Improvements in or connected with Tyres for Bicycle, Tricycle, and other Road Vehicle Wheels.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd May, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Feb., 1892-Accepted, 26th Mar., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Tyres for Bicycle, Tricycle, and
other Road Vehicle Wheels.
We, RICHARD ALMA PARKIN of 21 Rockley Street Walton Road, and JoHN
CHARLES WRIGHT of 95 Roseberry Street, Prince's Park, both of Liverpool
in the County of Lancaster, Watchmaker and Contractor respectively, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Hollow rubber tyres inflated with air, and commonly known as pneumatic tyres
have been found in actual practice to possess certain serious defects, among
which may be mentioned the possibility of their being punctured by thorns, pins,
mails, broken glass or the like, thereby allowing the compressed air to escape and
rendering them for the time being utterly unfit for further use.
Now our invention is designed to overcome this defect, its object being to protect
the air chamber of the tyre from being cut or punctured at the same time retaining
in the tyre the power of absorbing or intercepting vibration.
In one arrangement, we provide a strip of thin flexible metallic material, such as
steel, hardened and tempered. This flexible metallic strip is of sufficient width to
cover that portion of the casing or skin of the air chamber which is likely to become
injured by being punctured. The strip may be in one long piece extending right
round the casing or skin, or it may be in more than one piece if found more
convenient, and may have transverse slits cut in the sides, so that it can readily
adapt itself to the curve of the tyre and lend itself to any irregularities or uneven-
ness of the road.
In another arrangement, we propose to place transversely across and all round
the periphery of the casing or skin, strips of thin flexible material such as steel,
preferably rather narrow and overlapping each other. These may be laced or
otherwise fastened to a strip of canvas which may be cemented by solution or other-
wise secured to the casing or skin.
In building up a tyre fitted with our invention, the casing or skin is inflated as
usual, but before its outside covering, that is the cover forming the outside of the
tyre, is placed on, the thin flexible metallic strip or strips are placed in between the
casing or skin and such cover.
Dated this 21st day of May 1891
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Patent Agents for the Applicants..
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
i
Improvements in or connected with Tyres for Bicycle, Tricycle, and
other Road Vehicle Wheels.
We, RICHARD ALMA PARKIN of 21 Rockley Street, Walton Road, and JOHN
CHARLES WRIGHT of 95 Roseberry Street, Prince's Park, both of Liverpool
in the County of Lancaster, Watchmaker and Contractor respectively, 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 :-
which
Hollow rubber tyres inflated with air and commonly known as pneumatic tyres
have been found in actual practice to possess certain serious defects, among
may be mentioned the possibility of their being punctured by thorus, pins, nails,

page_text: broken glass or the like, thereby allowing the compressed air to escape and rendering
them, for the time being, utterly unfit for further use.
Now our invention is designed to overcome this defect, its object being to protect
the air chamber of the tyre from being cut or punctured, at the same time retaining
in the tyre the power of absorbing or intercepting vibration.
In carrying our invention into effect, we apply, over that part of the rubber air-
be which is likely to suffer from being punctured or similarly injured, or indeed,
if desired, all round the width of the circumference of the air-tube, which is
generally made of rubber, and is hereinafter referred to as a rubber air-tube, a guard
or protector, so that the thorn, pin, nail or piece of broken glass, or other means by
which the puncture or similar injury is usually effected, instead of striking the
rubber air-tube, will encounter the guard or protector, and so the rubber air-tube
be saved.
The invention may be readily understood from the following description, reference
being had to the accompanying drawings, in which
:-
Figure 1 is a view of a part of a pneumatic tyre for cycles with our invention
applied thereto;
Figure 2, a transverse section on the line of Figure 1; and
Figure 3, illustrates, in detail, the way in which we prefer to make the guard or
protector.
In these figures:
A, are the spokes of the wheel B is the rim ; C, the rubber air-tube (into which
the air is pumped through a valve by means of an inflator); D, the canvas casing
entirely surrounding the rubber air-tube C. This canvas casing prevents the
rubber air-tube from bursting no matter how great the pressure of the air inside
may be.
EE are two rubber strips, running completely round the rim of the wheel at each
side, the canvas casing of the rubber air-tube is cemented on these strips, thereby
retaining the rubber air-tube in position, but, besides serving for that purpose,
these strips also act as buffers in that, if the sides of the canvas-covered rubber air-
tube become pressed down at all about these parts, they will not press against the
bare edges of the rim of the wheel, so rendering the canvas-covered rubber air-tube
liable to an injury, but the rubber strips E E act as buffers between the rim and
the covered tube. F is the graduated rubber covering or the tyre proper with
its tapered or thinned-down edges G H cemented on to the interior surface of the
rim B.
When applying this rubber covering, one of its tapered or thinned down edges G
is first of all cemented to one of the edges of the rim B of the wheel all round its
interior, the graduated rubber covering is then brought over and round the canvas
covered rubber air-tube, and its other tapered or thinued down edge H is then
brought over and cemented on to the other edge of the interior of the rim, as seen
in Figure 2. I is a strip of canvas, cemented on to the graduated rubber covering,
covering the joints of the latter with the rim and making everything complete and
tight. The strip I is, of course, cut or provided with slits, as seen in Figure 1, to
allow of the passage of the spokes and also to allow of the necessary take-up due to
parts being on a curve.
All the foregoing parts, and also the manner in which they are connected
together, are as in ordinary use and form no part of our invention, they are described
so that the drawings may be fully understood, but it must be understood that our
invention is not limited in its application to pneumatically-tyred cycles or wheels
constructed only in accordance with the foregoing description, but it will be just as
applicable to all pneunatically-tyred cycles or wheels which are constructed in any
other way.
As has been above mentioned, our invention consists essentially in applying a
guard or protector over that part of the rubber air-tube, covered with canvas, which
is likely to suffer from being punctured or similarly injured, or indeed, if desired,

