Patent Abstract:
The invention provides a method of mounting a device to a tire so that the device is mounted on a flat surface. The invention includes a shaped rubber patch having a flat mounting surface and a doubly curved lower surface. The shaped rubber patch is mounted inside the tire in such a way that the curved lower surface mates to the tire sidewall so that the device can be mounted on a flat surface. Because the curved lower surface of the patch mates with the tire curvature, a better attachment interface is provided.

Full Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The invention relates generally to tires and more specifically, to adhering mechanical components to a tire. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    It is often desirable to incorporate devices into tires, such as for example, an air maintenance feature within a tire that will maintain correct air pressure within the tire, or a device for monitoring tire parameters such as a tire pressure monitor system. An air maintenance feature typically includes rigid mechanical components such as an air filter, regulator or valve mechanism. These mechanical components must be secured to the tire, and be able to sustain rotational and centrifugal forces. These devices must also be assembled in such a way to minimize the stresses at the bonding interfaces and allow for ease of assembly. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The invention provides a method of mounting a device to a tire comprising the following steps: buffing an inside surface of the tire, forming a rubber layer and a rubber extension on a mounting surface of the device, wherein the rubber extension extends past the support frame; applying rubber cement to the mounting surface and then affixing the mounting surface of the device to the inside surface; and then curing the rubber cement. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0004]    The invention will be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 
           [0005]      FIG. 1  is a front view of tire and rim assembly with a pump, valve and filter assembly. 
           [0006]      FIG. 2  is a cross sectional view of a truck tire; 
           [0007]      FIG. 3  is a close up view of the truck tire bead area showing a docking station, a regulator and a filter assembly for communicating with the pump passageway; 
           [0008]      FIG. 4  is an exploded view of a regulator and docking station; 
           [0009]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view from the below of a docking station and regulator of  FIG. 4 ; 
           [0010]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the docking station frame. 
           [0011]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the mold for forming the rubber flange. 
           [0012]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a tire showing the assembly mounted inside of the tire. 
           [0013]      FIG. 9  is a close up view of the regulator assembly and curved patch of  FIG. 8 . 
           [0014]      FIG. 10  is an exploded view of the regulator and curved patch. 
           [0015]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a patch and a mold for a patch. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0016]    Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a tire assembly  10  includes a tire  12 , a pump assembly  14 , and a tire wheel  16 . The tire mounts in a conventional fashion to a wheel having a rim body  28  with rim mounting surfaces  22 . An annular rim body  28  joins the rim mounting surfaces  22  and supports the tire assembly as shown. The tire is of conventional construction, having a pair of sidewalls  32  extending from opposite bead areas  34  to a crown or tire tread region  38 . The tire and rim  28  enclose an interior tire cavity  40  which is filled with air. 
         [0017]    As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the tire assembly includes a pump  14  having a pump passageway  42  that is mounted or located in the tire in a channel  44 , preferably near the bead region  34  of the sidewall. The pump passageway  42  may be formed of a discrete tube  42  made of a resilient, flexible material such as plastic, elastomer or rubber compounds, and is capable of withstanding repeated deformation cycles when the tube is deformed into a flattened condition subject to external force and, upon removal of such force, returns to an original condition. The tube is of a diameter sufficient to operatively pass a volume of air sufficient for the purposes described herein and allowing a positioning of the tube in an operable location within the tire assembly as will be described. Preferably, the tube has an elliptical cross-sectional shape, although other shapes such as round may be utilized. 
         [0018]    The pump passageway itself may also be integrally formed or molded into the sidewall of the tire during vulcanization, eliminating the need for an inserted tube. An integrally formed pump passageway is preferably made by building into a selected green tire component such as a chafer, a removable strip made of wire or silicone. The component is built into the tire and cured. The removable strip is then removed post cure to form a molded in or integrally formed pump air passageway. 
