Patents for June 2025
Antistatic Silicone Rubber Composition
U.S. Patent No. 12,134,707, issued on November 5, 2024, was invented by Gyuyoung Lee and assigned to Dow Silicones. This invention provides an antistatic silicone rubber composition that includes 0.1–15% by mass of at least one potassium salt, such as potassium alkyl phosphate or potassium permanganate. The composition typically contains an organopolysiloxane with at least two alkenyl groups, another organopolysiloxane with at least two hydrogen atoms, a hydrosilylation catalyst, and the potassium salt. The cured rubber demonstrates excellent antistatic properties.
Oil Agent-Containing Silicone Elastomer Particle for Cosmetics
U.S. Patent No. 12,133,910, issued on November 5, 2024, was developed by Mari Wakita, Hiroko Taniguchi, Yasue Kanzaki, and Seiji Hori, and assigned to Dow Toray. It describes silicone elastomer particles crosslinked via silalkylene groups (with 4 to 20 carbon atoms) and containing oil that remains liquid at 40°C. These particles can be formed as emulsions and are intended for use in cosmetic compositions.
Rubber Composition with Polyphenolic Compound
U.S. Patent No. 12,134,694, issued on November 5, 2024, was invented by Anne-Lise Thuilliez and Odile Gavard-Lonchay and assigned to Michelin. The rubber composition includes at least one elastomer, a reinforcing filler, a crosslinking system, and a polyphenolic compound with at least three aromatic rings, each bearing at least two vicinal hydroxyl groups. The invention also includes a composite based on this rubber composition and a reinforcing element with a metallic surface.
Tire Puncture Sealing Plug and Kit
U.S. Patent No. 12,134,239, issued on November 5, 2024, was invented by Owen Matthews and assigned to Tyre Tuft. This invention relates to a tire plug for sealing punctures. The plug has a head made of porous material capable of absorbing more than 0.02 grams of water per gram of material. It contains an accelerant (such as a salt or acid) that reacts with a curable sealant to reduce curing time. The porous material does not contain the sealant itself.
Rubber Composition for Tires
U.S. Patent No. 12,138,962, issued on November 12, 2024, was developed by Hiroki Sugimoto and Rie Nakajima and assigned to Yokohama Rubber. The composition includes 10–50 parts by mass of thermoplastic resin per 100 parts of diene rubber, which contains at least 60% styrene-butadiene rubber with 5–30% styrene and 10–35% vinyl content. It specifies differences in glass transition temperatures (Tga–Tgm: 5–50°C; Tg2–Tg1: 110–150°C) and requires that thermoplastic resin make up at least 30% of the plasticizer component.
Wireless Vehicle Monitoring System with Tire Pressure Monitoring
U.S. Patent No. 12,138,970, issued on November 12, 2024, was invented by Mingcai Luo and assigned to Shenzhen Baoshijie Technology. This patent describes a vehicle-mounted monitoring device that includes a circuit board, display screen, and two communication modules. One module receives image data from cameras, while the other receives tire pressure data from sensors. Both data types are transmitted to the display screen for real-time monitoring.
Rubber Composition and Tire with Adaptive Hardness
U.S. Patent No. 12,139,612, issued on November 12, 2024, was invented by Kensuke Washizu and assigned to Sumitomo Rubber Industries. The rubber composition features a hardness that changes with water exposure. It satisfies two conditions: the difference between dry and wet hardness is at least 1 (JIS-A at 25°C), and the tan delta at 70°C when dry is at least 0.18. This design improves both wet and dry grip performance.
Propylene-Based Polymer Additives for Tire Tread
U.S. Patent No. 12,146,062, issued on November 19, 2024, was developed by Edward J. Blok, Anthony J. Dias, and Gabor Kiss and assigned to ExxonMobil Engineering & Technology. The elastomeric composition includes 70–90 parts polybutadiene (with at least 95% cis-1,4 linkage), 5–20 parts processing oil, 5–20 parts sunflower oil, 50–75 parts filler, a curative agent, an antioxidant, and 5–30 parts of a propylene-ethylene-diene terpolymer containing 0.2–20% ethylidene norbornene or vinyl norbornene and 10–30% ethylene or C4–C20 α-olefins.Method for Producing Trans-Polyisoprenoid, Vector, Transgenic Plant, Method for Producing Pneumatic Tire, and Method for Producing Rubber Product
U.S. Patent No. 12,146,146, issued on November 19, 2024, was invented by Yuko Sakurai, Haruhiko Yamaguchi, Yukino Inoue, Kazuhisa Fushihara, Seiji Takahashi, Satoshi Yamashita, and Toru Nakayama, and assigned to Sumitomo Rubber Industries. This invention provides a method for producing trans-polyisoprenoid to enhance trans rubber production. It involves an in vitro method using a gene that encodes a trans-prenyltransferase (tPT) family protein and rubber particles bound to a protein encoded by this gene. Alternatively, it describes a method involving the introduction of a vector into a plant. This vector includes a promoter that drives laticifer-specific gene expression and a gene coding for a tPT family protein, enabling expression specifically in laticifers.
