Vehicle tyre

Abstract: A vehicle tyre comprises a tread portion (T) provided on each side of the tyre equator (C) with a plurality of main grooves (2), displaced relative to one another in the circumferential direction, extending axially outwardly from starting positions near the tyre equator beyond a position at 25% of the ground contact width from the tyre equator. The main grooves (2) on each side of the tyre equator are inclined to the same direction, which is however reverse to that on the other side, at an acute angle which becomes greater in the course of the longitudinal extent of the main grooves. The axial distance of the axially inner ends (2i) of the main grooves from the tyre equator is in the range of not more than 2% of the ground contact width. Each main groove consists of an axially inner part (3a) inclined at an angle (1) in the range of from 5 to 15 degrees and an axially outer part (3b) inclined at an angle ((2) in the range of more than 15 degrees but not more than 90 degrees, and the boundary between these two parts is disposed at an axial distance from the tyre equator which is in the range of from 0.25 to 0.70 times the axial distance between the axially inner end and outer end of the main groove. The width of each main groove becomes larger in the course of its longitudinal extent, starting from the narrowest axially inner end (2i) in the vicinity of the tyre equator and becomes smaller again towards the axially outer end (2e) thereof. The number of main grooves over the circumference of the tyre is such that at least part sections of at least five main grooves are disposed in the ground contact patch.

Description: The present invention relates to a vehicle tyre having a tread pattern capable of improving wet performance and tyre noise. With an increasing reduction of the noise originating directly from the vehicle, the tyre noise contributes to the total noise level of the vehicle to a higher degree and thus a substantial requirement now lies in reducing tyre noise. It is known that the peak values of tyre noise lie in a frequency range of 900 Hz to 1100 Hz. This noise is also termed organ pipe noise, because it is a consequence of the longitudinal grooves which become active in the contact patch of the tyre. An air column is formed in the longitudinal grooves between the ground contact portion of the tyre and the road surface, and this produces sound in the above-mentioned frequency range as a consequence of the resonance of the air column. The wavelength of the sound is substantially constant, independently of the speed, i.e. of the speed of rotation of the tyre. By the way, the tyre noise further includes so-called pumping noise generated by a high speed flow of air in the axial grooves which also activates the longitudinal grooves, and so-called pitch noise which is generated by the tread pattern elements as a consequence of their circumferential pitch arrangement. Because a noise having a frequency of about 1000 Hz is easily perceived by the human ear, such noise disturbs people both inside and outside the vehicle. In order to reduce the generation of such a noise, it would be possible to reduce the proportion of negative tread pattern (i.e. to reduce the area of grooves), because a tyre becomes quieter with a reduction of the negative tread pattern. However, wet performance such as the aquaplaning behaviour of the tyre becomes correspondingly worse with a reduction of the proportion of the negative tread pattern, i.e. two oppositely directed effects are present, which have previously only enabled unsatisfactory comprise solutions. A vehicle tyre comprising the features of the precharacterizing clause of claim 1 is known from European patent application 0 625 435 A1. DE 43 00 695 discloses a tread pattern comprising curved grooves made up of inner and outer sections which interconnect at the centreline of the tyre and together with two wide circumferentially extending grooves provide basically a block pattern again aimed at water clearance. EP-A-0 565 270 discloses a pattern with curved main grooves which begin near the centre of the pattern at an acute angle and bend to a substantially larger angle at which they continue to the tread edge. Auxiliary lateral groove portions extend substantially parallel to the second part of the first grooves and open to the tread edge. Finally two circumferentially extending grooves are provided so that the pattern is sub-divided into blocks. The main and auxiliary grooves are constant in width and the pattern has the object of providing good negative ratio to improve resistance to hydroplaning. The object of the invention is to provide a vehicle tyre which, through a special layout of the tread pattern, provides a pronounced reduction of the generation of tyre noise, and which has good wet performance and good dry grip. According to the present invention this problem is solved by the features of claim 1. In this application, the