carcass, producing a finished green radial tire carcass which is 
removed from the building machine and placed in a suitable mold for final 
shaping and vulcanization of the various rubber components, thereby 
forming a completed cured tire. 
Conversion of the cylindrical first stage cylindrical carcass assembly to 
toroidal shape, and attaching the belt/tread stock assembly thereon, has 
been achieved in a variety of ways. 
The more conventional steps are: 
(1) Assembly of the first stage carcass components on a holding drum that 
is capable of causing the consolidated cylindrically shaped first stage 
carcass to be transformed into a toroidal shape and then completion of the 
green radial tire carcass by attaching equatorially thereon the belt and 
tread stock elements; this is usually referred to as the single stage 
process of green tire assembly; or 
(2) Assembly of the first stage carcass on a conventional collapsible 
building drum that is incapable of transforming a cylindrical carcass to 
toroidal shape, and, upon completion of that cylindrical assembly, 
transferring same to a different drum or holding means whereby said first 
stage carcass is held and manipulated during its transformation to 
toroidal shape and the assembly of belts and tread stock thereon; this is 
generally referred to as the two stage process. 
Present construction processes also include the alternatives of either 
assembling and consolidating the belts and tread stock directly on the 
toroidal first stage carcass, or assembling and consolidating the belts 
and tread stock on a separate drum and then conveying that belt-tread 
subassembly to a coaxial position with the toroidal shaped first stage 
carcass, whereupon such toroidal first stage carcass is caused to be 
further expanded into circumferential contact and consolidation with the 
inner surface of the belt-tread stock assembly. 
Both of these systems, however, have a number of disadvantages. The single 
stage system is slow and inflexible; it suffers from down time when 
process components are unavailable; specification changeover is time 
consuming since many different equipment elements must be exchanged and/or 
adjusted; single stage equipment requires much expensive tooling; such 
systems require highly skilled and well trained operators; such systems 
are expensive, not very productive and they are therefore not widely used. 
The two-stage process requires two distinct types of assembly equipment; 
(a) a carcass building machine, and (b) a second stage assembly machine. 
As the industry has moved from 4-ply, bias construction to radial tire 
construction, the old bias machines were kept and are being used as 
carcass builders. These machines were usually designed in the late 1950's 
and 1960's and they lack the precision and alignment characteristics 
required to allow the assembly of a precision first stage carcass. Having 
had the ability to build a carcass, emphasis was placed by the industry 
and equipment suppliers on developing second stage machinery, and there 
are a number of systems being used, while the development of a precision 
carcass assembly system has been neglected. Since carcass building 
requires the assembly of all of the basic components going into a radial 
tire except for belts and tread stock or extrusion, it takes a greater 
amount of time to assemble a carcass than the second stage of the radial 
tire. Thus, a difference in building rates exists which is difficult to 
overcome through scheduling schemes. 
Depending on the speed of the first and second stage machines being used, 
as well as the different tire constructions being assembled, the ratios of 
carcass to second stage building often vary between two first stage 
machines to one second stage machine which ratio increases, in some cases, 
even up to 3 to 1, making it additionally difficult to plan for capacity 
increases. 
Because of the uneven productive output of these assembly systems, 
in-process carcasses that are waiting to be second staged must be handled, 
stored and carted to second stage assembly machines which are usually 
located in other areas of a plant. Such handling and storage is costly due 
to additional labor and large amount of floor space requirements but, 
above all, the handling and storage adds many uncontrollable and 
undesirable process variables to the product. Examples are additional 
touching by human hands and the associated exposure to hand perspiration, 
dirt or greases on hands and fingers, remnants from soaps, hand wash 
detergents or skin creams which may be present; the exposure to airborne 
particles which deposit themselves on the outer surfaces of the carcass; 
and the unknown duration of that exposure which may be as low as one hour 
but which could be as long as three and four days on long weekends. Along 
with that exposure variable goes the fact that a surface cure will take 
place often due to high ambient temperatures in storage areas. All of this 
affects the adhesion of the green, in-process product and the final 
bonding being achieved by curing the tire in a mold. 
Conventional carcass building machines consist of a stationary tire 
assembly machine and a multi-station component storage and delivery 
services. These machines are designed to accept a collapsible drum on 
which components are placed in a sequential order. These components are 
extracted from the different servicer positions by the operator, touched 
by his hands and fingers, while the pulling motion may not be uniform thus 
often causing noticeable cord distortions and component dislocations. Such 
extracted components are then cut to length by the operator using a 
conventional hot knife, and these manually cut components are loosely 
guided onto the assembly drum through the means of mechanical edge 
guiders. This method of component assembly is not very precise but is, 
above all, labor intensive and operator dependent in terms of his skills 
and willingness to do a good job. Cut tire analysis will confirm that 
builder produced splices are often one cord overlap in one area while 
being 5 or 6 cord overlap elsewhere. 
The quality of the completed radial ply tire requires that dimensionally 
accurate components are precisely assembled and such precision of 
dimension and assembly be maintained throughout the balance of the tire 
manufacturing process. 
State of the art second stage radial tire building machines generally 
consist of a bed having mounted at opposite ends thereof, spaced apart and 
axially aligned, a first shaft supporting a rotatable collapsible belt 
building drum and a second shaft supporting a rotatable tire building drum 
which receives a first stage carcass. On that drum a carcass is 
transformed from cylindrical to toroidal shape, united with a belt-tread 
stock assembly formed on the belt building drum and then rotated about its 
axis while final consolidation is accomplished by stitching. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention provides specifically an integrated tire assembly 
system including a method and apparatus for building a complete green tire 
by a two-stage method on a single machine, and specifically a control for 
such an integrated assembly system. The machine may be monitored by a 
single person, and it automatically assembles a first stage carcass on a 
carcass building drum from supplies of ply material and sidewall stock, 
receives and inserts bead rings from placer mechanisms and incorporates 
those beads into the carcass, stitches the first stage carcass, then 
transfers that carcass to a tire building drum on which the carcass is 
modified to toroidal shape. During part of this interval the belt-tread 
stock assembly is built by the operator on a belt building drum, and then 
the belt-tread stock assembly is transferred into position around the 
shaped carcass after which the two assemblies are consolidated on the tire 
building drum, and the completed green tire is then automatically unloaded 
from the system. 
