US 11,724,546 B2
Pneumatic tire
Yousuke Sakamoto, Hiratsuka (JP)
Assigned to The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., Tokyo (JP)
Appl. No. 16/962,811
Filed by The Yokohama Rubber Co., LTD., Tokyo (JP)
PCT Filed Dec. 27, 2018, PCT No. PCT/JP2018/048196
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jul. 16, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/142643, PCT Pub. Date Jul. 25, 2019.
Claims priority of application No. 2018-004778 (JP), filed on Jan. 16, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2021/0362550 A1, Nov. 25, 2021
Int. Cl. B60C 11/01 (2006.01); B60C 11/11 (2006.01); B60C 11/12 (2006.01); B60C 11/03 (2006.01); B60C 11/16 (2006.01)
CPC B60C 11/01 (2013.01) [B60C 11/0304 (2013.01); B60C 11/0306 (2013.01); B60C 11/11 (2013.01); B60C 11/1204 (2013.01); B60C 11/1236 (2013.01); B60C 11/1625 (2013.01); B60C 2011/013 (2013.01); B60C 2011/036 (2013.01); B60C 2011/0381 (2013.01); B60C 2011/1213 (2013.01); B60C 2200/14 (2013.01)] 12 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A 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 inward of the sidewall portions in a tire radial direction, wherein
the tread portion is provided with a pair of main grooves located on both sides of a tire equator and extending in the tire circumferential direction, lug grooves extending outward from each of the pair of main grooves in a tire lateral direction beyond a ground contact edge defining, into a plurality of shoulder blocks, a corresponding one of land portions located outward of the pair of main grooves in the tire lateral direction, and auxiliary grooves defining a land portion between the pair of main grooves into a plurality of center blocks, the tread portion is also provided with a plurality of side blocks formed raised from a surface of each of the pair of sidewall portions at positions adjacent to and outward of the shoulder blocks in the tire lateral direction,
surfaces of the side blocks are provided with first groove elements each comprising a narrow groove and/or a sipe, surfaces of the shoulder blocks are provided with second groove elements each comprising a narrow groove and/or a sipe, and surfaces of the center blocks are provided with third groove elements each comprising a narrow groove and/or a sipe,
each of the first groove elements extends from a corresponding sidewall portion toward the ground contact edge, each of the second groove elements extends continuously from the first groove elements and from a side surface of a corresponding shoulder block closer to the ground contact edge toward a road contact surface to communicate with the main groove, and each of the third groove elements extends across a corresponding center block to communicate with a main groove of the pair of main grooves or an auxiliary groove,
the first groove elements and the second groove elements and the third groove elements forming a lateral groove group extending continuously from the side block on a first side to the side block on a second side in the tire lateral direction along the blocks across the pair of main grooves or an auxiliary groove;
wherein the lateral groove group comprises a first lateral groove group and a second lateral groove group that have different overall shapes, the first lateral groove group extends generally inclined in one direction with respect to the tire lateral direction, and the second lateral groove group is generally folded due to bending of second groove elements or the third groove elements and comprises a portion extending in the tire circumferential direction.