Yokohama is Going to Make a Contribution to Environmental Protection
Posted on December 12, 2010
Filed Under Interesting, Yokohama Tires | Leave a Comment
Yokohama Rubber Co. tire-producing company has worked out and approved several corporative principles in accordance with the UNO decision to declare the year of 2010 an International Year of Biodiversity.
New concept conforms to previously accepted ones that were aimed at wider use of recycled materials in new tire production and directed towards the prevention of global warming. The new philosophy will be applied to all the company’s departments and its suppliers.
The company highlighted the following six points and attributed greatest importance to them:
1.For the Yokohama Rubber directly depends on natural resources and its activities affect biodiversity it understands all the importance of its preservation and the level of threat. Therefore, the company will do its utmost to preserve biodiversity on a long-term basis.
2.Another necessary task is to spread the idea that humankind depends on natural resources, so all the company’s employees will work in its field including local communities.
3.The company will make efforts to eliminate of at least minimize the negative impact on the environment caused by its activities.
4.It will also combat threat in the areas where raw materials are produced.
5.The company will make use of innovative technologies and production processes to achieve stable use of eco-friendly resources.
6.The company will work with mass media in this field, will stay open to cooperation with all the interested parties.
The Biggest Tires in the World
Posted on December 9, 2010
Filed Under Bridgestone Tires, Michelin Tires | Leave a Comment
Wheels and tires can be really big exceeding the height of people in some applications. It is dumpers and heavy-duty trucks that are equipped with such giant tires. Can you imagine how much money is needed to make such a tire set only for a dumper? Actually, dumper tires cost more than a passenger cars.
Giant dumpers should be equipped with giant tires, that’s why the size of dumpers depends to a large extent on tire manufacturers rather than on customers’ wishes or market research. In 1959 Michelin tire company launched the first large dumper tire, but for the industry needed durable tires, first giant dumpers appeared only in the 1970-s.
In 1976 Michelin made a real breakthrough in technology by unveiling a 57-inch tire, which opened the way to giantomania in extractive industry. Fifty-seven inches was the biggest tire size possible at that time and it was true for another two decades, but in 1990-s the Caterpillar company created a dumper with unprecedented carrying capacity of 345 tons. It was launched fitted with 63-inch tires made again by Michelin engineers. Each of the six tires was to carry as much as 104 tons of weight. The might of the Caterpillar dumper was surpassed only by the Liebherr T282B that could carry 363 tons of freight.
Nowadays the largest tires measure 59 inches and are put into mass production by Bridgestone and Michelin companies. Michelin 59/80R63 XDR, for instance, features an extra-deep tread picture and hence offers long mileage, which results into its impressive price tag ($60 000). It weighs 5 tons and features 890 kg of iron to ensure 100-ton carrying capacity and excellent durability. Its rubber is enough for making 600 passenger tires.
Many people wonder whether there will be tires bigger than 63-inch ones. The experts give a “No” answer. It is restricted by the possibilities of their transportation. Cargo ships, planes and trains are designed to carry tires measuring 4.3 meters in diameter while the biggest Michelin tires features a 4.03-meter diameter. In theory, the size of tires can be increased, but there’s little practical use while it will costs large sums of money.
The First World’s Tires
Posted on December 5, 2010
Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
The first tire in the world was created by an Englishman Robert William Thompson and patented by him on the 10th of June 1846. He described his invention as elastic bearing surfaces placed round wheel beads to reduce force necessary for drive carriages, which as well reduces noise generated by them as they move.
Thompson also provided a detailed construction of a new tire and mentioned materials for its production. The tire was to be placed on a wheel with wooden spokes that are inserted into a wooden bead bound with iron. The tire itself consisted of two parts: a tube and an outer coating. The tube was created from several canvas layers treated and coated with natural rubber and gutta-percha solution. The outer coating, in its turn, was made from leather pieces joint with the help of rivets.
Thompson equipped a carriage with tubed tires and carried out several tests to measure its tractive force. The tests showed that tractive force was reduced by 38 and 68 per cent on macadam and on pebble stones respectively. The greatest achievements were noise-free operation, comfortable and smooth running of the new tires.
The results of the tests were published in the «Mechanics Magazine» on the 27th of March 1849. The mankind had to face with something completely new. It was a successful invention supplied with constructive details, proved by serious tests and ready to improvements. Unfortunately, there was nobody who would take the idea seriously and put it into mass production. After Thompson has died in 1873, his air tire was forgotten, though its models have survived.
The idea was revived in 1888 by a Scotsman John Dunlop who is famous for being an inventor of a pneumatic tire. This time, the product quickly came into masses and already in 1889 it was used in bike races in Belfast. William Hume, who rode a bike equipped with pneumatic tires, won all three rounds he took part in. Now Dunlop is one of the leading tire producing companies on the market.
Wheels of the Future
Posted on November 27, 2010
Filed Under Interesting | Leave a Comment
Have you ever thought that car wheels will not always be the same and soon technology will allow developing something radically different from wheel of nowadays? In the meantime, the automotive manufacturers offer their prototypes of wheels of the future, and some of them offer innovative wheels already now.
At present day you can find the wheels that retain the shape of traditional ones, but are made of new materials like Carbon Fiber. The most obvious advantage of such tires is their exceptional light weight. The 18-inch disk measures only 3 kg, which means that it is less subject to inertial force.
There’re also a lot of lightweight wheel models for tuning lovers. They look impressive and futuristic, though technically they are completely identical. For instance, an Italian company designed an interesting wheel with a transparent disk made from polycarbonate. Looks originally; the main thing is not to break it by accident.
You can also find tires made of wood coupled with a very low-profile rubber. However, it doesn’t meet safety and comfort requirements and is not fire safe, though eco-friendly.
Another famous automotive brand invented a concept car with very unusual tires. The wheel construction is 20 times more lightweight than that of standard wheels. At the same time, the tire is 5 times stiffer, which provides for a great cushion effect so that your trips can as if turn into flights.
Concept car projects reach as far as the year 2025. It is planned to make a rally on innovative cars then. The cars will still feature 4 wheels, but every of them will be equipped with 8 rolling barrels with electric motors that can rotate in different planes, which enhances handling at high speeds. However, the concept exists only on drafts and it’s impossible to say whether it would be implemented.
The only thing that is known for sure is that automotive industry develops almost as quickly as IT sphere. Who knows, perhaps cars of the future won’t need roads (and hence wheels) at all and we will fly in the air just like in movies.