The integrated building system includes a number of novel mechanisms or 
devices, including a first stage having a novel carcass building drum 
cooperating with automatic ply servers, sidewall stock servers, and bead 
assembly receivers and placers. The system also has in its second stage a 
novel tire building drum which includes mechanisms for receiving and 
expanding/reshaping the carcasses from the first stage, a novel belt/tread 
building drum, a modified and cooperating transfer ring and associated 
mechanism to carry a belt-tread stock assembly from the belt/tread 
building drum to the tire building drum, and a green tire unloading system 
consisting of an unloader and a take-away mechanism. A novel transfer 
robot removes the completed carcass from the first stage or carcass 
building drum, and carries the first stage carcass to the tire building 
drum of the second stage machine. The overall system and a number of these 
devices are the subject of separate co-pending patent applications, the 
principal disclosure of the over-all system being in copending U.S. patent 
application Ser. No. 529,080 filed on even date herewith and assigned to 
the same assignee. 
The various servers, particularly the ply and belt servers, are arranged so 
they may be optionally utilized for varying the type and size of tire 
which can be constructed on this integrated system. In the carcass 
building section of the system, in addition to the ability to build 
different types of tires to different specifications, with quick and easy 
change, the carcass building drum is supported on and operates from a 
movable carriage which may be driven to skip certain ones of the ply 
servers, according to a given specification. The carriage also cooperates 
in a unique manner with the ply servers to align the carcass building drum 
into conformity with the center of a ply ready in the server. This allows 
a simpler ply serving mechanism to provide high accuracy of ply placement. 
The first stage carcass building section is automated such that, except for 
placement of bead members in a ready position, the system operator is free 
to devote his time and attention to the belt-tread assembly and the final 
assembly of the green tire. 
The system provides for rapid change and/or replenishment of the tire 
building elements handled by and used in the servers, such as ply 
material, side wall stock, belts and tread stock. In the case of high 
capacity ply materials, these are brought to the system in preloaded 
cartridges which are then accurately moved into engagement with the 
drive-out system of the ply server mechanism, and on which the carrier 
webs for the ply material can be rewound or gathered for subsequent 
replenishment with new webs of ply material. 
An important feature of the system is the manner in which the carcass 
building drum is aligned with the ply materials on the application 
conveyors of the various ply servers. This is accomplished by determining 
the centerline of the ply material web, then moving the carriage to bring 
the transverse center plane of that drum into alignment with that 
centerline. 
Two slightly different techniques have been evolved for this purpose. The 
preferred technique uses a web supply method and apparatus with an active 
guiding system controlling web ply material fed accurately into the 
application conveyor relative to its centerline. In another technique, the 
ply material web is automatically unloaded from the cartridge and 
approximately centered on the server application conveyor. The web is then 
scanned when such conveyor pulls it forward, and dividing the distance 
between edges of the ply material determines it centerline. The carriage 
and the carcass building drum thereon are then positioned accurately on 
the centerline of the ply material, as by digital servomechanisms. 
The ply servers also operate, under programmable control, to cut a 
predetermined length of the ply material from the supply roll led into the 
server mechanism from the supply cartridge. Thus, by keyboard changes of 
programs it is possible to build different sizes of tires, with different 
numbers of plies, in different lengths, in an essentially fully automatic 
process. 
A side wall strip server functions, under programmable control, to let out 
length of sidewall material of desired length, and deliver them into 
proximity to a station along the carriage path, where these strips may be 
added to the material already gathered on the carcass building drum. The, 
preferably at this same station, the ply material, beads, and side wall 
strips are finally stitched and consolidated into a completed first stage 
carcass. 
The transfer operation, in which a first stage carcass is moved to the tire 
building drum of the second stage machine is accomplished with a series of 
simple linear and arcuate motions by a robotic transfer device which can 
be precisely controlled with a high degree of repeatability. When the 
first stage carcass is completed, the carcass building drum is located at 
that time opposite the gripper arms of the transfer robot, which is in its 
ready position. When initiating the carcass unloading/carcass transfer 
operation those arms are first extended and then brought into active 
engagement with the carcass in its bead area at several contact points, 
thereby holding the carcass firmly in its completed position. The carcass 
building drum is collapsed radially inward, and the headstock and 
tailstock parts of the carriage then move to separate by a distance 
slightly greater than the length of the first stage carcass. The carriage 
moves the drum out of the carcass which remains being held by its beads by 
the transfer robot. Then, the robot mechanism simply swings the carcass, 
engaged by the gripper arms, through an arc of about 180 degrees, 
precisely into general alignment with the rotational axis of the tire 
building drum of the second stage assembly machine. The robot arms then 
move parallel to the tire building drum until the carcass is sufficiently 
around that drum, whereupon the carcass is released from the gripper arms, 
which then are opened and retracted away from the carcass, and the 
mechanism of the transfer robot retreats to its inactive or ready 
position. 
During side wall stitching the operator may position one bead on the 
inboard bead placer and after removal of the carcass by the robotic 
transfer device, the operator may place the second bead on the outboard 
bead placer. Both placers are pivotally mounted to the carriage on a 
sliding support structure and, in their inactive position, are swung out 
toward the operator side of the slidable carcass building drum carriage. 
These placers can be rotated about an axis parallel to the carcass drum 
axis, between the off-side location and a location coaxial with the 
carcass building drum. Thus, new bead rings are positioned on the bead 
holders in the carcass building section of the system as the carriage 
proceeds back to the first ply server, to commence building another 
carcass. 
The tire building drum of the second stage machine is of a flangeless 
design which departs dramatically from conventional drums because of its 
unique mode of operation. It has the same transversely divided structure, 
with two generally cylindrical halves which are can be moved toward and 
away from each other, as illustrated in said U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782. The 
starting position of the two drum halves has them separated such that each 
will receive one end (bead region) of the first stage carcass at the end 
of the above described transfer operation. 
After the release of the carcass by the robotic grippers, radially 
expansible pads on each of the drum halves are extended to engage the 
interior surface of the carcass. The drum halves are then moved axially 
apart until the respective sets of the extended pads engage both beads, 
thereby self-centering the carcass on the tire building drum automatically 
and in a very precise manner. In that position both carcass beads are 
located circumferentially around a pair of radially expansible sealing 
rings, one on each drum half and these sealing rings are expanded against 
the interior of the beads to seal the first stage carcass to the tire 
building drum. 
The interior of the carcass, and the space between the two drum halves, may 
then be pressurized, and as the air pressure increases, the drum halves 
can be moved together until the beads are located a predetermined distance 
apart. Through this action, the first stage carcass can be automatically 
transformed from a cylinder into the desired toroidal shape, without 
operator assistance. 
In the meantime, the belt-tread stock assembly is built on a novel, 
programmably adjustable building drum, and the completed assembly is then 
carried by a transfer ring mechanism into position coaxially surrounding 
the shaped carcass. The carcass is further inflated to bring it into 
contact with the interior of the belt-tread stock assembly, and with the 
transfer ring withdrawn, the two assemblies are stitched together, 
completing the construction of a green tire. The majority of the foregoing 
work is performed with minimum operator attention or help; in actual 
practice one operator can readily attend to the normal operating of the 
system. 
