Improvements relating to Pneumatic Tyres and to Means for Securing the same on Wheel-rims,
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Nov., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 7th Sept., 1899-Accepted, 7th Oct., 1899
Improvements relating to Pneumatic Tyres and to Means for
Securing the same on Wheel-rims,
I, ARTHUR THOMAS COLLIER, of Gonvena, St. Albans, in the County of Herts,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to pneumatic tyres and to means for securing the same
upon the wheels of velocipedes and other vehicles.
My said invention is chiefly designed to provide an improved tyre of the kind
or class in which there are two concentric air tubes or chambers. My said
invention, however, also comprises a tyre in which a solid or hollow ring or
cushion is contained in the outer chamber or compartment of the sheath and an
inflatable air-tube in the inner chamber or compartment thereof. And my said
invention further comprises other improvements hereinafter mentioned.
In my improved tyre, the sheath or cover provided with inner flaps adapted
to be fastened together for the purpose of confining the outer air-tube or cushion,
is made of canvas or other suitable flexible material cut on the bias, and is in a
single piece which is folded upon itself in such a manner as to form the said
inner flaps and so as also to form tubes or passages along the edges of the said
sheath, one for the reception of a spiral spring or elastic cord, and the other for
the reception of a binding wire-rope, wire, or cord, and so that the two edges of
the said piece overlap each other, thus providing three thicknesses or layers of
the canvas or like material at the tread of the tyre. The canvas or like material
is treated with india-rubber solution so that, when folded upon itself as above
mentioned, the parts in contact will be united. The said sheath or cover is
preferably composed of canvas or like material made on the bias with warp-
threads lying close to each other and with a few weft-threads to hold them
together. The edges of the piece of canvas or other flexible material forming
the sheath, at the part where they overlap each other, can be covered upon
the outside with a strip of india-rubber or other suitable material to form the
tread of the tyre.
It will be seen that, by reason of the sheath with its inner flaps being made in
one piece of flexible material folded upon itself as above mentioned, there are no
parts which are liable to be separated or torn apart when the two tubes or either
of the same are inflated; and that, when the rider's weight comes upon the inflated
concentric air-tubes, the tendency of the pressure will be to cause the two layers
of each inner flap to adhere more closely. Moreover the making of the tyre as
above mentioned very conveniently provides tubes or passages at the edges
of the sheath to receive the aforesaid spiral spring and binding wire respectively,
and affords three thicknesses of the canvas at the tread of the tyre and a double
thickness thereof at the other parts of the tyre, the several thicknesses of canvas
being united by the india-rubber solution and forming a sheath of light weight
and of great strength and durability.
In pneumatic tyres having concentric air-tubes and in which the overlapping

page_text: edges of the sheath or cover are bound upon the wheel-rim, it is necessary, in
order to ensure the setting of the said tubes (when inflated) in their proper
position relatively to each other and to the wheel-rim, that the sheath or cover
should be much larger in circumference in proportion to the wheel-rim than is
requisite in single-chambered tyres. In order that the edges of the sheath or
cover may lie snugly one upon the other in the groove of the wheel-rim, notwith-
standing the extra large diameter of the said sheath or cover, and that the said
sheath shall set properly in the wheel-rim when the tyre is inflated, the edges
must be about equally contracted at all points around the same, and puckering
of the canvas must be avoided. To attain this result I insert in the tube or
passage along one edge of the sheath a spiral spring or an elastic cord which can
be stretched to allow it to be passed over the edge of the grooved wheel-rim, and
which will then contract so that it will draw in the canvas of the sheath uniformly
throughout its circumference, and will closely hug the part of the rim of smaller
diameter within the groove. And I introduce into the tube or passage along the
other edge of the sheath a spirally-coiled wire the adjacent convolutions whereof
are approximately contiguous, and through which is passed a binding wire-rope,
wire or cord provided with suitable means for tightening it, so that, in the
tightening of the said binding wire or cord, it will slide freely within the said
closely-coiled wire and will therefore not cause any puckering of the edges of
the sheath. Consequently the tyre, when secured upon the wheel-rim, will be of
uniform size or thickness all around.
