Improvements in Tyres or Treads and Rims for Velocipede and other Wheels, and Apparatus for Braking the Wheel.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Jan., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 26th Sept., 1894-Accepted, 27th Oct., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Tyres or Treads and Rims for Velocipede and other
Wheels, and Apparatus for Braking the Wheel.
I, LATHAM BLACKER MCCULLOCH, of Waterloo Hotel Bettws y Coed in
the County of Carnarvon, Hotel Proprietor, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows :-
This invention has for its object a tyre that shall have less slip and more
grip than the ordinary pneumatic tyre and one that shall be very quickly
repaired on accidentally becoming pierced.
The tyre itself consists of a series of balls confined in a gripping channel
nave or rim somewhat the shape of a short horseshoe in cross section the two
edges being somewhat curved in or supplied with an internal ridge or strip to
somewhat compress the balls at this point. The balls can either be solid or
hollow and can be made of india rubber or other similar tough elastic compound.
They can either be pressed into the groove or one side of the groove at one
point can be made removable. The balls occupy the entire circumference being
preferably made of such size as to form a tight fit all round each ball touching
the two contiguous ones. For some purposes however it may be desirable to
insert them so as to be somewhat compressed laterally their sides next each other
being flattened, and thus each ball to some extent supports & is supported by
the next.
As the ordinary forms of brake will not apply in this case, I form the brake
as a pair of pliers pinching the rim which for this purpose is preferably made
with flat sides at the central part; that is on each side of the centres of the
balls. Each jaw of the pliers is supplied with a bowl or roller running on the rim.
A single handle having a loop or jaws surrounding the handles of the "pliers "
puts on the break by pressing the handles together.
It is obvious that the actual pliers form can be dispensed with as the two bowls
or runners can be pressed equally against opposite sides of the rim by one motion
in numerous other ways. When not in use the bowls or runners are kept from the
rim by a spring. One plan for instance for doing this on a bicycle and illustrating
another method though probably not as good as the plier form is as follows. Two
bell cranks attached to the fork carry rollers on their lower arms. Their upper arms
are pressed toward each other by a spring keeping the runners off the rim by pressing
a wedge between the upper arms by any suitable device as a longitudinal bell crank
the upper arms are pressed apart and the brake momentarily applied.
Dated this Sixth day of January One thousand eight hundred and ninety-
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Tyres or Treads and Rims for Velocipede and other
Wheels, and Apparatus for Braking the wheel.
I, LATHAM BLACKER MCCULLOCH of Waterloo Hotel, Bettws-y-Coed in the
County of Carnarvon, Hotel Proprietor, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention has for its object a tyre or tread for the wheels of velocipedes

page_text: and other vehicles which shall give ease of riding with great freedom from vibration
and shall have little or no tendency to slip either forward or laterally, which also
cannot be disabled by puncture, and which if damaged can be immediately repaired
by an unskilled person without any tools, while on the journey.
It is best described by aid of the accompanying drawing; in which :-
Figure 1 shows the front wheel of a bicycle fitted with this improved tyre and
rim,
Figure 2 is a front view showing the brake mechanism ;
Figure 2ª an enlarged side view of a portion of the same.
and
Figure 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of the rim and tyre, and
Figure 4 a cross section of the same.
Figure 5 a ball removed from the rim.
In these―
A is a rim of horse-shoe section having two internal terminal beads B B. CC are
a series of balls, preferably hollow and made of india rubber or other tough elastic
substance these can be solid or hollow, inflated under pressure or not, as desired;
I have found them work satisfactorily at atmospheric pressure. These balls as
shown are of larger diameter than the space between the beads, and more balls are
forced into the rim than can be in it without compression in a direction parallel to
the circumference of the rim. The result is that they are compressed out of shape
somewhat radially and laterally, and mutually support each other forming a strong
column for the tread. I may cover the gripping beadings with canvas, rubber cloth
or the like for the purpose of preventing the balls cutting against the beads and
increasing the grip.
The segments need not be perfect spheres. They can be egg shaped or even
flatsided, but I prefer them spherical. It is desirable to cast the ball with one or
more circumferential beads fitting under the bead of the rim or into a groove in
the latter for additional security. In riding I find a puncture makes little or no
sensible difference in any way, and even if several balls be cut open and left in situ,
the effect is imperceptible to the rider and in fact in some cases I use intentionally
punctured balls.
To avoid the possibility of the balls being interfered with or removed from the
rim in the absence of the rider, they may be conveniently threaded on a wire or
gut, passed through the substance of the ball itself, or through a small loop of
canvas cemented to the circumference-or in the case of the aforementioned
punctured balls through the intentional puncture-the ends of the retaining wire or
gut being secured by being passed through holes left in the rim for that purpose.
Any suitable form of brake may be used on a tyre of this sort but a particularly
suitable form is set forth in Figures 1 and 2, in which F are two jaws which, by a
lazy-tong movement, are brought against the two sides of the rim. By this means,
wear, tearing action or jarring by the brake on the rubber is avoided. In the
drawing G is a fulcrum joint arranged to move laterally on pin G¹ (see Figure 2^)
so as to follow the rim should it be slightly out of truth; II, a spring for releasing
brake; I, the rod attached to the ordinary brake handle; and J J levers linked
together on the well known principle of the lazy-tongs.
This invention is not confined to the exact dimension of tyre shown in the
drawing, as the balls can be made of varying thickness as desired.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The combination of a series of elastic balls considerably in excess of the
number required to ensure contact all round and thus strongly pressing against each
other with a rim having two internally projecting beads or rounded edges
compressing the said balls near their centres substantially as described.
4
2. A tyre formed of balls each having a projection or bead on each side fitting 5
into a grooved or hooked rim substantially as described.

page_text: 3. The brake for use with rubber tyres, consisting of a tongs gripping the rim
instead of the tyre substantially as described.
4. The combination of a series of balls pressed together and mutually supporting
each other round the rim, lateral projections on the balls and grooves or beads in
the rim interlocking with the lugs.
Dated this 25th day of Santambor 1801
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Nottingham, and London,
Patent Agents.