Finally, the completed green tire is automatically released from the tire 
assembly drum and transported by automated holders to a discharge station, 
where a discharge chute is positioned beneath the green tire. The holders 
are arranged so they engage the periphery of the green tire at 
diametrically opposite points, which are on a line rotated somewhat from 
vertical. Thus as these arms release the green tire, it rolls by gravity 
onto the discharge chute mechanism, and passes to a discharge conveying 
system which can take the complete green tires to a vulcanizing and 
molding operation. 
The principal object of the invention is to provide a novel control system 
for assembling green tires according to the two-stage process; to provide 
such a control which causes a tire carcass to be assembled essentially 
automatically; to provide such a control for causing the removal and 
transfer of completed carcasses automatically to a unique assembly drum, 
onto which the carcasses are automatically loaded, and which then acts to 
form each carcass into the desired toroidal shape; to provide such a 
system control wherein completed belt-tread stock assemblies are 
automatically transferred into position surrounding the shaped carcasses, 
and then joined thereto; and to provide such a system wherein the 
completed green tires are taken automatically from the tire assembly drum 
and launched onto a unique discharge chute device. 
Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the 
following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.

GENERAL MACHINE DESCRIPTION 
The present invention relates to a novel, microprocessor-based radial 
passenger tire assembly system capable of yielding high quality products 
consistently at high rates of speed, and specifically to the programmable 
control for that apparatus. The system consists of a first stage carcass 
builder with novel servicing means, a robotic device for the transfer of 
first stage (formed but not finally shaped) carcasses, a second stage 
machine for making a belt-tread stock assembly and combining it with a 
carcass from the first stage, and an automatic green tire unloading 
mechanism. 
Special features include automatic liner, body ply and side wall driveout 
component length determination, automatic length cutting and the automatic 
application of many major components to the carcass, belt and tread, and 
final assembly drums. The first stage apparatus further includes automated 
ply-down, bead set and bead lock through bladder turn-up means. All 
length-cutting operations are automatic using ultrasonic knife actions. 
Beads are placed automatically onto bead setters at the carcass drum, by 
unique bead placers. 
Additionally, the system uses a number of sensors which are capable of 
signaling off-spec conditions such as over or under width innerliner or 
ply stock dimensions, and sensors also confirm the presence of beads or 
alert the absence of same. 
The carcass drum itself is conventional, but it incorporates novel 
rotatable and inflatable bladders for supporting ends of ply material 
extending beyond the drum surface, and for turning ply ends around the 
beads. The belt/tread drum is a novel design which embodies the ability to 
be adjusted for specification changes through remote keyboard programming. 
Component servicers use cartridge-type material holding and drive out means 
to minimize the time required to make supply changes, either for 
additional supply or for specification changes. 
The tire assembly drum is also a novel design, in that it is flangeless 
and, thus, does not require button hooking when a tire carcass is being 
chucked. This permits automated carcass loading as well as automated green 
tire removal from the assembly system. 
General Layout 
FIG. 1 is a floor plan of the system which includes on one side a novel 
carcass building section I, on the other side a belt and treadstock 
building section II together with the green tire building section III, and 
between sections I and IIIa carcass carrying and transfer section IV, 
which unloads a completed carcass from section I and places it in the tire 
building section III. The carcass building section I includes a bed 50 
having a track or way 52 for a carriage 55 that supports a carcass 
building drum 60 and its associated headstock 65 and tailstock 67, along 
with bead ring placers 70 (FIG. 1) for this building drum 60. Track 52 
defines a carcass building path and along the track is a plurality of 
stations A, B, C, and D which function as innerliner, ply and sidewall 
servers. It should be understood that additional ply servers may be added, 
as between stations C and D. 
In operation, carriage 55 is moved under program control into alignment 
with the center of ply material or sidewall material at the various 
stations. Circular beads or hoops 36, combined with a filler 36, are set 
on bead placers which are associated with drum 60, and predetermined 
lengths of ply materials are likewise placed on and assembled around the 
drum, all in a desired sequence, and the edges of at least some plies are 
turned over the beads, producing a completed tire carcass TC, hereinafter 
referred to as the first stage carcass assembly. 
Sections II and III preferably are supported on a common second bed 70 
having another track or way 72 extending in spaced relation to the first 
track 52, preferably parallel thereto. At one end of the second track 72 
there is a belt/tread stock building drum 75 (sometimes called a belt 
building drum), supported on a rotatable shaft 77 with its axis of 
rotation extending parallel to second track 72. Adjacent the belt building 
drum there is a belt server E which can supply one or more belt components 
to the belt building drum 75, and a tread stock server (below server E) 
which can supply a length of tread stock to the belt building drum. At the 
other end of second track 72 there is a flangeless tire building or 
assembly drum 80, comprising two drum halves rotatably supported on a 
second shaft 82 with its axis parallel to track 72 and precisely in line 
with the axis of belt building drum 75. A carriage 85 is supported for 
movement between the drums 75 and 80 along track 72, and on carriage 85 is 
a transfer ring 90 which can engage and remove a completed belt/tread 
stock assembly from belt building drum 75 and move such assembly over and 
around a carcass which has been placed on tire building drum 80, to be 
manipulated into a toroidal shape. 
Between the two tracks 52 and 72, the transfer section IV includes a 
carcass transfer robot 100 which functions to remove a first stage tire 
carcass from carcass building drum 60 and position carcass onto the tire 
building drum 80, where the carcass is transformed into the desired 
toroidal shape, as part of the application of a belt/tread stock assembly 
to that carcass. The two assemblies are then stitched together to produce 
a green tire. Once the green tire is completed, an unloading mechanism 110 
associated with the tire building drum engages the tire, then moves the 
tire to a discharge chute assembly 115 and releases the tire, from whence 
the tire is taken to a vulcanizing press for final curing. 
First Stage Ply Servers 
The ply servers A, B, C are unique units designed to apply to the carcass 
building drum 60 (or onto ply materials having previously been placed on 
that drum) predetermined lengths of inner liner and ply materials which 
are supplied from large supply rolls PR (see FIG. 4). The desired length 
of ply material PM is measured by feeding the material past a detector 118 
which is located a known fixed distance along the main feed conveyor 122, 
by a servomotor, under control of a programmable mechanism which is set to 
the desired ply length. Once the leading edge of the ply material reaches 
this detector, it is advanced further by a variable distance corresponding 
to the programmed ply length. Thus the fixed length plus the variable 
length equals the programmed total desired ply length. The web of material 
PM is then severed at the length desired by a cut-off mechanism 130. A 
lateral guiding device acts to maintain the location of the longitudinal 
centerline of the length of ply material PM on the conveyor 122, whereby a 
central plane which extends through the carcass building drum 60, 
transverse to its axis of rotation, can be located on the centerline of 
the ply material. 