I sometimes use a binding-wire provided with a tightening device comprising
a screw-nut having right and left-hand screw-threads and fitting upon the ends
of the said wire, which are correspondingly screw-threaded to receive it, the said
screw-nut being preferably made with holes for the insertion of a pin or toggle
for turning it.
To afford space for this tightening device without thickening of the tyre at
the part where the said device is situated, and at the same time prevent blowing
out of the edges of the sheath from beneath the said device, I cut away the
closely-coiled wire and the spiral spring at this part, and I attach to the corre-
sponding parts of the sheath curved metal plates or hooks which extend partly
around the tightening device and engage therewith. The curved parts of these
plates are cut away at the middle to permit access to the said holes in the screw-
nut.
To permit of the valve or valves being passed through the centre of the wheel-
rim, the aforesaid closely-coiled wire is made in two lengths, and between these
two lengths the binding wire is made with a semi-circular bend which will extend
around one side of the valve, one of such bends being provided for each valve when
two valves are employed. The aforesaid spiral spring is also made in two lengths,
which are connected by means of a connecting wire or rod brazed or otherwise
secured to the two lengths of the spring and having one or two semi-circular
bends to extend around the valve or valves on the same side thereof as the
bends of the binding wire, a semi-circular piece being cut out of the edge of
.the sheath on the opposite side of each valve. Each bend of the said connecting
wire or rod is provided with a projection or flange to engage with the correspond-
ing bend of the binding wire and thus prevent blowing out of the said connecting
wire from beneath the binding wire.
I sometimes fasten the two inner flaps of the sheath or cover together by means
of a device comprising a wire or wires secured in the edge of one flap and having
eyes adapted to be passed through holes in the other flap and a rod or rods which
are thrust through the said eyes. I can, however, secure them together by lacing
or in any other convenient manner.
I prefer to provide each of the air-tubes with a separate valve for the intro-
duction of air under pressure, so that, should the outer tube be punctured and
deflated, the inner tube will nevertheless remain inflated and the velocipede can
be safely ridden upon, notwithstanding the puncture. I sometimes provide a

page_text: valve for the outer air-tube, comprising an india-rubber tube which is secured
to the under surface of the outer air-tube and which communicates with the
interior of the said air-tube. This valve-tube is kept closed by the flattening of
the same by the pressure of the inflated inner air-tube against the said valve-
tube, the latter extending around the said air-tube and being connected to a
metal connecting-tube or a valve in the wheel-rim. Or the said valve-tube may be
kept closed by the flattening of the same by the inner flaps or lacing of the
sheath.
In another form or modification of my improved tyre I dispense with the
inner flaps and provide in place thereof a continuous wire at each side of the
sheath with hooks or the like extending through the sheath, and I contract the
sheath as required at this part by lacing these wires together, a strip of canvas
or the like being provided above and below the lacing to complete the two
chambers or compartments of the sheath. Or I employ a series of eyelet-holes on
each side and contract the sheath as required by double lacing with cord. Or
I achieve the desired result by other suitable means.
When I make my tyre with a solid or hollow cushion in the outer chamber
of the sheath, I sometimes make the said sheath with inner flaps having flanges of
india-rubber embedded in the canvas, or of other suitable material, adapted to
engage in a groove or grooves in the said cushion, and to secure the said cushion
to the interior of the sheath and to the said flaps by means of india-rubber
solution or cement. In a tyre with a solid or hollow cushion in the outer com-
partment, the outer coating of india-rubber may, if desired, cover the aforesaid
continuous wire provided with hooks, or the aforesaid eyelets and laces.
I can,
if desired, use other means than those above mentioned for securing the
tyre upon the wheel-rim.
D. YOUNG & Co.,
11 & 12, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.
