US 12,168,373 B2
Pneumatic tire
Daisuke Watanabe, Kanagawa (JP)
Assigned to The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD., Tokyo (JP)
Appl. No. 17/270,280
Filed by The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD., Tokyo (JP)
PCT Filed Aug. 22, 2019, PCT No. PCT/JP2019/032804
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Feb. 22, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/045222, PCT Pub. Date Mar. 5, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 2018-160442 (JP), filed on Aug. 29, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2021/0170801 A1, Jun. 10, 2021
Int. Cl. B60C 11/12 (2006.01); B60C 11/03 (2006.01); B60C 11/13 (2006.01)
CPC B60C 11/1236 (2013.01) [B60C 11/0304 (2013.01); B60C 11/033 (2013.01); B60C 11/1392 (2013.01); B60C 2011/0346 (2013.01); B60C 2011/0381 (2013.01); B60C 2011/133 (2013.01)] 11 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A pneumatic tire having a specified mounting direction with respect to a vehicle, the pneumatic tire comprising:
a tread portion extending in a tire circumferential direction and having an annular shape;
a pair of sidewall portions disposed on both sides of the tread portion; and
a pair of bead portions disposed on an inner side of the pair of sidewall portions in a tire radial direction,
the tread portion comprising four main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction, the four main grooves comprising:
a pair of center main grooves; and
a pair of shoulder main grooves,
the four main grooves defining a center land portion, a pair of intermediate land portions located on outer sides of the center land portion, and a pair of shoulder land portions located on outer sides of the pair of intermediate land portions,
lug grooves and sipes extending in a tire width direction being provided in, as the pair of shoulder land portions, a shoulder land portion on a vehicle inner side and a shoulder land portion on a vehicle outer side,
each of the lug grooves in each of the shoulder land portions comprising:
one end reaching at least a ground contact edge; and
an other end terminating in each of the shoulder land portions,
each of the sipes in each of the shoulder land portions comprising:
one end communicating with the shoulder main groove; and
an other end terminating in a ground contact region,
lug grooves extending in the tire width direction being provided in, as the pair of intermediate land portions, an intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side and an intermediate land portion on the vehicle outer side,
each of the lug grooves in each of the intermediate land portions comprising:
one end communicating with the shoulder main groove; and
an other end terminating in each of the intermediate land portions,
sipes extending in the tire width direction being provided in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side,
each of the sipes in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side comprising:
one end communicating with, of the pair of center main grooves, a center main groove on the vehicle inner side; and
an other end terminating in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side, and
sipes extending in the tire width direction being provided in the center land portion,
each of the sipes in the center land portion comprising:
one end communicating with the center main groove on the vehicle inner side; and
an other end terminating in the center land portion without exceeding the tire center line, wherein in the ground contact region,
a total length in the tire width direction of the lug grooves and the sipes on the vehicle outer side of the tire center line is shorter than a total length in the tire width direction of the lug grooves and the sipes on the vehicle inner side of the tire center line, and
as a whole of the tread portion, a ratio of the total length in the tire width direction of the sipes to the total length in the tire width direction of the lug grooves is from 0.4 to 0.6.
 
11. A pneumatic tire having a specified mounting direction with respect to a vehicle, the pneumatic tire comprising:
a tread portion extending in a tire circumferential direction and having an annular shape;
a pair of sidewall portions disposed on both sides of the tread portion; and
a pair of bead portions disposed on an inner side of the pair of sidewall portions in a tire radial direction,
the tread portion comprising four main grooves extending in the tire circumferential direction, the four main grooves comprising:
a pair of center main grooves; and
a pair of shoulder main grooves,
the four main grooves defining a center land portion, a pair of intermediate land portions located on outer sides of the center land portion, and a pair of shoulder land portions located on outer sides of the pair of intermediate land portions,
lug grooves and sipes extending in a tire width direction being provided in, as the pair of shoulder land portions, a shoulder land portion on a vehicle inner side and a shoulder land portion on a vehicle outer side,
each of the lug grooves in each of the shoulder land portions comprising:
one end reaching at least a ground contact edge; and
an other end terminating in each of the shoulder land portions,
each of the sipes in each of the shoulder land portions comprising:
one end communicating with the shoulder main groove; and
an other end terminating in a ground contact region,
lug grooves extending in the tire width direction being provided in, as the pair of intermediate land portions, an intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side and an intermediate land portion on the vehicle outer side,
each of the lug grooves in each of the intermediate land portions comprising:
one end communicating with the shoulder main groove; and
an other end terminating in each of the intermediate land portions,
sipes extending in the tire width direction being provided in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side,
each of the sipes in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side comprising:
one end communicating with, of the pair of center main grooves, a center main groove on the vehicle inner side; and
an other end terminating in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side, and
sipes extending in the tire width direction being provided in the center land portion,
each of the sipes in the center land portion comprising:
one end communicating with the center main groove on the vehicle inner side; and
an other end terminating in the center land portion without exceeding the tire center line, wherein
a length in the tire width direction of each of the sipes in the shoulder land portion on the vehicle inner side is equivalent to a length in the tire width direction of each of the lug grooves in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side, and is equivalent to the sum of a length in the tire width direction of each of the sipes in the center land portion and a length in the tire width direction of each of the sipes in the intermediate land portion on the vehicle inner side.