When the carriage 55, and the carcass building drum 60 thereon, are located 
on this centerline, the ply PM is then fed onto the drum parallel to and 
upon its rotating surface. Each server has an applicator head 140 for this 
purpose, arranged to be extended into close proximity to drum 60 at the 
appropriate time. The carriage drive is programmed to move drum 60 into a 
location where it is precisely located with respect to the longitudinal 
centerline of the oncoming ply material PM. 
At the opposite end of the server, away from the track and carriage, there 
is a receptor arrangement 148 into which a cartridge 150 bearing a roll PR 
of ply material can be docked, thus each server can always be supplied 
quickly with additional ply material as demanded. Further, the servers can 
be re-stocked with different types or sizes of ply material to build 
different types of tires, and to different specifications. By using more 
or less servers in a particular tire construction job, the machine can 
build carcass (and tires) having different numbers of plies and/or 
different types of plies. Thus a linear arrangement of ply and other 
servers is preferred (but not essential) in the carcass building section I 
of the system from the standpoint of having adjacent aisle space to 
manipulate the carts, bringing in fresh supplies of ply material and 
removing spent supplies for replenishment. 
The ply material is, typically, some suitable type of fabric material that 
has been thoroughly coated with uncured rubber on both sides and for 
building a radial ply tire, the ply material has cords which are 
predominantly extending transverse to the length of the material as it is 
aligned for construction into the tire carcass. It is a feature of this 
invention to supply this material on relatively large rolls PR into which 
are interwound a separator web material or fabric, e.g. a carrier web, for 
purpose of preventing the tacky rubberized cord layers from sticking to 
itself. The rolls of ply material are loaded into cartridges away from the 
machine, brought to the machine and docked at the selected ply server 
station receptors, and the ply material is led into the server mechanism 
through the feeding and guiding mechanism 120. In so doing, separator web 
is led onto a take-up roller on the cartridge, so as the ply material is 
being driven out onto the server, the separator web is re-rolled and 
stored in the cartridge for future re-use. 
During the docking action, a drive 121 at the rear of the server is 
automatically connected to the takeup roll. The ply stock drive-out is 
controlled by a typical dancer/loop control (not shown) which signals 
stop/flow requirements via photo-eye sensors to the motor in drive 121. 
During drive-out, the carrier web is being wound onto a rewind spool, 
which action is further aided by a set of edge guiders that control a 
lateral motion system to assure that the carrier web is wound on the 
take-up roll in a generally even and cylindrical configuration. In this 
arrangement, the carrier web never enters the servicer like on other 
conventional machines, and by remaining essentially a captive member of 
the supply cartridge it is possible to change supply cartridges quickly 
and without having to manually rewind carrier webs that were partially or 
fully unwound, which is a very undesirable task with conventional server 
machines. 
The ply material, after leaving the dancer/loop control enters a guide 
assembly 123 including a pair of active guide rollers 124 which are 
steered to center the ply material PM for programmed feeding of the 
material onto feed-out conveyor 122 through the nip of a pair of feed 
rolls 120 which are driven by the conveyor bely motor. Steering signal 
requirements for guide assembly 123 are provided through a quartz crystal 
controlled LED emitter 127 and a tuned receiver 128, which provide 
constant information as to the location of the edges of ply material PM 
moving from the guide assembly to feed rolls 124. The ply material thus 
enters the feed-out conveyor 122 straight and on center. 
The ply material PM is fed into the nip between power driven feed rolls 
120, then past a traversing cut-off knife mechanism 133, under a pair of 
vacuum lift boxes 133 and, and onto the main feed conveyor 122 of the 
server. Length scanner 118 is mounted over this conveyor, at a fixed 
distance away from the path of the cut-off knife, as mentioned. 
The feed rolls 120 are powered by a servomotor to draw ply material from 
the loop and feed it past the cut-off mechanism 130 onto the main ply feed 
conveyor 122 until the leading edge of the ply is sensed by the length 
scanner 118. The servomotor is then reactivated and drives out an 
additional length of ply material PM, which additional length is 
programmably determined by keyboard input at a control terminal. This 
arrangement permits quick length changes and assures ply length accuracies 
and repeatability, which the operator-dependant, manual cut-off method 
using a conventional hot knife never could achieve. 
Ply length measurement is accomplished by sensing of the leading edge of 
the out fed ply material. The distance from the sensor back to the path of 
the knife is a constant=X. If a complete wrap around the building drum 
equates to X+Y, it is the Y amount that is programed into the central 
processor which will yield Y amount of additional drive-out and hence 
fulfill the requirement of a complete wrap around to the drum. 
At the end of the drive-out, the vacuum boxes descend, energize and lift 
the portion of the material under the transverse path of cut-off knife, 
bringing that portion of the material into the transverse path of the 
knife mechanism. The lift action of the vacuum along with the inner edge 
contour design of the vacuum boxes form a transverse ridge of the ply 
material which imparts additional rigidity to the web against the action 
of the knife, which is then driven along the ridge to sever the ply 
material to the prescribed length. Preferably the knife includes an 
ultrasonic vibrating device. Once this cut is made, the vacuum is 
released, the length of material is dropped onto the server conveyor, and 
it is fed forward around the applicator head at the front end of the 
server, to await the arrival and registration of the carcass building drum 
60. 
The cartridges are stackable to save manufacturing floor space and they 
will accept 44 inch diameter stock rolls, 40 inches wide, and 20 inch 
diameter liner rolls, also 40 inches wide. Engagement with the power 
drive-out and guide means is automatic while the cartridge is being locked 
in place. 
When carriage 55 comes to rest before the respective servers A, B or C the 
framework of conveyor 122, which is carried on slide rods 171, is moved 
forward by suitable pneumatic drive cylinders 170 (FIG. 4) and the 
applicator head 140 causes the forward end of conveyor belt 122 to conform 
to the side of drum 60, adhering the material PM to the drum surface (or 
to a previous component thereon), and the drum 60 is caused to make one 
360.degree. rotation, thereby drawing the length of material PM onto the 
drum 60, as shown in phantom at the left end of FIG. 4. 