angles of the grooves are defined as the angle between the tangent to the groove centre line measured with respect to the circumferential direction of the tyre. By the avoidance of normal continuous circumferential grooves which are replaced by the obliquely extending main grooves of the present invention, it is possible to avoid the so-called organ pipe noise and nevertheless to ensure the required wet performance. In this connection it is important that the length of these special main grooves is so selected that each main groove is open at least one end in the ground contact patch, whereby the required water-dissipating capability is achieved and the noise generation is nevertheless minimised. Each tread middle region can be provided with a circumferential groove consisting of sections of different cross section and/or varying width, into which the main grooves open and shoulder grooves open. As a result of the changing width of these circumferential grooves, the formation of any type of organ pipe noise is avoided, and the dissipation of water from the ground contact patch is still provided and favoured. The shoulder grooves are relatively narrow in comparison to the main grooves to form stiff blocks in the shoulder regions which ensure good handling and a low noise generation. Through the design of the groove profile or shape it is ensured that this groove profile continuously changes in the ground contact patch during rolling of the tyre, which is of significance for the reduction of noise. However, an adequately large negative tread pattern is nevertheless still present in the ground contact patch which ensures the dissipation of water from the contact area. Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings: Fig.1 is a developed plan view of an embodiment of the present invention showing an example of the tread portion; Fig.2 is an enlarged plan view showing an example of the configuration of a single groove;. Fig.3 shows the ground contact patch of the tyre shown in Fig.1; Fig.4 is an enlarged plan view showing the auxiliary grooves of Fig. 1 and an alternative circumferential groove; Fig.5 shows an example of the tread profile line; Fig.6 shows a tread pattern according to a prior art; and Fig.7 shows the ground contact patch of Fig. 6. In the drawings, a pneumatic tyre according to the present invention comprises a tread portion T provided with a directionally bound tread pattern. The tread portion T is provided on each side of the tyre equator C with a circumferential groove 3. As the circumferential grooves 3 extend continuously in the circumferential direction of the tyre, they are so designed that they cannot generate any organ pipe noise. Each of the circumferential grooves 3 consists of sections of different width and/or cross-section when considered around the circumference of the tyre. The groove width of the circumferential grooves 3 is, in the tread surface, in the range of 2 to 6%, more preferably 2 to 4% of the ground contact width W. If the width of the circumferential grooves 3 is too large, organ pipe noise is liable to be generated. If the width is too small, pumping noise increases and wet performance decreases. Usually, the minimum width is not less than 3 mm, and the maximum width is not more than 12 mm. Further, the groove depth of the circumferential grooves 3 is preferably set in the range of not less than 6 mm. In Fig.1, the circumferential grooves 3 have repeated narrow parts 17, but in general the circumferential grooves 3 can be considered to be straight. Fig.4 shows another but similar example of the circumferential groove 3, in which the circumferential groove 3 can be considered to be composed of alternate oblique parts 3a and relatively short oblique parts 3b. The longer oblique parts 3a are inclined at a small angle of not more than 5 degrees, preferably 0 to 3 degrees to the tyre circumferential direction, and the shorter oblique parts 3b are inclined reversely to the first oblique parts 3a at a larger angle of not more than 55 degrees, whereby the groove has a saw-tooth-like configuration. As a result, the formation of any type of organ pipe noise is completely avoided. Preferably the circumferential grooves 3 are disposed between a central tread region Cr and a tread shoulder region Sh such that each centre line 3c is positioned within a tread middle region Md therebetween. The centre line 3c is disposed in a range between 26 and 35%, more preferably between 26 and 30% of the ground contact width W. Here, the tread middle region Md is defined as the region between two positions which are axially spaced apart from the tyre equator C by 25% and 40% of the ground contacting width W. The tread shoulder regions Sh are defined between the axially outer positions at 40% of the ground contacting width W and the tread edges E. The central tread region Cr is defined between the axially inner positions at 25% of the ground contacting width W. The