page_text: all round the width of the circumference of the rubber air-tubes, covered with
canvas; we find it preferable, however, that the guard or protector should only be
applied at that part of the width of the circumference likely to suffer, and we believe
that this part will be found to be, one might almost say, in all cases, within the
limits 12 of the cross surface, as shown on Figure 2. We therefore apply a
guard or protector J at such part over the rubber air-tube; and we would here
observe that the material of which such guard or protector is made may be of any
kind suited for the purpose in view, without materially affecting the nature of our
invention. We prefer it, however, to be of very thin finely tempered or hardened,
steel or brass, or it may be of phosphor bronze, or any suitable metal or amalgam of
metals, and Figure 3 shows the manner in which we prefer to construct a guard or
protector for the purposes of our invention.
Such a guard or protector consists of a series of thin plates a, retained in proper
position by means of two bent or folded side strips, of any suitable material,
preferably leather or else a strong make of braid coated with india rubber solution,
into which the thin plates are eyeletted or sewn or otherwise suitably fastened.
The drawing shows them eyeletted, e being the eyelet holes and d the eyelets. The
corners of each separate plate a are preferably rounded or trimmed off as at ee ee, as
thereby the two bent or folded strips of material will not be so liable to become
cut through or worn at the points where the corners of the plates would touch the
bent or folded strips, further, the side edges gy of the plates overlap each other, as.
clearly shown in the longitudinal section on the line y y, Figure 3, as, if, instead of
overlapping each other, these edges simply lie adjacent or contiguous to each other,.
or in the same plane, there would be a series of apertures through which the thorn,
pin, nail, etcetera, might pass and so the rubber air tube become punctured all the
same. In place of having side strips to retain the thin plates a a in position,.
the latter may be fixed into the circumference of the rubber air-tube or into the
interior of the rubber tread or covering.
In applying these guards or protectors to a tyre, we proceed as follows-
After one edge G of the rubber covering F has been cemented onto the interior
of the rim B, and, whilst the body of such covering is being brought round and over
the canvas covered rubber air-tube, we keep feeding or placing the strip forming
the guard or protector onto the canvas covered rubber air-tube, and in between it
and the rubber covering F, and proceed in the same manner all round the wheel,
gradually bringing over and cementing in its place the remaining edge H of the
rubber covering as the guard or protector takes its place. Before finally making up.
the joint of the graduated rubber covering F, it is best to insert or work the two
ends of the guard or protector over one another for a short distance, so that they
will overlap, provision being thereby made for any expansion or contraction which
may take place in the pneumatic tyre, besides overcoming the objection to the
existence of a slit in the guard or protector if its ends simply fic adjacent or
contiguous to each other or in the same plane.
We prefer to make use of the cushion or pad or strip K of felt or similar material
inserted between the guard or protector and the canvas covered rubber air-tube
which can be inserted in position along with and at the same time as the guard or
protector and will be found advantageous in that it will, besides serving as a cushion
or pad to the guard or protector, also prevent the exposed edges of this latter
entting or injuring the canvas covered rubber air-tube.
It will be evident that the way which we have described and shown of applying
the guard or protector may not be the only way of applying it, but it is the one
which we prefer and which we consider best, it is a very simple way and requires
no special means for fixing or keeping the guard or protector in place, as the internal
pressure of the compressed air on the air-tube C, and the compression of the rubber
covering F, caused by its bearing on the ground, will practically restrain the guard
or protector (and also the cushion or pad or strip K), holding it in position and
keeping it from moving.

page_text: It will also be evident that the guard or protector may be applied to cushion or
even to ordinary tyres to prevent the same being cut or otherwise mutilated on
rough or stony roads.
Finally, it is to be observed, in the case of a guard or protector of the construction
shown in Figure 3, it will be best if the guard or protector be so placed that the
exposed edges of the plates, forming the guard or protector, face in a direction the
reverse of that in which the wheel is travelling, and so any thorns, pins, nails,
etcetera, be thrown off or turned back from the exposed edges of the plates instead
of being liable to catch into the exposed edges, as might be the case if the exposed
edges faced the same way as the direction of the travel of the wheel. Supposing
the cycle or wheel to be travelling in the direction of the arrow, (Figure 1) then
the edges would overlap in the direction indicated in Figure 3.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
1. The improvement in pneumatic tyres, which consists in applying, over that
part of the air-tube which is likely to suffer from being punctured or otherwise
injured, a guard or protector, said guard or protector being formed of a series of
thin, flexible or springy plates or strips placed transversely across and all round the
periphery of the air-tube, with their side edges overlapping each other, whereby
the air chamber of the tyre is protected from puncture while retaining the power of
absorbing vibration, substantially as described.
2. The use, in combination with a rubber tyre, of a guard or protector, formed
of a series of plates or strips laid transversely across and all round the periphery of
the tyre, with their side edges overlapping, the said series of plates being provided
with any suitable means for attaching or fastening them together, substantially as
described.
3. The general combined arrangement and construction of parts forming the
improved pneumatic tyre substantially as described.
Dated this 20th day of February 1899
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of Liverpool, Manchester, Nottingham, and London, Patent Agents.