Bead Supply 
In a preferred arrangement there are two bead placers 70 mounted in spaced 
relation along the carriage 55 which supports the carcass building drum 
60, its supporting headstock 65 with a reversible servomotor drum drive 
DMM, and the associated tailstock 67. Referring to FIG. 2, the placers are 
comprised of cooperating half-circular segments 175A and 175B pivotally 
supported on corresponding swing arms 176A and 176B, located on the 
opposite side of the drum from the ply servers, and in turn pivotally 
mounted on horizontally slidable brackets 177A and 177B (not seen). These 
brackets are mounted to carriage 55 (and its separable section 55A; see 
below) through guide bars 178, so the entire placer assemblies can be 
moved longitudinally of the carriage 55. Each of the bead placer's arms 
can be opened and closed by operation of pneumatic cylinder actuators 180A 
and 180B, and to illustrate this in FIG. 2 the segments 175A and 175B are 
shown closed in full lines and are shown open in phantom lines. 
It will be clear from the phantom showing of these placers (FIG. 2) that 
they are individually pivotable as a unit, by their respective arms 176A 
and 176B, about an axis that is to one side of and parallel to the bed, so 
as to swing the centerline of the closed segments to a position where such 
centerline is coaxial with the axis of rotation of the carcass drum, and a 
retracted loading position where the centerline of the placers is clear of 
carcass drum 60 and its related drive and control mechanism. This action 
is produced by individual pneumatic actuator cylinders, one of which 182A 
is seen in FIG. 2. Summarizing, the bead placers can move parallel to the 
drum 60, swing toward and away from that drum, and when the bead rings are 
removed from the segments, they can open and retract outward around and 
away from drum 60. 
Thus, beads or hoops, with an attached filler, are manually set into these 
two bead placers, then carried into position on the placers, as shown in 
FIG. 2. When segments 175A and 175B are closed, they present circular 
shoulders which have a diameter corresponding to the inner diameter of a 
bead. The placer segments are fitted with a sensor 187, to confirm the 
presence (or absence) of a loaded bead assembly when the placers are swung 
to their outer or loading position, and to indicate successful placement 
(e.g. transfer) of a bead to the bead ring when the arms are positioned 
around the carcass building drum. The placer segments also are each fitted 
with a plurality of piston driven ejector pins 190 which are appropriately 
actuated to move a bead from the placer onto a bead holder (later 
described) at one end of the carcass building drum 60. 
Carcass Building Drum 
The carcass building drum 60 is rotatably mounted on the carriage headstock 
65 by a suitable rotatably driven shaft 200 (FIG. 1), and during building 
of the multi-ply carcass, the bead assemblies are moved against an end 
portion of the ply material, which is then folded back over the bead rings 
and attached fillers at the appropriate time by mechanism incorporated in 
the carcass drum. One of the features of the invention is the arrangement 
whereby the bead rings are loaded into the placers, transferred onto 
holder rings at opposite ends of drum 60, and the carriage 55 then is 
moved to align the drum's transverse center plane with the various ply 
material lengths PM at the servers. Then the innerliner and plies are 
progressively taken from servers A, B and C, as are side wall stock pieces 
from server D, and caused to wrap around the carcass building drum 60. 
To accomplish this, the drum is circumferentially collapsible and has a 
programmably controlled drive which starts, stops, and rotates shaft 200 
as required to perform these successive building steps. The drum also 
incorporates an inflatable bladder mechanism which at the appropriate time 
will fold the ends of certain plies over and around the bead and fillers. 
Bladder turn-up devices are generally known, however the bladder turn-up 
mechanism provided with this invention embodies a number of novel 
features. The bladder assemblies are rotatably mounted on their 
corresponding support hardware, which in is adapted to be engaged to and 
driven by the building drum 60 when that drum is being rotated. 
As a further feature of this arrangement, bladders are designed and their 
internal pressure regulation are very precisely controlled so that same 
maybe only partially inflated to a desired diameter and specific shape so 
that they will act as drum extensions whereby they are capable of 
supporting ply materials that are wider than the building drum and which, 
in that service mode will also act as an anvil that will absorb the 
pressure of the ply stitch roller which is applied against drum 60 to 
drive out unwanted trapped air and which also stitches together the 
leading and trailing ply endings. These features make automated carcass 
assembly possible. 
Mounted on carriage 55, by a pair of spaced apart swinging arms 193, is a 
stitching or smoothing roller 195 (FIG. 2), preferably rubber covered, 
which can be moved into and out of contact with the plies and other 
material added to drum 60, under the control of remotely automatically 
operated pneumatic cylinders 196. At appropriate times during carcass 
construction, even while the carriage is moving between stations, drum 60 
may be rotated and roller 195 actuated to press the sticky plies of 
uncured rubber material together and eliminate any air pockets or 
irregularities which may occur as the plies are "built up" on drum 60. 
Carriage 55 carries its drive CDM which in an actual embodiment comprises a 
digitally driven motor connected to a rotating ball mechanism on a ball 
screw 205 which runs the length of the bed 50 (see FIG. 1). Thus actuation 
of the drive causes the carriage to travel along the ball screw 205 and 
bed 50. The carriage also includes a separable section which carries 
tailstock 67, and which is normally connected to and travels with the main 
carriage 55, connected thereto by solenoid actuated shot-pins. When it is 
necessary to separate drum 60 from the tailstock, to unload a completed 
carcass, these shot-pins are retracted and the carriage is driven in 
reverse direction, moving away from the now disconnected section by the 
length of a pair of trailing arms which are attached to carriage section 
and to air cylinders on the main carriage 55. This provides a sliding 
"lost motion" type of connection between the carriage sections, yet 
provides for returning the section into engagement with the main carriage 
55, and re-insertion of the shot pins. The space thus created between drum 
60 and tailstock allows unloading movement of a completed carcass. 
At the time of such a separation, the carriage is located adjacent server 
D, as is later described, since a carcass has been completed on drum 60. 
The placers 70 are swung to the side of carriage 55, with segments 175A 
and 175B closed together. There, the operator places a bead and filler 
assembly on each placer, and the sequence illustrated in FIG. 2 is 
initiated. Placers 70 are moved adjacent each other and align with the gap 
between drum 60 and tailstock. Next, the placers are swung inward of the 
carriage, to become coaxial with the drum centerline, then the placers are 
moved to the bead holders. 
During this action, the carriage 55 is moving to the other end of bed 50, 
adjacent server A. When the carriage reaches that location, the drive CDM 
is reversed, the main carriage overtakes the now stationary section, and 
the shot-pins are actuated to rejoin the carriage section to the main 
carriage 55, as arms are free to move on section 55A for a predetermined 
distance before engaging and pushing against it. Next, after successful 
bead transfer is indicated, the placers 70 move toward each other and the 
segments 175A and 175B are opened, then the segments are swung out around 
drum 60. Therefore, when the carriage is ready to commence its movements 
to the various servers, the beads are in position on the holders. 