ground contacting width W is defined as the maximum axial width of the ground contact patch. The ground contact patch is defined as the ground contacting area of the tread portion when the tyre is mounted on a standard rim (or measuring rim), inflated to the standard inner pressure and loaded with 88% of the maximum load which are specified in the well known standards, such as ETRTO (Europe), T&RA (North America), STRO (Scandinavia), JATMA (Japan and Asia) and the like. The tread portion T is further provided with shoulder grooves 4 axially outwards of the circumferential grooves 3, and main grooves 2 extending on the axially inner side of the circumferential grooves 3 as will now be described. The main grooves 2, which replace longitudinal grooves present in customary tyres, start adjacent to the tyre equator C and a small spacing therefrom, and extend at an acute angle in to the tread middle region Md, i.e. beyond the above-mentioned position at 25% of the ground contacting width W. Main grooves 2 are provided on each side of the tyre equator C and are inclined towards the same direction but reverse to the main grooves on the other side. The axially outer ends 2e thereof are connected so that they are open into the circumferential grooves 3. The axially inner ends 2i thereof are closed and as stated are near the tyre equator C. The axial distance L between each closed end 2i and the tyre equator C is preferably set in the range of not more than 2% of the ground contact width W and not more than 10 mm. If the distance L is too large, water drainage from the tread central region deteriorates. The main grooves 2 are displaced, preferably irregularly displaced, relative to one another in the circumferential direction as shown in Fig. 1. The displacement LR shown in Fig. 1 at the axially inner closed ends 2i is preferably set in the range of from 0.25 to 0.85, more preferably 0.35 to 0.65 times the axial distance WG of the main groove 2 to maintain the rigidity of the tread central part especially the circumferential part between the closed ends 2i. Further, the circumferential distances LG between the closed ends 2i of the circumferentially adjacent main grooves 2 on each side of the tyre equator C, namely, the circumferential pitch lengths of the main grooves are in the range of from 1.5 to 3.5 times, more preferably 1.5 to 3.0 times the displacement LR. If the pitch lengths LG are too large, the wet performance decreases. If the pitch lengths LG are too small, the rigidity decreases between the circumferentially adjacent axially inner part 2A. The pitch lengths preferably comprise at least three in this example five different pitch lengths, and the pitch sequence is irregular in order to reduce the pitch noise. The ratio (PL/PS) of the maximum pitch length PL to the minimum pitch length PS is preferably set in the range of from 1.5 to 1.7, for example 1.6. The main grooves 2 have differing widths over their length. Starting from a relatively short and narrow width part adjacent to the tyre equator C, the main grooves 2 enlarge to a maximum width, and in this relatively wide part the main grooves 2 preferably have an inclination angle in the range from about 5 to 10 degrees to the circumferential direction. Thereafter, the inclination angle becomes larger and the main grooves extend with a corresponding curvature to join the circumferential grooves 3. As shown in Fig.2, when an axially inner part 2A is defined as being inclined at an angle  1 of from 5 to 15 degrees to the tyre circumferential direction, and an axially outer part 2B is defined as being inclined at an angle  2 of more than 15 but not more than 90 degrees to the tyre circumferential direction, the main groove 2 consists of the axially inner part 2A and the axially outer part 2B. The junction 2Ae of these two parts 2A and 2B is disposed at an axial distance S from the tyre equator C which is in the range of from 0.25 to 0.70 times, more preferably 0.35 to 0.65 times, the axial distance WG between the inner end 2i and outer end 2e of the main groove 2. On the other hand, the distance S is in the range of from 10 to 13% of the ground contact width W in this example. As a result each main groove provides a substantially straight and almost circumferentially extending relatively long part, which part serves effectively as circumferential grooves present in customary tyres. The width of the main groove 2 is set in the range of from 2 to 9%, preferably 2.5 to 5.5%, more preferably 4 to 8%, still more preferably 4 to 7% of the ground contact width W. Usually, the width is not less than 6 mm and the depth of the main grooves 2 is not less than 7 mm. The width of the main grooves 2 increases gradually from the axially inner ends 2i and reaches to a maximum width Gm in the axially inner part 2A then gradually decreases to the axially outer ends 2e. In order to reduce the internal noise, it is of importance that the main grooves become