Patent Publication Number: US-2013248069-A1

Title: Tire with inner core

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/032,294, filed Feb. 22, 2011. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to vehicle tires, and particularly to a tire with inner core for allowing a vehicle to continue traveling when damage has occurred to the tire. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Conventional pneumatic vehicle tires consist of an outer casing, which is given desired load-bearing capacity and elasticity by pressurized air pumped into the casing or into an inner tube fitted within the casing. Unfortunately, such pneumatic tires are subject to explosive decompression, when punctured, which may create serious hazards for the occupants of the vehicle or of nearby vehicles, especially if the puncture occurs while the vehicle is traveling at high speed or on a crowded road, such as a freeway. Numerous attempts have been made heretofore to overcome these disadvantages by filling the tire casing with other materials. 
     Fully solid tires, as are commonly used in race cars, have the disadvantage of extreme weight, which creates severe strain on the engine of the vehicle. Tires being filled with relatively lightweight materials, such as elastic foam, suffer from the tendency of the foam to become damaged at the same time the outer casing of the tire is damaged, or from the tendency to not properly expand and fill the outer casing, thus creating unsafe driving conditions in the event of tire damage. 
     Thus, a tire with an inner core solving the aforementioned problems is desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The tire with an inner core includes a resilient annular shell similar to a conventional vehicle tire, and an annular inner core disposed therein, thus allowing the vehicle to continue traveling if the resilient annular shell is damaged. The resilient annular shell includes a central portion and a pair of sidewalls extending therefrom, as is conventionally known. An exterior surface of the central portion is adapted for contacting a road surface and preferably has tire tread formed thereon. Inner annular edges of the pair of sidewalls are adapted for fluid-tight mounting on a wheel hub, as is conventionally known. 
     The annular inner core is disposed within the resilient annular shell and includes an inner annular edge, a pair of side annular edges and an outer annular edge. The inner annular edge is adapted for mounting about the wheel hub. In one embodiment, the outer annular edge of the annular inner core contacts the interior surface of the central portion of the resilient annular shell, and the pair of side annular edges are respectively spaced apart from the interior surfaces of the pair of sidewalls of the resilient annular shell for receiving pressurized air therebetween. Preferably, the annular inner core is formed from a wire-reinforced resilient material, such as rubber. Further, an annular channel may be formed substantially centrally within the annular inner core for receiving a volume of pressurized air. 
     In an alternative embodiment, the outer annular edge and the pair of side annular edges of the annular inner core, respectively, make fluid-tight contact with the interior surfaces of the central portion and the pair of sidewalls of the resilient annular shell. In this embodiment, the annular inner core is also preferably formed from a wire-reinforced resilient material, such as rubber. An annular channel is also preferably formed substantially centrally within the annular inner core for receiving a volume of pressurized air. 
     In another alternative embodiment, the pair of side annular edges and the outer annular edge of the annular inner core are all respectively spaced apart from the interior surfaces of the pair of sidewalls and the central portion of the resilient annular shell for receiving pressurized air therebetween. In this embodiment, the annular inner core is also preferably formed from a wire-reinforced resilient material, such as rubber. An annular channel is also preferably formed substantially centrally within the annular inner core for receiving a volume of pressurized air. 
     These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an environmental perspective view in section showing a wheel having a first embodiment of a tire with an inner core according to the present invention mounted thereon. 
         FIG. 2  is an environmental, partial front view in section of the wheel and tire with an inner core of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is an environmental, partial front view in section of an alternative embodiment of a tire with an inner core according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is an environmental, partial front view in section of another alternative embodiment of a tire with an inner core according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is an environmental, partial front view in section of still another alternative embodiment of a tire with an inner core according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , in a first embodiment, the tire with an inner core  10  includes a resilient annular shell  12 , similar to a conventional vehicle tire, and an annular inner core  16  disposed therein, thus allowing the vehicle to continue traveling if the resilient annular shell  12  is damaged (i.e., the vehicle may continue traveling to seek repair under conditions in which a conventional tire would be flat and inoperative). 
     The resilient annular shell  12  includes a central portion  15  and a pair of sidewalls  13  extending therefrom, as is conventionally known in vehicle tires. An exterior surface of the central portion  15  is adapted for contacting a road surface and preferably has tire tread  14  formed thereon. Inner annular edges  19  of the pair of sidewalls  13  are adapted for fluid-tight mounting on a wheel hub H, as is conventionally known. 