Shoe Sole Rubber Composition and Shoe
U.S. Patent No. 12,152,142, issued on November 26, 2024, was invented by Takashi Osaki and assigned to ASICS. This patent discloses a shoe sole rubber composition that includes 50 to 100 parts by mass of a white filler. The composition is characterized by an input energy to hysteresis loss (Ein–Ehys) slope of 0.6 or more, a gel fraction of 80% or less, and a complex modulus of 30 MPa or more.
Tire Rubber Composition
U.S. Patent No. 12,152,132, issued on November 26, 2024, was developed by Tomoyuki Sakai, Masayuki Kawazoe, and Toru Noguchi, and assigned to Yokohama Rubber. This invention relates to a tire rubber composition that significantly improves mechanical properties. It contains 1 to 50 parts by mass of oxidized cellulose nanofibers blended into 100 parts by mass of diene rubber, which includes at least 5% by mass of modified diene rubber containing 0.1% by mol or more of a polar group.
Polyacrylate Graft Rubber Copolymer and Impact Modified Thermoplastic Molding Composition
U.S. Patent No. 12,152,099, issued on November 26, 2024, was invented by Tobias Schulz, Wolfgang Fischer, Norbert Niessner, Christian Ruthard, and Hannes Kerschbaumer, and assigned to Ineos Styrolution Group. This patent describes a polyacrylate graft rubber copolymer (B) and its use in impact-modified thermoplastic molding compositions. The graft copolymer consists of 50 to 70 wt.% of a crosslinked acrylate polymer graft base (B1) and 30 to 50 wt.% of a graft shell (B2). The shell includes a first layer (B21) of vinylaromatic monomers and a second layer (B22) of vinylaromatic and nitrile monomers. The graft base has a particle diameter of 255 to 290 nm, with B21 comprising 10 to 26 wt.% and B22-2 comprising 20 to 30 wt.%.
Tire Incorporating a Rubber Composition Including a Specific Hydrocarbon Resin
U.S. Patent No. 12,157,821, issued on December 3, 2024, was developed by Fabien Bonnette, Laurent Copey, Benoit De Gaudemaris, Olivier J.F. Georjon, Derek W. Thurman, Ranja Tripathy, and Alain Hut, and assigned to Michelin. This invention describes a tire that includes a rubber composition made from at least one elastomer and a hydrocarbon resin. The resin is derived from a cyclic monomer, such as a distillation cut from a petroleum refinery stream or C4, C5, or C6 cyclic olefins. The hydrocarbon resin has a number average molecular weight (Mn) between 150 and 800 g/mol, an aromatic proton content (H Ar) of 6 mol% or less, and a glass transition temperature (Tg) that satisfies the relationships: Tg ≥ 95 – 2.2 × H Ar and Tg ≥ 125 – 0.08 × Mn.
Rubber Composition, Processing Method Thereof, and High Strength Product Using the Same
U.S. Patent No. 12,152,134, issued on November 26, 2024, was invented by Tao Xu, Zhi Sheng Fu, and An Yang Wu, and assigned to Hangzhou Xinglu Technology and Shaoxing Pinghe New Material Technology. This patent discloses a rubber composition that includes a rubber matrix and a crosslinking system. The rubber matrix comprises branched polyethylene (A: 0 < A ≤ 100), EPM (B: 0 ≤ B < 100), and EPDM (C: 0 ≤ C < 100). The crosslinking system, present in 1 to 15 parts by weight per 100 parts of rubber matrix, includes at least one crosslinking agent or auxiliary agent. The branched polyethylene has a branching degree of at least 50 branches per 1,000 carbon atoms, a weight average molecular weight of at least 50,000, and a Mooney viscosity ML(1+4) at 125°C of at least 2. This composition addresses issues of low crosslinking efficiency and mechanical strength while offering good electrical insulation and mechanical performance.