narrower towards the circumferential grooves 3 in their axially outer parts 2B and are thus matched to the adjacent grooves such as the circumferential grooves and shoulder grooves. It is however possible that the width is substantially constant along the length. Preferably, the angle  1 of the axially inner part 2A is in the range of from 5 to 10 degrees, and the angle  2 of the axially outer part 2B is in the range of more than 15 degrees but not more than 50 degrees. The arrangement of the axially outer parts 2B, inclined at a larger angle than the axially inner parts 2A, maintains the pattern rigidity of the central region Cr which provides good grip and steering stability. When the axially inner part 2A has an inclination angle of less than 5 degrees, it is difficult to form the necessary main grooves 2. If the angle is more than 15 degrees, the resistance to water flow increases, and wet performance is liable to deteriorate. The axially inner parts 2A and/or the axially outer parts 2B may be at a constant inclination angle. However, it is preferable that the inclination angle of the main grooves gradually increases in both the axially inner part 2A and outer part 2B from the axially inside to outside of the tyre. In this example, the angle of the axially inner part 2A increases from about 5 degrees to 15 degrees. The angle of the axially outer part 2B increases from 15 degrees to about 45 degrees. It is also preferable that the angle  1F of a straight line F1 drawn between the ends of the axially inner part 2A is in the range of from 5 to 15 degrees to the circumferential direction, and the angle  2F of a straight line F2 drawn between the ends of the axially outer part 2B is more than 15 degrees but not more than 90 degrees. As shown in Fig.3, the main grooves 2 are arranged such that at least five, preferably six or more main grooves 2 always appear in the ground contact patch during running. In this example, six main grooves 2 appear in the ground contact patch. Further, only one main groove 2 extends circumferentially across the ground contact patch, and the remaining grooves 2 are such that the one of the inner end 2i and outer end 2e is positioned in the ground contact patch but the other is outside thereof. The above-mentioned shoulder grooves 4, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, extend from the tread middle regions Md into the tread shoulder regions Sh. In this example they extend axially outwardly from the circumferential grooves 3 beyond the tread edges E, which contributes to water dissipation from the ground contact patch. The shoulder grooves 4 are inclined at an angle  4 of from 45 to 120 degrees, preferably 50 to 90 degrees with respect to the tyre circumferential direction in the same inclining direction. The angle  4 gradually increases axially outwards so that the shoulder grooves 4 are curved. It is however, possible that the angle  4 is substantially constant to form a generally straight groove. The width of the shoulder grooves 4 is less than the width of the main grooves 2 and in the range of from 3 to 7 mm for example. In this example, the width of the shoulder groove 4 gradually decreases axially outwards to reduce internal noise. Preferably, the groove depth of the shoulder grooves 4 is less than the groove depth of the main grooves 2 to improve dry grip as shown in Fig.5. This reduction of groove depth also functions as an additional noise reducer. Usually, the groove depth of the shoulder grooves 4 is not less than 5 mm. The shoulder region provides the required steering stability as a result of the high proportion of positive tread pattern provided. Moreover, narrow grooves 6 ensure that no disturbing internal noises are generated despite the guarantee of dewatering. It is possible to make the water flow from the main grooves 2 to the shoulder grooves 4 even better by setting the axially inner ends of the shoulder grooves 4 near the axially outer ends 2e of the main grooves 2. Then the main grooves 2 each open into the circumferential grooves 3 adjacent to one of the narrow parts 17, adjacent to which one of the shoulder grooves 4 opens into the circumferential groove 3. In this example, the main grooves 2 and the shoulder grooves 4 are connected to the zigzag points of the circumferential grooves 3. Further, the tread portion is provided between the circumferentially adjacent main grooves 2 with one or more, in this example two auxiliary grooves 5a and 5b. The auxiliary grooves 5a and 5b extend axially inwardly from the circumferential grooves 3 and end in the central region Cr. The angles  3 of the auxiliary grooves 5a and 5b are in the range of from 10 to 120 degrees, preferably 10 to 90 degrees, more preferably 10 to 50 degrees to the circumferential direction. In this example, the auxiliary grooves have an oblique course approximated to the course of the main grooves. Thus the auxiliary grooves are inclined in the same direction as the