Sidewall Servicer 
Sidewall servicing hardware D (FIG. 5) comprises twin double strip let-off 
stations, complete with power drive-out and liner rewind, and a dancer bar 
feedout control which maintains a supply of spaced apart side wall strips 
to the server proper. Supply can be quickly switched via the overhead 
passive conveyor when one of the let-off drums requires replenishment. The 
server incorporates a pull-out conveyor with programmable automatic length 
measurement, by a conveyor motor driving the pull-out conveyor, which has 
grips engaging the strips, and ultrasonic length cutting. 
Both side wall components are delivered skive-cut adjacent to the upper 
perimeter of building drum 60, and application of the strips to the drum 
may be builder activated and controlled, or automatic via a transfer 
mechanism and tilting conveyor tray. Additionally, the servicer frame 
supports turn-down tooling that is engaged during the final carcass 
assembly steps, to consolidate and smooth particularly the bead areas of 
the completed carcass TC. 
Transfer Robot 
Unlike conventional tire machines, this system features a robotic tire 
transfer device for unloading carcasses from the first stage carcass 
builder, and for transferring them onto the tire assembly drum which is 
except for unloading, the terminus of the second stage operations. 
The use of a mechanical transfer eliminates the need for the operator 
having to remove and handle the carcasses, leaving him free to fulfill 
other duties. More important, however, the direct transfer of carcasses 
from the carcass builder to the second stage machine eliminates the need 
for downstream carcass handling and storage devices. This frees up costly 
manufacturing space which can now be utilized more productively, the labor 
requirement for hauling green tire trucks in and out of storage is 
eliminated, which also simplifies the overall scheduling process, and from 
a product quality point of view, carcasses are always fresh and not 
contaminated with dust and airborne particles. Neither are the carcasses 
ever distorted due to improper storage and they are not subjected to long 
term temperature and humidity exposures and variations. 
The carcass handler or robot 100 consists of a base or bed 300 (FIGS. 1 and 
7A) which is secured in parallel alignment to and between the beds 50 of 
the carcass builder and 70 of the second stage tire machine. On bed 300 
are hardened guide rails or ways, which carry the actual handler structure 
including carriage and headstock 305 (FIG. 7C) which supports the head of 
the carcass handler, both rotatably and slidably. 
This mechanism includes its own bed 300 and a carriage 305 mounted thereon 
for movement along bed 300 between a pick-up position, generally opposite 
server D, and a transfer position away from server D in a direction 
opposite to the other servers. On carriage 305 there is a rotary mechanism 
307, driven by a servomotor or positioner, and which in turn supports an 
extensible arm mechanism 308 controlled by another servomotor. On the 
outer end of arm 308 there is mounted a fixture or cradle 310 which 
carries a first set of slides 312 extending cross-wise of the fixture. 
Slides 312 in turn carrying a second set of slides extending lengthwise of 
the fixture. On this second set of slides are brackets which mount a pair 
of spaced generally C-shaped grip arms 315. Thus, the clamp arms 315 are 
capable of adjustment motion toward and away from each other under control 
of a servomotor and appropriate mechanism (not shown), and of 
gripping/releasing motion lengthwise of the fixture, toward and away from 
the ends of a carcass under control of a fourth servomotor CAGR. 
On arms 315 there are finger members (not shown in detail) spaced apart to 
fit around the beads of the carcass TC. This allows the arms 315 to engage 
with and disengage from carcasses of different sizes in both length and 
diameter, by grasping the beads at diametrically opposite regions, at each 
end of the carcass. The robotic apparatus is supported on carriage 305 and 
has straightforward linear motion parallel to the other beds, and rotary 
movements which enable it to swing the extensible arms 315 and perform 
this function efficiently without complicated mechanism and/or movement. 
This contributes to precise, repeatable, transfer motions with long term 
low maintenance and reliability. 
Thus, arms 315 are opened and the head extends these arms to place the 
fingers around the beads of a carcass on the carriage. The carcass 
building drum is caused to collapse and the tailstock moves away from the 
drum, while the arms now support the carcass, lift it upward, and carry it 
over to align the carcass generally with the axis of tire building drum on 
the second bed. The robot carriage 305 then moves to carry the carcass 
concentrically around the tire building drum, and the arms are separated 
sufficiently to release the carcass onto that drum. After the carcass is 
placed on the green tire assembly drum, the robot and its arms retreat to 
a central ready or docked position until the next first stage carcass is 
finished and green tire assembly drum is cleared for the next operation. 
The Second Stage Tire Assembly Machine 
The second stage portion of the system is an improved semi-automatic tire 
assembly machine, generally similar to the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 
4,402,782 of Sep. 6, 1983, assigned to the assignee of this application. 
It features a fabricated base or bed 70 for optimum machine stability, 
with hardened guideways located in precise alignment to bed 50 of the 
carcass machine, a novel programmable belt and tread drum 75, a novel 
flangeless tire assembly drum 80, a precision transfer ring 85 which is 
driven along the bed, and an automatic tire unloading means 115 (FIG. 1). 
The headstock includes the servomotor or positioner which drives the drum 
75, and the tailstock is a precision machined non-rotating weldment which 
supports the assembly drum 80 in cantilever fashion, and houses the drum 
support/control shaft 82 and its servomotor, the air supply to drum 80, 
and a pair of unloading arms along with their manipulating means. An 
unloading track is supported to one side of bed 70 at an unload station 
beyond the free end of drum 80. 
Belt and Tread Drum 
The belt and tread assembly drum 75 is a substantial improvement over the 
adjustable drum disclosed in said U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782. Drum diameter 
variations are achievable through linear actions of a draw bar in 
combination with a cone acting on keyslot supported and guided drum 
segments. Details are disclosed in said copending U.S. patent application. 
The draw bar is activated by a servomotor, thus making it possible to 
manipulate the drum by programmable instructions, to obtain very precise 
diameter settings through remote input. 
Outer drum segments of this novel drum feature quick change mountings, 
permanent magnets for steel belt attraction, and scalloped edges to 
minimize gaps between segments thus providing an almost continuous support 
for the steel belts being placed thereupon. A drum diameter range of 18 
inches minimum to 30 inches maximum is obtainable with only four sets of 
tooling consisting of twelve segments each. 
Belt Tread Servicer 
This unit (FIG. 6) is designed with belt and tread delivery being in line, 
meaning servicer shifting left to right and back for any reason during 
component application is not required. Servicer capability consists of 
storing and delivering two belts B1 and B2 and one tread component TR. 
