Regarding tire labeling, you must know these requirements!

Regarding tire labeling, you must know these requirements!

There are two types of labels currently used on tires: one is the vulcanization label used before the tire is vulcanized during the tire production process. The label is an embedded barcode that can track tire production information; the other is the direct label. The tread label is affixed to the surface of the tire. The label is large and can indicate the tire model, manufacturer, product description, fuel efficiency, rolling noise, wet grip level and other parameters. Tread labels specially applied to tire surfaces often encounter problems such as adhesion, curved surface adaptability, durability, and label location selection during labeling. In this article, the author relies on his many years of practical experience in the label printing industry, combined with laboratory research and visits to many Chinese tire companies, to further introduce the application and related characteristics of tread labels attached to the tire surface on tire products, and sort out the tire applications The technical requirements can improve the problems encountered in the tire labeling process, improve the quality and reliability of tire labels, and ensure the accurate transmission and readability of label information.

The impact of tire chemical composition and surface pattern on labeling

It is not particularly easy to apply self-adhesive labels to tire surfaces that are rough and have a lot of chemical additives attached to them, because affixed labels also need to undergo changes in different seasons, as well as the test of different environments such as long-distance transportation and shipping. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the impact of tire chemical composition and surface pattern on labeling in advance.

1. Additives in tires

Although there are many types of tires, their main components are basically natural rubber or synthetic rubber. In order for rubber to have the properties required for making tires, various chemical additives must be infiltrated into the rubber. These liquid or solid chemical additives added during the production process will gradually migrate from the inside of the rubber to the tire surface. Common powdery compounding agents such as vulcanizing agents, accelerators, active agents, antioxidants, and fillers will precipitate and distribute on the rubber surface to form a layer of powder; or waxy substances such as paraffin and ozokerite will precipitate and form a layer of powder. Wax film; or liquid compounding agents such as softeners, tackifiers, lubricants, and plasticizers precipitate to form a layer of oil. In addition to the various chemical additives listed above, there is also a very important additive called carbon black in tires, which is sometimes present on the tire surface. All these substances increase the difficulty of surface labeling of tire labels. Moreover, these additives will also leak into the surface of tire labels as external conditions change, such as changes in temperature and humidity, causing the originally affixed tire labels to curl and change color. Even fall off.

2. Tire surface pattern

After years of development, there are currently a variety of patterns used on tire surfaces, including ordinary patterns, off-road patterns, mixed patterns, arch patterns, low-pressure special patterns, etc. Among them, the ordinary pattern is thin and shallow; the recessed part of the off-road pattern is deep and thick; the mixed pattern is between the ordinary pattern and the off-road pattern, with a diamond pattern in the middle, a zigzag or pipe-shaped pattern in the longitudinal direction, and horizontal off-road patterns on both sides. These surface patterns in different forms and shades are without exception a difficult problem that tire labels need to overcome.

Tire label product design

To overcome the above problems, it is indeed a challenge for tire labeling, not only because the tire surface is rough, but also subject to the influence of various rubber properties and some chemicals in the tire manufacturing process, as well as a wide variety and large area of patterns, Tire punctures, coupled with the small actual contact area between the label and the tire, the uncontrollability of the external environment during labeling, and the irregular operating techniques of the labeling personnel, all these factors increase the difficulty of labeling tire labels.

In view of these characteristics of tires, tire-specific labels focusing on the tire industry can solve this series of problems. This tire-specific label has the characteristics of high adhesion, high bonding force, and high weather resistance. It has good adhesion to rough and curved tire surfaces. It uses special environmentally friendly hot melt adhesive and a film-type surface material with stable performance. It can provide good bonding strength and meet the requirements of various printing characteristics.

According to the types of tire labels commonly used on the market, they can be distinguished according to the "sandwich" structure of the label: (1) Surface material. The surface material of tire labels mainly covers three categories: aluminum foil coated paper, coated white PP film, and coated aluminized PET film, which can meet the printing needs of tire labels in different printing methods on the market. (2) Glue. Tire glue is usually a strong adhesive rubber-based glue specially developed for the tire industry. It belongs to the hot melt adhesive series and the glue weight is usually higher. It has high initial adhesion and can be closely adhered to the surface of various tires, including rough tire surfaces; it performs well in harsh low-temperature environments; it is environmentally friendly and does not require solvent addition. (3) Bottom paper. The backing paper of tire labels mainly includes white kraft backing paper and laminated kraft backing paper to improve the flatness and operational convenience of the label in later use. In addition, in order to prevent tire glue from overflowing due to the high coating weight during printing and die-cutting processes, spaced glue can be applied as needed when the label raw material is being coated.

