According to the shearing force character and the deformation coordination condition of shell at the station of supports, the mathematical models to calculate contact angle and contact pressure distribution between tyre and shell were set up, the formulae of bending moment and bending stress of tyre were obtained. Taking the maximum of tyre fatigue life as the optimal objective, the optimization model of tyre support angle was built. The computational results show that when tyre support angle is 30°, tyre life is far less than that when tyre support angle is optimal, which is 35.6°, and it is unsuitable to stipulate tyre support angle to be 30° in traditional design. The larger the load, the less the nominal stress amplitude increment of tyre, the more favorable the tyre fatigue life when tyre support angle is optimal.