auxiliary grooves. Further, as shown in Fig.4, a straight line F3 drawn between the axially inner closed end 5i and the axially outer open end 5e has an angle  3F of 10 to 120 degrees, preferably 10 to 90 degrees, more preferably 10 to 50 degrees to the circumferential direction. The axial distances Sa and Sb of the axially inner closed ends 5i of the auxiliary grooves 5a and 5b measured from the tyre equator C are preferably 0.4 to 0.75 times the axial distance WG of the main grooves 2 and 13 to 17 % of the ground contact width W. If the closed ends 5i are close to the tyre equator, the rigidity of the tread rubber between the main grooves 2 is too small. If the closed ends 5i are far from the tyre equator, water drainage from the central region Cr is poor. In this example, the auxiliary grooves 5a and auxiliary grooves 5b are disposed on the heel side and toe side, respectively, with respect to the designed rotational direction of the tyre. As indicated in Fig.1 by an arrow (A), the designed direction of rotation of the tyre is such that the axially inner ends 2i of the main grooves 2 first contact the road surface and then the axially outer ends 2e follow, and this designed rotational direction is marked in the tyre sidewalls (not shown). Further, in this example, the closed ends 5i of the auxiliary groove 5a on the heel side is nearer to the tyre equator than the closed ends 5i of the auxiliary groove 5b on the toe side to improve drainage. The width of each auxiliary groove 5a, 5b gradually increases from the axially inner closed end to the axially outer open end from about 4 mm to about 15 mm, and the average width thereof is not less than 7 mm. The axial lengths and angles of the auxiliary grooves 5a and 5b are varied irregularly to improve the pitch noise. Furthermore, the tread portion can be provided with narrow grooves having a width of less than 1 mm (about 0.5 mm) to determine the tread rigidity. In Fig.1, a straight narrow groove 6 extends on the tyre equator C and curved narrow grooves 7 each extend across a plurality of shoulder blocks B. The shoulder blocks B are defined by one circumferential groove 3 and the shoulder grooves 4. Comparison Tests Test tyres were made and tested for the wet performance and noise performance. Tyre size 235/45ZR17 Wheel rim size: 8JJ Inner pressure: Front=Rear=2.2 kgf/sq.cm Wet performance test (Lateral aquaplaning test) On a 100 metre radius test course, a 3000cc rear-wheel-drive car provided on all four wheels with test tyres was run on an asphalt paved road provided with a pool of water (depth 5 mm, length 20 m). The lateral acceleration (lateral G) was measured on the front wheels at varying speeds. In the table the average of the lateral acceleration from 50 to 80 km/h is indicated by an index based on that of a prior art tyre being 100. The larger the index, the better the wet performance. External noise test (Pass-by noise test) According to the "Test Procedure for Tyre Noise" specified in Japanese JASO-C606, a test car was coasted for a 50 metre distance at a speed of 60 km/h on a straight test course (asphalt road), and the maximum noise sound level was measured with a microphone set at 1.2 metre height from the road surface and 7.5 metre sideways from the centre line of the course. The results are indicated in decibels based on the prior art tyre being set at zero. Internal noise test (Pattern noise test) The pattern noise heard inside the test car when running on a smooth surface road at a speed of 60 km/h was evaluated by the driver's feeling. The results are indicated by an index based on the prior art tyre being 100. The larger the value, the better the pattern noise. From the test results, it was confirmed that the tyres according to the present invention were improved in both wet performance and noise performance. In summary, the main grooves lying in the ground contact patch were able to take up a large quantity of water and to dissipate it sideways and outwardly. The course of the grooves continuously changed in the ground contact patch during running, and no straight through-going grooves were present, whereby the undesired organ pipe noise was avoided and without deterioration of the wet performance. Also the internal noise was reduced. For the manufacture of a tyre in accordance with the invention, three different types of segments and five different lengths are preferably used, with the ratio between the shortest and longest segment preferably amounting to about 1:1.6. The present invention can be suitably applied to belted radial tyres for passenger cars especially tyres whose aspect ratio is not more than 60 %. As described above, in the present invention, the optimisation of good aquaplaning behaviour with a simultaneous reduction of the tyre noise is obtained through the selected arrangement and dimensioning, and also through the shape of the grooves and the offset which takes place at least over the width of the tread.