Tire label printing and processing

The processing methods of tire labels are generally similar to traditional labels. They can be printed and die-cut on different printing machines to form the final label product, such as letterpress printing machines, flexographic printing machines, etc., which can meet the final label printing requirements.

In recent years, with the popularity of digital printing machines, more and more companies have begun to use digital printing machines to print tire labels, showing the following characteristics:

1. High resolution printing

With the development of technology, the resolution of digital printing presses is constantly improving, which can achieve finer and clearer image and text printing effects. High-resolution printing enables detailed tire label designs and improves label readability and appeal.

2. Diverse material printing

Digital printing machines have good adaptability and can print tire labels on a variety of different materials, such as paper, film and other materials. This allows production companies to choose more diverse materials to meet the needs of different end customers, such as weather resistance , the use of wear-resistant and waterproof materials.

3. Fast production and delivery

Digital printing can enable personalized and customized printing of tire labels, such as adding serial numbers, barcodes, QR codes and other information to achieve tire traceability and anti-counterfeiting. At the same time, consumers can also choose the design and content of the label according to their personal preferences.

4. Traceability and personalized printing

Digital printing can enable personalized and customized printing of tire labels, such as adding serial numbers, barcodes, QR codes and other information to achieve tire traceability and anti-counterfeiting. At the same time, consumers can also choose the design and content of the label according to their personal preferences.

5. Digital management and automated production

Digital printing machines can be combined with digital management systems to achieve automation and digital management of the production process. Through digital management systems, manufacturing companies can better control the production process, reduce errors and waste, and improve production efficiency and product quality.

The above characteristics reflect the development potential of digital printing machines in the field of tire label printing. I believe that with the continuous advancement of technology and changing market demands, digital printing machines will continue to show their talents in the field of tire label printing to meet higher quality needs. , higher efficiency tire label printing needs.

Some suggestions on the use of tire labels

(1) Since pressure-sensitive self-adhesive labels must have a certain amount of pressure to show the corresponding initial adhesion, sufficient pressure must be applied to the label when labeling so that the label can adhere to the uneven tire surface as much as possible. The gesture must be "←↑→↓←" twice or more.

(2) Try to avoid pasting the same label twice or even multiple times. Because substances on the tire surface, such as carbon black or dust impurities, will transfer to the rubber surface, causing viscous damage and pollution. After labeling, let it sit for a period of time, preferably 24 hours, to allow its stickiness to further release.

(3) Remove tire surface substances that are not conducive to labeling, such as surface chemicals (may contain wax, silicone oil, etc.), "little braids" on the tire surface, dust and impurities, etc.

(4) When designing tire labels, the curvature of the label after labeling needs to be taken into consideration to ensure that the surface area between the label and the tire surface is large enough. The larger the surface area of the label combined with the tire surface, the more firmly the label will fit.

In order to obtain sufficient viscosity, the material (label and tire) needs to be placed flat in a place with a higher temperature. The purpose is to allow the entire tire tread to accumulate heat energy and provide part of the energy required for the release of the label's viscosity. At the same time, try to label in a warehouse environment with a higher temperature, because for labels that are not well-fitted when the temperature is low during labeling, it is impossible to ensure that the label will be released during later storage and transportation, resulting in potential label dropping or Risk of curling.

Of course, with the continuous improvement of intelligent manufacturing and automation, automatic labeling equipment used in the tire industry has gradually been installed and tested in some brand tire manufacturing plants, and tire labeling has begun to shift from manual labeling to automatic labeling.

Storage recommendations for tire labels

Normally, tire labels can be stored for 1 year at a temperature of 23°C and a humidity of 50%. However, in winter or cold seasons, labels need to be stored in a heated room and used in accordance with the principle of "take a small amount and label in a timely manner". After lamination, the label is completely combined, and its application environment temperature is -20°C ~ 70°C.

Due to the particularity of tire labels, if stored above a certain temperature, there may be a certain degree of glue overflow on the edges. The glue overflow is particularly obvious when the temperature is higher than 30°C. Although glue overflow will not directly affect the use characteristics of the label, it is generally not recommended to store tire labels in large quantities for a long time.

Thank you for your attention.

If you have any interests about it, pls contact us freely.

Attn:Hans He

Whatsapp/WeChat:+0086 13676974117

Email：sales07@dtpapergroup.com

Website:www.dtpapergroup.com