Pay-out is powered by two D.C. motors which are dancer bar actuated. 
Supply rolls are kept from over-running by airpowered disk brakes. Air 
pressure is adjustable through a programmable valve and an ultrasonic roll 
diameter sensor which in combination successfully maintains equal 
drive-out tension. 
Belt delivery to the building drum is achieved through precision belt pans. 
These advance for delivery to bring the guiders into the closest possible 
proximity with the belt/tread building drum 75, onto which belt components 
are to be placed. Each guider is individually adjustable left and right to 
assure positive centering with respect to the belt/tread drum. Each guider 
can also be tilted to allow compensating for uneven floors or other 
disturbing relationships between tire machine and servicer. The guider, 
once set, will concentrically deliver belts in range from 43/4 inch 
minimum to 11 inch maximum. 
Both belt positions are also equipped with a foot pedal-initiated, 
automatic retract function. Retract can be "inched" by stepping on and 
releasing a designated foot switch; retract can also be activated to take 
a belt back to a predetermined position each time by holding the foot 
pedal. In that case, retract "stop" is sensed by a reflective scanner 
which signals that belt edge has passed a predetermined belt stop point 
which deactivates the belt retract function. The two reflective scanners 
interact directly with the control system giving a signal to the retract 
motor and the activating air cylinder. 
Tread application on this building system works on the reverse principle. 
Treads are placed by a builder/operator, or a utility person, upside down 
into the tread delivery pan and urged downwardly forward through the 
guider against the stop roll. Tread application is from here on automatic 
through foot pedal actuation. The stop roll becomes a stitcher roll during 
the tread application in that it stitches the tread to the previously 
applied belt package. Details of this tread feeding operation are given in 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,373 of Apr. 11, 1989. 
TIRE ASSEMBLY DRUM 
The tire assembly drum 80 (FIGS. 8 and 9) is a novel design with 
improvements over an earlier version of such a drum which is disclosed in 
aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782. Important features of drum 80 are 
that it presents an essentially smooth cylindrical surface, and that it 
includes a self-centering feature which automatically centers the first 
stage carcass TC thereon, and then seals the bead areas to the drum for 
subsequent internal pressurization as part of the conversion of the 
carcass into toroidal shape. The building drum 80 is made of two half 
parts 80A and 80B which are generally symmetrical and rotatably mounted on 
a tubular supporting shaft 82 which is fixed at one end to headstock 
structure and drive 340, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 8. Drum part 80A is 
rotatably supported around shaft 82 and drum part 80B is rotatably 
supported from the end of a coaxial inner control shaft, thus the two drum 
parts are freely rotatable on shaft 82 and also can be moved along their 
common axis to form a drum of variable length; compare FIGS. 8A and 8C. 
Details of the support and drive for these functions are disclosed in said 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782, particularly in FIGS. 15-17 and related 
description. 
Each half 80A and 80B includes 
a) a plurality of radially extensible locator pads 350 which are located 
in, and retractable into, a circumferential groove within the cylindrical 
surface of the drum halves 80A and 80B, and 
b) outboard thereof a radially extensible continuous seal ring 360 which is 
located within groove 352, outboard of pads 350, and is capable of making 
an essentially air-tight seal with at least one side of that groove. 
Internal passages are provided in each drum part for directing air under 
pressure into separate annular bladders beneath pads 350 and beneath seal 
rings 360, respectively, under control of suitable remotely actuated 
valves (not shown). 
The shafts are supported in headstock 340, which also includes servomotor 
connected to rotate a threaded rod 380 (within shaft 82). The motion of 
drum halves 80A and 80B is controlled by reversibly driving rod 380, which 
has a first threaded portion nearest to the supporting end of shaft 82, 
and a second oppositely threaded portion 384 extending almost to the end 
of shaft 82. Rod 380 is rotatably supported at the headstock end of shaft 
82 by a conventional bearing assembly and has a drive gear (not shown) 
keyed to its end for rotation by motor. 
Control shaft has a rear follower nut (not shown) bolted to it and engaged 
with the first threaded portion of rod 380, near the headstock. A forward 
follower nut is engaged with the second or outermost threaded end of rod, 
and has a radially extending lug 382 bolted to the front of sleeve, and 
extending through an elongated slot 387 in mounting shaft 82 and through 
an even longer slot in the inner shaft. Thus, lug 382 will slide along 
slot 387 when rod 380 is rotated and the follower nuts move along the rod. 
This keeps sleeves and shaft from rotating yet allows their respective 
outer ends to move in opposite directions, toward or away from each other 
depending on the direction of rotation imparted to rod 380 by its drive. 
After a first stage carcass is transferred onto the tire building drum 
halves 80A, 80B, pads 350 are extended by air pressure applied to bladders 
and the two halves of the drum are moved apart by rotating rod 380 in an 
appropriate direction. This causes the pads eventually to engage behind 
the beads of the carcass as can be seen from FIGS. 9A and 9B, and to move 
the carcass appropriately until the drum halves are engaged behind the 
corresponding bead, as shown in FIG. 9A. Then air pressure expands the 
bladders under seal rings 360 into a tight fit against the surfaces of the 
beads resting on the drum parts, forming an air-tight seal. Air under 
pressure is then supplied to the space between the drum halves 80A and 80B 
and the drum halves are moved together by rotating rod 380 in the opposite 
direction as this air pressure is increased. The action is described in 
further detail in U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782. Thus the carcass is 
progressively shaped into a toroid, as shown in the sequence of FIGS. 9A 
and 9B. 
The drum typically can accommodate a bead size range from 13 inches minimum 
to 161/2 inches maximum, and a shoulder set range of 81/2 inches minimum 
up to 241/2 inches maximum has been designed into the drum. Shoulder set 
limits are programmable. 
Belt/Tread Transfer Ring 
The belt/tread assembly pick-up storage and delivery is achieved through 
chucking members and their radially inward/outward motions which are 
cam-controlled through the action of a servo motor along with a transverse 
drive positioner motor for the lateral positioning of the transfer ring 
relative to the belt/tread and assembly drum stations. 
The transfer ring assembly 85 operates along bed 70 and its traversing 
drive is a ball screw/nut arrangement powered by servo motor. The chucking 
range for belt/tread assemblies extends from 21.9 inches minimum to 32.5 
inches maximum. Three sets of eight each transfer ring segments cover the 
complete chucking range. Details of the transfer ring are disclosed in 
said U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782. 
Tire Driver Stitcher 
Since no torque is transmitted through the assembly drum shaft, the green 
tire being assembled thereon must be rotated through external drive means. 
