METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MOULDING AND CURING TYRES FOR VEHICLE WHEELS

• Main Author: CARETTA RENATO
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 17.12.2009
• Subjects: AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING; INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASS B29C, RELATING TO PARTICULARARTICLES; INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES B29B, B29C OR B29D, RELATING TO MOULDING MATERIALS; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PRODUCING PARTICULAR ARTICLES FROM PLASTICS OR FROM SUBSTANCESIN A PLASTIC STATE; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDEDFOR; SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; TRANSPORTING; WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE, IN GENERAL

A method of moulding and curing tyres for vehicle wheels includes the steps of disposing a tyre being processed on a toroidal support, enclosing the tyre and the toroidal support inside a moulding cavity defined in a vulcanization mould, pressing the outer surface of the tyre against the moulding cavity walls, and administering heat to the tyre to cause molecular crosslinking of the tyre. The pressing step includes the steps of compressing side portions of the tyre between the moulding cavity walls and the outer surface of the toroidal support, concurrently with the closing step, and imposing an expansion to a radially-outer portion of the tyre to bring the radially-outer portion of the tyre against the walls of the moulding cavity.