     As best shown in  FIG. 2 , the annular inner core  16  is disposed within the resilient annular shell  12  and includes an inner annular edge  21 , a pair of side annular edges  20  and an outer annular edge  26 . Prior to mounting within the shell  12 , the annular inner core  16  may have a substantially toroidal shape, the outer annular edge  26  being the largest diameter portion of the torus and the inner annular edge  21  being the smallest diameter portion of the torus. 
     The inner annular edge  21  is adapted for mounting about the wheel hub H, preferably in a fluid-tight fashion. As best seen in  FIG. 2 , the outer annular edge  26  of the annular inner core  16  contacts the interior surface  24  of the central portion  15  of the resilient annular shell  12 , and the pair of side annular edges  20  are respectively spaced apart from the interior surfaces  22  of the pair of sidewalls  13  of the resilient annular shell  12  for receiving pressurized air in the gaps  18  formed therebetween. Preferably, the outer annular edge  26  of the annular inner core  16  makes fluid-tight contact with the interior surface  24  of the central portion  15  of the resilient annular shell  12 . 
     As shown, the width of each air gap  18  preferably increases with increase of radius of the tire, i.e., each air gap  18  has its greatest width at the highest point (nearest the tread  14 ) in the orientation shown in  FIG. 2 , and its least width at its lowest point in the orientation shown in  FIG. 2  (adjacent the shoulder defined by inner core  16  and where the outer tire wall meets the hub H). Although the contouring and dimensions of the air gaps  18  may vary dependent upon the particular type of tire, vehicle and necessary pressure for proper usage, exemplary dimensions include a maximum width (nearest tread  14 ) of between approximately one inch and approximately one-and-a-half inches, and a minimum width (at its lowest point in the orientation of  FIG. 2 ) of between zero inches (i.e., coming to a sharp point at its lowest end) and approximately one-quarter of an inch. 
     The annular inner core  16  is formed from a resilient material, such as soft rubber. Preferably, the annular inner core  16  is formed from a wire-reinforced resilient material, such as soft rubber  30  having a wire mesh  32  embedded therein, as is well-known in the field of reinforced tires. The wire mesh  32  is preferably evenly distributed throughout the volume of the soft rubber  30 , as shown. Although the distribution of the wire mesh  32  may vary dependent upon the particular type of tire, the particular type of vehicle and the intended usage of the tire, each individual wire strand of mesh  32  may be positioned approximately one-eighth of an inch from the adjacent ones of the wires forming mesh  32 . In  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the wires forming the mesh  32  are shown as being annular loops embedded within the soft rubber  30  and being evenly distributed therethrough. It should be understood that any suitable configuration of wire embedding may be utilized, for example, spiral embedding, embedding laterally or radially (as opposed to annularly), or the like. In addition to embedding within the rubber  30  forming the inner core  16 , a separate layer of wire mesh may also cover the inner core  16 . 
     The air held within gaps  18  provides enhanced shock absorption for the tire  10 . Preferably, during manufacture, the annular inner core  16  is at least partially compressed during insertion within shell  12 . Thus, if the shell  12  is breached along the sides, causing the pressurized air within one or both of gaps  18  to be released, the annular inner core  16  will decompress and expand to at least partially fill the gaps. 
     In the embodiment of  FIG. 3 , the configuration of the external tire  10  and the inner core  16  are identical to the embodiment of  FIGS. 1 and 2 , except that an annular channel  40  is formed substantially centrally through the annular inner core  16  for receiving a volume of pressurized air. Although shown as being substantially oval, it should be understood that the annular channel  40  may have any desired shape, such as circular or a configuration corresponding to the overall configuration of the annular inner core  16 . If the shell  12  is breached along the sides, thus causing the pressurized air within one or both of gaps  18  to be released, the pressurized air held within channel  40  will cause the annular inner core  16  to expand to at least partially fill the gaps. Preferably, the volume of the annular channel  40  is approximately 20% of the volume of the annular inner core  16 . 
