Save fuel and CO2: This machine regrooves car tires

e-chains and chainflex cables from igus ensure reliability and performance

Winner of the green vector award 2024: Did you know that fuel consumption increases by up to 0.5 l/100 km when the tread of car tyres wears down? Timely regrooving is correspondingly profitable and environmentally friendly. However, as the process is physically very strenuous, Bear-Machines GmbH from Heek has developed a machine. To increase their reliability and performance, the engineers rely on chainflex motor cables and energy chains made of high-performance plastic.

Profile

What was needed: Energy chains of the E2/000 series and chainflex motor cables (CF280.UL.H301.07.04.D).
Requirements: The machine requires bendable and flexible cables with tight bend radii for the motors as well as reliable and space-saving cable guidance system for cables and hoses.
Industry: Automotive industry
Success for the customer: Bear-Machines GmbH was able to reduce costs and at the same time significantly improve the performance of the machine thanks to the good price-performance ratio.

Problem

Studies by Michelin and Continental show: regrooving a tyre can save up to 0.5 litres of fuel per 100km. This saving is particularly noticeable for lorries. If a lorry with a semi-trailer consumes an average of 30 litres per 100km, it saves three litres with six regrooved tyres on the trailing axles. In addition, up to 650kg of climate-damaging CO2 emissions can be avoided per tyre. Extending the service life of tyres leads to potential savings on raw materials in tyre production. The only problem is that manually regrooving tyres is physically demanding and requires maximum concentration. Bear-Machines GmbH from Heek is therefore developing a semi-automatic machine to do the job. During the design of the machine, the company faced the challenge of finding bendable and flexible cables for the motors as well as a space-saving guidance system for hoses and cables. Conventional cables proved to be inadequate and could not fulfil the necessary requirements.

Solution

The engineers therefore switched to robust and flexible motor cables from the chainflex range from igus (CF280.UL.H301.07.04.D). The cables move in compact e-chains made of high-performance plastic from the E2/000 series. According to the engineers, the solution perfectly fulfils the requirements for oscillating movements and compliance with bend radii. They say it has helped to save costs and significantly improve the performance of the system. Pre-selection and configuration of the components is also child's play, say the engineers. The company was able to save development time here thanks to the intuitive online configuration tools. Last but not least, the mechanical properties of the igus solution have contributed to the machine's particularly energy-saving operation. It only consumes a minimal 800 watts of energy in full operation, which further emphasises its efficiency and environmental friendliness.

"Mr Endries from igus supported us and was on hand with help and advice. All technical questions were clarified quickly and competently, which led to a smooth and successful collaboration."
Bear-Machines GmbH