The machine is equipped with a driver which is adapted to rotate the tire 
through the engagement of a suitable drive wheel at the tread centerline 
while simultaneously consolidating this area, generally as disclosed in 
FIGS. 15 and 19 of said U.S. Pat. No. 4,402,782. During tire rotation, a 
pair of dynamic stitcher arms engage the tread portion of the tire for 
purpose of consolidating the belt/tread assembly from the center on 
outward toward the shoulders. Tire and stitcher rotational speeds are 
variable through programming of the unit's servomotor drive STDM. 
Green Tire Unloader 
The second stage portion of the system embodies a pair of transfer arms 462 
carrying radially movable grippers or pads 460 that are designed to engage 
the finished green tire GT at two points, hold it there until the 
inflation pressure has been released and then move the tire into the 
unload/discharge area. This action is illustrated in FIGS. 12 and 13, and 
the motion of arms 462 is under control of a servomotor. Once in that 
position, a pair of outwardly and downwardly inclined unloading rails 470 
are moved forward and under the green tire GT to engage the tire after 
same has been released by the two grippers. 
Due to its own gravity and the general design of the arrangement, the green 
tire when dropped onto the two extended unloading rails 470 induce the 
green tire to roll downwardly and away from the machine preferably onto a 
main stream conveyor. 
Programmable Control 
A suitable programmable control for the system is illustrated, in block 
form with explanatory legends, in FIG. 14. The programmable controller can 
be of any suitable type, and it controls the various components of the 
system primarily through conventional servomotor positioners which drive 
various units as described above. Thus, the action of any servomotor can 
be adjusted for discrete stepping, rotation through specified partial or 
complete revolutions, or running at programmed speeds. 
While an operator is working at the belt-tread drum station, using the 
described controls to withdraw belt components and to rotate drum 75 as he 
adds the belts onto that drum, the automated tire carcass (first stage) 
apparatus initiates by moving the carriage to the first station A 
(innerliner), where the innerliner or first ply is in ready position. The 
carriage overruns this location and reverses, thus causing the headstock 
to close upon the tailstock and allow the shot pins to engage. Beads have 
already been loaded into the placers by the operator just after unloading 
of the previously made carcass. As the carriage 55 is driven by its motor 
CDM, the bead placers move inward to positions coaxial with the carcass 
drum, and then move along the carriage toward the bead setters at opposite 
ends of the drum. The beads are transferred, and this is signalled by 
detectors in the placers and bead setters. 
After reversal, the servomotor CDM moves carriage 55 into position at 
station A. Once that motion stops, the applicator head for the ply 
conveyor at station A comes forward, engages the innerliner with the drum 
surface, and the drum is rotated to draw the innerliner onto and around 
the drum surface. The applicator head is withdrawn, and the carriage 
begins moving to station B. During this time, drum 60 may be rotated and 
the roll 195 pressed against the innerliner to smooth it. 
A ply server stations B and C, the foregoing process is repeated, it being 
understood that only one of them might be active in a given specification, 
in which case the carriage motor simply passes by the disabled station. At 
least some of the plies are longer (lengthwise of the drum 60) than the 
drum surface. The extended parts of the plies are supported by partially 
inflating the bladders, which can rotate with the drum and effectively act 
as longitudinal extensions of its building surface for a time. 
Before the last ply station, the bead setters are actuated, and transfer 
the beads onto the ends of the plies already on the drum (see FIG. 3). The 
bladders are deflated and kept below the ply ends during this operation. 
Then, the bladders are expanded and guided (pushed) against the now 
up-turning ply ends, folding those ends over the beads. All these actions 
may occur during excursion of the carriage toward the last ply station C. 
At the final ply station, the last ply is laid over and around the 
overturned previous ply ends. Then as the carriage moves outward the side 
wall server D, the drum 60 is rotated and the roller 195 actuated, to 
smooth the several layers of ply material. The carriage stops in precise 
alignment with the side wall strip server, and the strips, already 
measured in length and in a ready position adjacent to drum path, are 
"started" onto the drum 60. This may be done manually or by 
transfer/delivery mechanism, as explained earlier. Once the side wall 
strips are placed, roller 195 again is actuated while the drum is rotated, 
to stitch the strips to the exterior of the carcass. Then, the turn down 
rollers (at the base of the server D) are actuated and press against the 
end portions of the carcass, and travel around the embedded bead area, to 
consolidate and stitch these parts. When this action is finished, the 
robot head (cradle) commences motion toward the drum 60, and engages the 
fingers on arms 315 to the bead areas, closing in on them from the ends of 
the carcass. Once the carcass is grasped, drum 60 collapses, the shot pins 
207 are released to free the carriage tailstock, and the carriage 55 moves 
in reverse, toward the ply server stations, sufficiently to withdraw drum 
60 from within the finished carcass TC. 
The robot next swings the carcass over in front of the tire assembly drum 
80 and then moves backward from its unloading extended position, carrying 
the carcass around drum 80 and stopping when the carcass rests on both 
drum parts (FIG. 8A). The arms 315 then move apart (lengthwise of the 
carcass, to release, and the robot head swings upward to its parked 
position. 
In the meantime, another set of beads has been loaded into the placers, and 
the carriage 55 has started back to the first ply server A. 
In the time the carcass building is taking place, the belt-tread 
construction has been completed, and transfer ring picks up the completed 
second stage assembly, with the drum 75 collapsing under programmable 
control to free the assembly after the shoes of the transfer ring 85 have 
engaged the periphery of that assembly. The transfer ring 85 then is moved 
into location around the assembly drum 80, as soon as the robot has loaded 
a carcass thereon. 
Next, the carcass is partially inflated and transformed to toroidal shape, 
then inflated further and brought into contact with the second stage 
assembly in the surrounding transfer ring 85. The shoes of the transfer 
ring are then moved outward, and the ring moved to its park position, 
beyond the unloading station. The final stitcher comes into action, and 
stitches the two assemblies together, as explained earlier. 
Finally, the stitcher mechanism is withdrawn, the unloading arms and grips 
come into action, remove the green tire from drum 80, carrying forward to 
where the tracks 470 have extended into the unloading station, and the 
green tire is released (dropped) on its periphery into these tracks, 
causing it to roll away. By this time, the operator is back at the 
belt-tread drum and servers, beginning a new second stage assembly. 
While the methods herein described, and the forms of apparatus for carrying 
these methods into effect, constitute preferred embodiments of this 
invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to 
these precise methods and forms of apparatus, and that changes may be made 
in either without departing from the scope of the invention, which is 
defined in the appended claims.