Rubber surface having non-stick ply turn-up bladder

• US 5,250,142 A
• Filed: 04/07/1992
• Issued: 10/05/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Longwood Elastomers, Inc. (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Longwood Elastomers, Inc. (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation)
• Inventors: Weimer, Russell, Savit, Lester J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ball, Michael W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lorin, Francis J.
• Application Number:
  US07/865,789
• Time in Patent Office: 546 Days
• Field of Search: 156/401, 156/166, 249/65, 428/36.1, 428/36.8
• US Class Current: 156/401
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 2043/3649 Inflatable bladders using gas or fluid and related details
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 2791/001 Shaping in several steps
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 33/68 Release sheets
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 43/3642 Bags, bleeder sheets or cauls for isostatic pressing
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/086 and with one or more layers of pure plastics material, e.g. foam layers applying a non-preformed coating, e.g. a gel-coat, B29C37/0025; with foam blocks B29C70/86
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/462 Moulding structures having an axis of symmetry or at least one channel, e.g. tubular structures, frames
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 2030/2614 Bladders associated with the building drum, e.g. bladders used for the toroidal expansion, bladders for turning-up the plies
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 30/26 Accessories or details, e.g. membranes, transfer rings
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2021/00 Use of unspecified rubbers as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/1362 Textile, fabric, cloth, or pile containing [e.g., web, net, woven, knitted, mesh, nonwoven, matted, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/1386 Natural or synthetic rubber or rubber-like compound containing

Abstract

A tire ply end turn-up device comprising an inflatable first rubbery polymer bladder body, a second non-stick rubbery polymer layer on at least a portion of the surface of the bladder body, and fabric between the bladder body and the non-stick surface. The ply turn-up bladder is made by forming an uncured rubbery polymer bladder body, forming a composite of fabric calendared on one side with an uncured non-stick rubbery polymer and on the other with a rubbery polymer that will bond with the bladder body upon curing, applying the composite to at least a portion of the bladder body, and curing the bladder body and composite to form an integral turn-up bladder with a non-stick rubber surface. A rubbery polymer that will bond with the uncured bladder body upon curing is used on the fabric side that contacts the bladder body.

Claims

1. A turn-up bladder having an outer surface for contacting an uncured tire ply, the bladder comprising:

a bladder body made of a first rubbery polymer, the bladder body having an inner and an outer surface;

a fabric secured to the outer surface of the bladder body by being at least partially embedded therein;

a layer of a second rubber polymer on the outer surface of the bladder, the second rubbery polymer layer being in contact with the fabric on the side of the fabric opposite the bladder body, the second rubbery polymer being less adhesive to uncured tire ply than the first rubbery polymer;

wherein the layer of second rubbery polymer is at least partially secured to the bladder body by the fabric.

2. The ply turn-up bladder of claim 1, wherein the fabric is a textile fabric treated to adhere to both the first rubber polymer and the second rubbery polymer.

3. The ply turn-up bladder of claim 2, wherein the fabric is comprised of cords and wherein there are gaps between the cords of the fabric and those gaps are at least partially filed by the secured rubbery polymer.

4. The ply turn-up bladder of claim 1, wherein the fabric is embedded in both the second rubbery surface layer and the bladder body.

5. The ply turn-up bladder of claim 1, further comprising a third rubber polymer layer embedded in the fabric and wherein the third rubbery polymer layer is integrally formed between the bladder body and the fabric.

6. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 5, wherein the third rubber polymer is a low viscosity rubbery polymer that is chemically bound through cross-linking with the polymer of the bladder body and the second rubbery polymer.

7. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 5 wherein the fabric is a treated fabric that bonds to the third rubbery polymer layer and the second rubbery polymer surface layer upon curing.

8. An improved bladder for turning-up uncured tire play, the bladder of the type having a body made of a first rubbery polymer and a surface layer on at least a portion of the bladder body'"'"'s periphery made of a second rubbery polymer which is less adhesive to uncured tire ply than the first rubbery polymer;

the improvement comprising a fabric in contact with both the bladder body and the second rubbery polymer of the surface layer, the fabric at least in part securing the bladder body to the surface layer.

9. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 8, wherein the fabric is embedded in the bladder body.

10. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 9, wherein the fabric is partially embedded in the second rubber surface layer.

11. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 8, wherein the fabric is selected from the group consisting of polyester cord and aramid fiber cord.

12. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 8, wherein the second rubbery polymer layer has a textured outer surface.

13. The improved ply turn-up bladder of claim 12, wherein the fabric is embedded in a rubbery polymer different from the rubbery polymers of the bladder body and the second surface layer, and the different rubbery polymer is integrally formed with the bladder body.