Patent ID: 8221570

Claim:
A process for manufacturing tires for vehicle wheels, comprising building, on a toroidal support, a carcass structure comprising at least one carcass ply associated, at axially opposite end edges thereof, with annular anchoring structures, the step of building said carcass structure comprising forming at least one reinforcing structure, operatively associated with said annular anchoring structures through deposition on said toroidal support of at least one reinforcing element along a predetermined curvilinear deposition path, the deposition step of said at least one reinforcing element comprising the steps of: cutting to size a piece of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element; deforming said piece of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element according to a curvature of a deposition part of said deposition path adapted to receive said piece of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element; depositing a deformed piece of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element at said deposition part; and repeating said cutting, deforming and depositing steps for a predetermined number of times, each time changing the deposition part so as to deposit a plurality of pieces of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element in a side-by-side relationship along said deposition path, wherein, in said cutting to size step, said reinforcing continuous band-like element is fed by a feeding device along a predetermined feeding direction, and wherein said deforming step comprises the steps of: gripping said piece of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element at two opposite sides thereof which will become arranged side-by-side with contiguously deposited pieces of the reinforcing structure; and rotating at least one side of said piece of at least one continuous reinforcing band-like element by a predetermined angle of rotation away from the other side about a respective pin axis.