Agents for the Applicant,
Improvements relating to Pneumatic Tyres and to Means for
Securing the same on Wheel-rims.
I, ARTHUR THOMAS COLLIER, of Gonvena, St. Albans, in the County of Herts,
Engineer, 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:-
My invention relates to pneumatic tyres and to means for securing the same
upon the wheels of velocipedes and other vehicles and comprises various improve-
ments hereinafter described.
My said invention is chiefly designed to provide an improved tyre of the kind
or class in which there are two concentric air-tubes or chambers or an air-tube
and a solid or hollow elastic ring or cushion concentric therewith, both enclosed
in a sheath or cover having concentric compartments.
In one form of my improved tyre, the sheath or cover provided with inner
flaps adapted to be fastened together for the purpose of confining the outer air-
tube or cushion, is made of canvas or other suitable flexible material in a single
piece which is folded upon itself in such a manner as to form the said inner
flaps and so as also to form tubes or passages along the edges of the said sheath,

page_text: one for the reception of a spiral spring or elastic cord, and the other for the
reception of a binding wire-rope, wire or cord, and so that the two edges of the
said piece overlap each other, thus providing three thicknesses or layers of
the canvas or like material at the tread of the tyre.
In another form or modification of my improved tyre, I dispense with the inner
flaps and provide in place thereof a continuous wire, rope, cord or the like, at
each side of the sheath, with hooks or the like, extending through
the sheath, and I contract the sheath as required at this part by
lacing these wires together, a strip of canvas or the like being
provided above and below the lacing to complete the two chambers or compart-
ments of the sheath. Or I employ a series of eyelet-holes on each side and contract
the sheath as required by double lacing with cord. Or I achieve the desired
result by other suitable means, for example, the said continuous wires, ropes,
cords or the like can be connected by means of a cord or thread passed through
the canvas around the said wires, ropes or the like and across from one side to
the other beneath the outer chamber of the tyre, this lacing or stitching serving
to hold the two sides of the outer cover together.
When I make my tyre with a solid or hollow cushion in the outer chamber
of the sheath, I sometimes make the said sheath with inner flaps having flanges
of india-rubber embedded in the canvas, or other suitable material, adapted to
engage in a groove or grooves in the said cushion, and secure the said cushion
to the interior of the sheath and to the said flaps by means of india-rubber
solution or cement. In a tyre with a solid or hollow cushion in the outer com-
partment, the outer coating of india-rubber may, if desired, cover the aforesaid
continuous wire rope, cord or the like, or the aforesaid eyelets and laces.
My said invention, moreover, comprises other novel features hereinafter
described.
In the accompanying drawings I have shown how my said invention may be
conveniently and advantageously carried into practice.
Figure 1 is a transverse section of one form of my improved tyre.
Figure 2 is a transverse section of the sheath or cover of the said tyre showing
the same extended to its full width.
Figure 3 is a plan partly in section illustrating an improved device for securing
my improved tyre upon a wheel-rim.
Figure 4 is a section on the line, Figure 3.
Figure 5 is a similar view to Figure 3, showing another form or modification
of my invention.
Figures 6, 7 and 8 are detail views showing the means which I provide to
enable the valve or valves to be passed centrally through the wheel-rim.
Figures 9, 10 and 13 are transverse sections showing other forms or modifica-
tions of my improved tyre.
Figures 11 and 12 are views illustrating details of construction.
A, B are the concentric air-tubes or chambers; C is the sheath or cover for
enclosing the same and holding them in place upon the tyre; D is the wheel-rim.
The sheath or cover C is made of canvas or other flexible material in one piece
which is folded upon itself, as shown in transverse sections in Figure 2, so as to
form tubes or passages a¹, a³ along the edges of the said sheath or cover respec-
tively, for the purposes hereinafter explained, and also inner projections or
flaps b, which are adapted to be laced or otherwise fastened together to secure
the outer air-tube in the outer part of the sheath or cover C as shown in Figure 1.
