Pneumatic Tires
Most tires used in modern times are considered to be pneumatic tires. The use of rubber in tires allowed the invention of pneumatic tires that allowed for a more comfortable ride. The contemporary transportation system of the world depends completely on pneumatic tires.
A pneumatic tire is a kind of tire made of reinforced rubber and filled with compressed air. Motorized vehicles including cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles and airplanes all utilize pneumatic tires. Non-motorized wheeled vehicles, such as bicycles, also use pneumatic tires.
History
The tire started following the invention or iron bands utilized around wooden wheels. It wasn't until the mid-19th century that the use of solid rubber in the creation of tires. The first patent for a successful pneumatic tire was issued in the year 1888 to Irishman John Dunlop who invented an inner-tube for a bicycle tire. This was when the word "pneumatic" started to describe tires.
Seven years after, in the year 1895, Edouard and Andre Michelin made pneumatic tires for an automobile in France. The Michelin brothers' company was destined to become a leading manufacturer of car tires. The first company in the United States to make tires was Goodyear Tire company established in the year 1898, followed by the Firestone Tire & Rubber company in 1900, the second United States company to make tires.
Function
A rubber inner tube was used in all pneumatic tires during the first half of the 20th century to be able help hold the air pressure. Tires were made of toughened layers of plies or cord covered with rubber. The plies were laid on an angle or bias to define the shape of the tire 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 body of the tire. They need no inner tube because the tire forms an airtight seal with the wheel. This was the Michelin's brother's invention in 1948. The tires did not become commonly used until the late 1970s. Radial tires last longer and offer better fuel economy.