Pneumatic Tires
The majority of tires utilized in contemporary times are considered to be pneumatic tires. The use of rubber in tires enabled the creation of pneumatic tires that allowed for a much more comfy ride. The world's contemporary transportation system depends completely on pneumatic tires.
A pneumatic tire is a tire constructed of toughened rubber and filled with compressed air. Motorized vehicles such as airplanes, motorcycles, buses, cars and trucks all use pneumatic tires. Non-motorized wheeled vehicles, such as bicycles, also use pneumatic tires.
History
The history of tires starts with the invention of iron bands around wooden wheels. The use of solid rubber in the creation of tires began in the mid-19th century. The very first patent for a successful pneumatic tire was issued in 1888 to Irishman John Dunlop who invented an inner-tube for a bicycle tire in the year 1888. This was when the term "pneumatic" appeared to describe tires.
Seven years after, in 1895, Andre and Edouard Michelin made pneumatic tires for an automobile in France. The company of the Michelin brothers was destined to become a top manufacturer of tires for automobiles. The first U.S. company to make tires was Goodyear Tire company founded in 1898, followed by the Firestone Tire & Rubber company in 1900, the second United States company to produce tires.
Function
A rubber inner tube was utilized in all pneumatic tires during the first half of the 20th century to help hold the air pressure. Tires were constructed of reinforced layers of cord or plies covered with rubber. The plies were laid on an angle or bias to define the tire's shape and strengthen it. These "bias ply" tires had a tread pattern for traction.
Modern radial tires are made with the plies running at 90 degrees across the tire body. They require no inner tube as the tire forms an airtight seal with the wheel. This was a creation of the Michelin company in the year 1948. The tires did not become widely used until the latter parts of the 1970s. Radial tires provide better fuel economy and last longer.