US Patent Issued to Compagnie Generale des Etablissements Michelin on July 29 for "Tread having turn around sipe" (South Carolina Inventors)

ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 30 -- United States Patent no. 12,370,836, issued on July 29, was assigned to Compagnie Generale des Etablissements Michelin (Clermont-Ferrand, France).

"Tread having turn around sipe" was invented by Virgile Ayglon (Simpsonville, S.C.), Daniel McEachern Hicks (Greenville, S.C.) and Tyler Sites (Greenville, S.C.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A heavy truck tire tread that has a shoulder rib and shoulder groove is provided. A sipe is in the shoulder rib that extends from the shoulder groove to the lateral outer surface. A first end of a teardrop of the sipe is located at the lateral outer surface, and a second end at the shoulder groove. A middle section of the teardrop i...