Claims: A vehicle tyre comprising a tread portion (T) provided on each side of the tyre equator with a plurality of main grooves (2) displaced relatively to one another in the circumferential direction, extending axially outwardly from starting positions near the tyre equator (C) to beyond a position at 25% of the ground contact width from the tyre equator (C), being inclined to the same direction which is however reverse to that on the other side at an acute angle to the circumferential direction, wherein in the ground contact patch in the normal inflated and loaded condition of the tyre the number of main grooves (2) around the circumference of the tyre is selected so that at least part sections of at least five main grooves are disposed in the ground contact patch, one of said at least five main grooves (2) extends circumferentially across the ground contact patch, and the remainder each has one end within the ground contact patch and the other end outside the ground contact patch, each main groove (2) consists of an axially inner part (2A) inclined at an acute angle (1) in the range of from 5 to 15 degrees and an axially outer part (2B) inclined at an angle (2) in the range of more than 15 degrees but not more than 90 degrees, the said acute angle becoming gradually greater in the course of the longitudinal extent of the grooves, the grooves having axially inner ends (2i) which are closed, a boundary (2Ae) between the axially inner part (2A) and the axially outer part (2B) disposed at an axial distance (S) from the tyre equator (C) in the range of from 0.25 to 0.70 times the axial distance (WG) between the axially inner end and outer end of the main grooves and the width of each main groove (2) becomes gradually larger in the course of its longitudinal extent, starting from the narrowest axially inner end (2i) to the boundary (2Ae) and becomes gradually smaller again towards the axially outer end (2e), characterized in that the tread portions between the axially outer parts (2B) of the circumferentially adjacent main grooves (2) being provided with one or more auxiliary grooves (5a, 5b) extending axially inwardly from circumferential grooves (3) being provided on both sides of the equator (C), said grooves (5a, 5b) having an oblique course approximated to the course of the main grooves (2) and having axially inner ends which are closed. A tyre according to claim 1, characterized in that the tyre tread region between the axially inner ends (2i) on either side of the tyre equator (C) comprises tread only and no circumferentially extending groove. A tyre according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the tread portion is provided on each side of the tyre equator with a circumferential groove (3) extending continuously in the circumferential direction and consisting of sections (3a, 3b) of different cross-section, and the main grooves (2) open into the circumferential grooves (3) at the axially outer ends. A tyre according to claim 3, characterized in that the circumferential grooves (3) consist of sequential sections (3a, 3b) of different widths, which are connected together via narrow parts (17). A tyre according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the circumferential grooves (3) are the only grooves which extend continuously in the circumferential direction, and each circumferential groove (3) is disposed in the tread middle region (Md) which is defined between two positions which are axially spaced apart from the tyre equator (C) by 25 % and 40 % of the ground contacting width. A tyre according to claim 3, 4 or 5, characterized in that the widths of the circumferential grooves (3) are in the range of from 2 to 4 % of the ground contact width (W). A tyre according to any of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that the tread portion (T) is further provided with shoulder grooves (4) extending axially outwardly from the circumferential grooves (3) to tread edges, and inclined at an angle of from 45 to 120 degrees to the tyre circumferential direction (C), and being narrower than the main grooves (2). A tyre according to claim 7, characterized in that the inclination angles of the shoulder grooves (4) are in the range of 50 to 90 degrees. A tyre according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the main grooves (2) each open into the circumferential grooves (3) adjacent to one of the narrow parts (7), adjacent to which one of the shoulder grooves (4) opens into the circumferential groove (3). A tyre according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that an indication of the design direction of tyre rotation is provided which is such that the axially inner ends of the main grooves first contact with the road surface and the axially outer ends follow. A tyre according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the closed ends (5i) of the auxiliary groove (5a) on heel side is nearer to the tyre equator (C) than the closed end (5i) of the auxiliary groove (5b) on the toe side.

Inventors: GERRESHEIM MANFRED, IWAMURA WAKO, SCHOMBURG JUERGEN, GERRESHEIM, MANFRED, IWAMURA, WAKO, SCHOMBURG, JUERGEN, Schomburg, Jürgen
Applicants: SUMITOMO RUBBER IND, SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES LIMITED
Application year: 1998
Main classification: B60C11
IPC codes: B60C11