         [0019]    Hereinafter, the term “pump passageway” refers either to installed tubes or an integrally molded in passageway. The location selected for the pump passageway within the tire may be within a tire component residing within a high flex region of the tire, sufficient to progressively collapse the internal hollow air passageway as the tire rotates under load thereby conveying air along the air passageway from the inlet to the pump outlet. 
         [0020]    The pump air passageway  42  has an inlet end  42   a  and an outlet end  42   b  in fluid communication with a regulator or valve assembly  200 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . The regulator assembly is preferably mounted inside the tire. Examples of pressure regulators or valve systems suitable for use with the invention are disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 13/221,231, 13/221,433, 13,221,506 which are hereby incorporated by reference. As shown in this particular example, the inlet end  42   a  and the outlet end  42   b  are spaced apart approximately 360 degrees forming an annular pump assembly. However, the inlet and outlet ends may be spaced apart 90 degrees, 180 degrees, etc. 
         [0021]    An air filter assembly  300  is positioned on the outer sidewall of the tire, opposite the regulator assembly  200  and in the vicinity of the pump passageways, as shown in  FIGS. 2-3 . The air filter assembly filters the outside air and communicates the filtered air to the regulator assembly  200  via passage tube  406 . One or more layers of filter media  600  is received in the internal cavity  308  of the filter assembly  300 . The filter media may be a woven or nonwoven fiber, foam, spun fiberglass, charcoal, or other materials known to those skilled the art. Alternatively, a membrane such as PTFE GoreTex may be used, alone or in combination with the filter media. 
         [0022]    The regulator assembly  200  is shown in  FIGS. 4-6 . The regulator assembly  200  is operable to control the amount of inlet air to the pump system  42 . If the tire cavity pressure falls below a set trigger pressure, the regulator assembly allows filtered air to enter the regulator assembly inlet port  222  through inlet hole  202 , and then through to the pump passageway  42 . The regulator assembly may allow airflow into the pump system through an air outlet port  210 . The regulator assembly also may control the flow of air from the pump into the tire cavity, as well as prevent cavity air from back flowing into the pump passageways. 
         [0023]    The regulator assembly  200  is preferably affixed to the inside of the tire, near the bead area. In this embodiment, the regulator assembly  200  is detachably mounted to a docking station  204 . The docking station  204  has a lower surface  206  that is permanently affixed to the inside of the tire. The docking station  204  has an inlet port  202  that is in fluid communication with a central air conduit  210 , opposite the inlet  202 . The central air conduit extends from the upper surface  208  of the docking station to the inlet  202 . The central air conduit  210  is in fluid communication with the air filter assembly  300 , and communicates filtered air to the regulator assembly inlet  222  as shown in  FIG. 3 . 
         [0024]      FIG. 6  illustrates the docking station support frame  212  without the rubber encasement. The support frame  212  has an upper surface  208  that connects to the lower surface of the regulator. A plurality of pronged connectors  214  extend from the upper surface and have a tabbed portion  215  that snapped into receptacles  211  inside the regulator. The upper surface of the docking station has a regulator outlet conduit  207  which communicates fluid from the regulator outlet  218  to the pump inlet  42   a.  The upper surface of the docking station further includes a regulator inlet conduit  209  which communicates pump fluid from the pump outlet  42   b  to the regulator inlet  220 . As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the docking station has a rubber layer  500  molded over the support frame. As shown in  FIG. 7 , the cross-section of the support frame  212  preferably has a flanged surface  213  surrounding the support frame. The rubber layer is molded around the sides of the docking station and along the flanged surface  213  and along the bottom surface  216  of the support frame. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the rubber layer has a rubber flange or extension  510  which extends outward the support frame. The rubber flange  510  extends past the flanged surface  213  1-3 cm on all sides. Thus the footprint of rubber layer is greater than the footprint of the support frame. The thickness of the rubber layer is in the range of 1-4 mm, preferably 2-3 mm. 