     As noted above, channel  40  may have any desired contouring, and any contouring will obviously vary under both internal and external pressure. In the non-compressed (i.e., under no external pressure) state shown in  FIG. 3 , the channel  40  preferably has an oval or elliptical cross-section, as shown. Although the contouring and dimensions of the channel  40  may vary dependent upon the particular type of tire, vehicle and necessary pressure for proper usage, exemplary dimensions include a major diameter (i.e., the horizontal diameter in the orientation shown in  FIG. 3 ) of approximately four inches and a minor diameter (i.e., the vertical diameter in the orientation shown in  FIG. 3 ) of approximately two inches, i.e., the major diameter is approximately twice the minor diameter. Additionally, as shown, the channel  40  is preferably formed off-center or eccentrically within the core  16 , so that the channel  40  is defined closer to inner radius of the tire (i.e., closer to wheel hub H) than to the outer radius of the tire (i.e., adjacent the tread  14 ). For the exemplary dimensions given above, the center of the channel  40  may be positioned between approximately two inches and approximately three inches from the least radius portion of the tire. In other words, the thickness of the core material between the channel  40  and inner annular edge  21  (measured vertically in the orientation of  FIG. 3 ; i.e., the radial distance) is between approximately one and two inches. It should be understood that the exemplary contouring and dimensions described above with regard to channel  40  also apply to channels  140  and  240  of the embodiments of  FIGS. 4 and 5 , to be described in detail below. 
     In the alternative embodiment of  FIG. 4 , the tire with an inner core  100  similarly includes a resilient annular shell  112  and an annular inner core  116  disposed therein. The resilient annular shell  112  includes a central portion  115  and a pair of sidewalls  113  extending therefrom. An exterior surface of the central portion  115  is adapted for contacting a road surface and preferably has tire tread  114  formed thereon. 
     The annular inner core  116  is disposed within the resilient annular shell  112  and includes an inner annular edge  121 , a pair of side annular edges  120  and an outer annular edge  126 . The outer annular edge  126  and the pair of side annular edges  120  of the annular inner core  116  respectively make fluid-tight contact with the interior surfaces  124 ,  122  of the central portion  115  and the pair of sidewalls  113  of the resilient annular shell  112 , respectively. As in the previous embodiments, the annular inner core  116  is also preferably formed from a wire-reinforced resilient material, such as soft rubber  130  having a wire mesh  132  embedded therein. An annular channel  140  is also preferably formed substantially centrally within the annular inner core  116  for receiving a volume of pressurized air. Regardless of the state of the shells  12 ,  112 , the inner cores  16 ,  116  of the above embodiments will provide support for the resilient annular shell  12 ,  112  in all travel conditions. 
     In the further alternative embodiment of  FIG. 5 , the tire with an inner core  200  similarly includes a resilient annular shell  212  and an annular inner core  216  disposed therein. The resilient annular shell  212  includes a central portion  215  and a pair of sidewalls  213  extending therefrom. An exterior surface of the central portion  215  is adapted for contacting a road surface and preferably has tire tread  214  formed thereon. 
     The annular inner core  216  is received within the resilient annular shell  212  and includes an inner annular edge  221 , a pair of side annular edges  220 , and an outer annular edge  226 . The pair of side annular edges  220  and the outer annular edge  226  are all respectively spaced apart from the interior surfaces  222 ,  224  of the pair of sidewalls  213  and the central portion  215  of the resilient annular shell  212  for receiving pressurized air in the gap  218  formed between annular inner core  216  and the resilient annular shell  212 . As in the previous embodiments, the annular inner core  216  is also preferably formed from a wire-reinforced resilient material, such as soft rubber  230  having a wire mesh  232  embedded therein. An annular channel  240  is also preferably formed substantially centrally within the annular inner core  216  for receiving a volume of pressurized air. 
     In the embodiment of  FIG. 5 , the annular inner core  216  will support the shell  212  when shell  212  is breached, thus causing the shell  212  to collapse against the core  216 . As noted above, the gap  218  and the annular channel  240  both preferably contain pressurized air. Thus, if the shell  212  is breached and the air contained within gap  218  is released, the pressurized air contained within the annular channel  240  will cause the inner core  216  to expand outwardly, thus better supporting the shell  212  until repairs can be made. 
     Similar to the embodiment of  FIG. 3 , the width of each side air gap preferably increases with increase of radius of the tire. Although the contouring and dimensions of the side air gaps may vary dependent upon the particular type of tire, vehicle and necessary pressure for proper usage, exemplary dimensions include a maximum width (nearest tread  214 ) of approximately one inch, and a minimum width (at its lowest point in the orientation of  FIG. 5 ) of between zero inches (i.e., coming to a sharp point at its lowest end) and approximately one-half of an inch. Additionally, the outer air gap (the horizontal air gap, in the orientation of  FIG. 5 , defined between the outer radial portion of core  216  and the inner surface  224 ) has a width of between approximately one inch to approximately one-and-a-half inches. 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.