Kobe Steel has launched the newest model of its new tyre uniformity testing machine, called Librota-GS, which has the world’s fastest cycle time of 18 seconds per tyre and the world’s highest repeated measurement accuracy.
Tyre testing machines are used for final inspection and quality checks of passenger car, truck and bus tyres in the manufacturing process. The machines verify the uniformity, runout and other properties of tyres.
In tyre testing, cycle time is the amount of time necessary to test one tyre. The shorter the cycle time, the higher the productivity is for comprehensive inspections of passenger car tyres.
On the other hand, the measurement accuracy of tyre uniformity machines represents the variance in the numerical results of repeated measurements (for example, repeated measurements of 10 times), namely the standard deviation. The lower the numerical value (meaning the lower the variance), the higher the accuracy of the equipment.
The new Librota-GS has achieved a repeated measurement accuracy of 1.69N or lower, compared with conventional machines of 2.40N or lower.
In the field of tyre uniformity machines, Kobe Steel is regarded as the top manufacturer with an estimated 30% share worldwide. Kobe Steel plans to supply the new model to tyre makers in North America, Europe and regions throughout the world, aiming to capture a further share of the market.
The Librota-GS is a more advanced version of its predecessor, the Librota, which was launched in 2013. Receiving high acclaim from customers for the Librota, Kobe Steel supplied about 70 units of the older model to China and Southeast Asia.
In the Librota-GS, Kobe Steel has succeeded in shortening the cycle time to 18 seconds, from 20 seconds in the previous Librota model, by incorporating a newly developed control system and optimising measurement conditions. This enables tyre makers to achieve a 10% increase in productivity, compared with conventional tyre uniformity machines. In addition, options such as a sheet-of-light laser geometry system and a shoulder grinder – a device to reduce the shoulder of a tyre, leading to lower vibration and noise, to improve tyre performance – can be installed to meet a variety of needs.
World tyre production has been steadily increasing annually in recent years. Tyre production reached an estimated 15.86 million tonnes in 2015, according to the “Tire Industry of Japan 2016” published by the Japan Automobile Tyre Manufacturers Association.
Kobe Steel forecasts that tyre production will rise to 18.39 million tonnes in 2020.
Kobe Steel has been manufacturing and selling tyre uniformity machines since 1967. The company also has an extensive record of supplying rubber mixers to major tyre makers with an estimated 40% share of the world market. Expanding overseas, Kobe Steel’s tyre and rubber machinery business has manufacturing and sales bases in four world locations: Japan, the US, China and India.