         [0025]    An alternate embodiment of a rubber patch  1200  is shown in  FIGS. 8-11 . Unlike patch  1100 , rubber patch  1200  has a curved lower surface  1202  as shown in  FIG. 11  that mates with the tire sidewall curvature at the desired location of installation on the tire sidewall. The curved lower surface  1202  is shaped so that the patch is flat when mounted on the tire sidewall as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , the tire patch thickness varies, and greatly increases from a first end  1204  to a maximum thickness  1208 . The curved lower surface  1202  is preferably asymmetrical in shape. The rubber patch  1200  has a flat upper surface  1210 . The rubber patch  1200  is formed by shaping the patch in a mold  1230 . The curved lower surface  1202  is curved in a first direction along its length so that when seated on the tire inner surface the curvatures mates with the inner surface curvature in the circumferential direction. The curved lower surface  1202  is also curved in a second direction (along its depth) so that when seated on the tire inner surface it mates with the inner tire curvature in the radial direction. The rubber patch  1200  is preferably green rubber, but may be partially or fully cured in the mold  1230 . After the rubber patch is formed, the lower surface  1202  of the rubber patch is seated next to the curved inner sidewall of the tire as shown in  FIG. 11 . Although not shown, the rubber patch may further include holes for communicating fluid from a pump to the regulator. 
         [0026]    The following steps are followed to mount the docking station  204  to the inside surface of the tire. These steps could also be used to mount any mechanical device, including the regulator without the docking station. The lower mounting surface  216  and sides  201  including the flanged surface  213  are buffed with abrasive material such as sandpaper. Next the mounting surface and sides of the docking station are pretreated with Chemlock or other suitable adhesive, ensuring the holes  202 , 203 , 205  located on the lower surface of the docking station are protected from the application of adhesive. Next, the docking station is placed in a mold  600 , so that the upper surface  208  is seated against a lower surface  602  of the mold  600  as shown in  FIG. 7 . Green rubber or elastomer is placed in the mold to enrobe the lower mounting surface and sides of the docking station with rubber/elastomer and to form a rubber flange on the lower mounting surface. A wide variety of rubbers would work, such as sidewall compound, cushion gum, apex etc. The mold forms an extension or thin layer of rubber wherein the periphery of the rubber flange extends 2-3 cm outward of the mounting surface. Preferably, the thickness of the rubber is about 1 to 2 mm. The coating of rubber may be cured or partially cured about the docking station housing. The rubber lower mounting surface and sides, including the rubber flange is buffed. 
         [0027]    Next, the inner liner surface of the tire is buffed. Depending upon the adhesion strength required, the inner tire surface may need to be buffed down to expose the better bondable material i.e. the ply-coat, removing the inner liner. A rubber patch  1100  or  1200  is used to secure the docking station to the tire inner liner surface as shown in  FIG. 9 . The docking station  204  is affixed to the tire sidewall as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 8 . The rubber patch  1100 / 1200  is preferably larger in size than the mounting surface of the docking station. The rubber patch  1100 / 1200  is coated with a suitable adhesive on both sides and then inserted onto the inner surface of the tire as shown in  FIG. 10 . The patch  1100 / 1200  may require holes that are aligned with holes of tire and the device to be mounted. One suitable adhesive is Fast Dry Self-vulcanizing Cement made by the Rubber Patch Company. The patch  1100 / 1200  is then stitched. Next, the device mounting surface is mounted over the rubber patch  1100 / 1200  as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 10 , ensuring the rubber patch holes are aligned with the device holes and any tire holes. The device is then clamped to the tire, and then allowed to cure at ambient temperature or with heat, depending upon the adhesive selected. 
         [0028]    Variations in the present invention are possible in light of the description of it provided herein. While certain representative embodiments and details have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the subject invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in this art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the subject invention. It is, therefore, to be understood that changes can be made in the particular embodiments described which will be within the full intended scope of the invention as defined by the following appended claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 1