The edges of the piece of canvas or other flexible material forming the sheath C
overlap one another at the tread of the tyre as shown at c, Figures 1 and 2, a
strip of india-rubber or other suitable material being secured upon the outer
side of the said canvas or other flexible material, as shown, to form the tread
of the tyre.
The said sheath or cover is made of canvas or like material sometimes cut on
the bias or of canvas made on the bias with warp-threads lying closely together

page_text: and with a few weft-threads to hold them together, which material is treated with
india-rubber solution so that, when folded upon itself as above described, the
parts in contact will be united.
It will be seen that, by reason of the sheath with its inner flaps being made in
one piece of flexible material folded upon itself as above mentioned, there are no
parts which are liable to be separated or torn apart when the two tubes or either
of the same are inflated; and that, when the rider's weight comes upon the inflated.
concentric air-tubes, the tendency of the pressure will be to cause the two layers
of each inner flap to adhere more closely. Moreover the making of the tyre as
above mentioned very conveniently provides tubes or passages at the edges
of the sheath to receive the aforesaid spiral spring and binding wire respectively,
and affords three thicknesses of the canvas at the tread of the tyre and a double
thickness thereof at the other parts of the tyre, the several thicknesses of canvas
being united by the india-rubber solution and forming a sheath of light weight
and of great strength and durability.
In pneumatic tyres having concentric air-tubes or chambers and in which the
sheath or cover is bound upon the wheel-rim as hereinafter described, it is
necessary, in order to ensure the setting of the said tubes or chambers (when
inflated) in their proper position relatively to each other and to the wheel-rim,
that the sheath or cover should be much larger in circumference, in proportion
to the wheel-rin, than is requisite in single-chambered tyres. I find that, for a
wheel-rim of twenty-six inches in diameter, a sheath or cover of about twenty-
nine inches in diameter should be used; then, by reason of the stretching of
the canvas, the tyre, when put upon the wheel-rim and inflated, will be about
thirty inches in diameter.
In order that the edges of the sheath or cover C may lie snugly one upon the
other in the groove of the wheel-rim, notwithstanding the extra large diameter
of the said sheath or cover, and that the said sheath shall set properly in the
wheel-rim when the tyre is inflated, the edges must be about equally contracted
at all points around the same.
I therefore insert in the tube or passage a³ a spiral spring e or an elastic
cord which can be stretched to allow it to be passed over the edge of the grooved
wheel-rim D, and which will then contract so that it will draw in the canvas of
the sheath or cover uniformly throughout its circumference, and will closely
hug the part of the rim of smaller diameter within the groove. And I introduce
into the tube or passage a¹ a binding-wire-rope or cord f provided with means
for tightening it.
I find it advantageous to introduce into the tube or passage a¹ of the sheath C,
Figures 3 and 4, a spirally-coiled wire k the adjacent convolutions whereof are
approximately contiguous, and through which is passed the binding wire-rope,
wire or cord provided with suitable means for tightening and slackening it, so
that, in the tightening of the said binding wire or cord, it will slide freely
within the said closely-coiled wire and will therefore not cause any puckering of
the edges of the sheath.
Consequently the tyre, when secured upon the wheel-rim I will be of uniform
size or thickness all around.
I sometimes use a binding-wire provided with a tightening device comprising
a screw nut having right and left hand screw-threads and fitting upon the ends
of the said wire f which are correspondingly screw-threaded to receive it, the
said screw-nut being preferably made with holes for the insertion of a pin
ог tommy" for turning it.
"
To afford space for this tightening device without thickening of the tyre, at
the part where the said device is situated, and at the same time prevent blowing
out of the edges of the sheath from beneath the said device, I cut away the closely-
coiled wire in the passage a¹ and the spiral spring e in the passage a² at this
part, and I attach to the corresponding part of one edge of the sheath C a curved
metal plate or hook g, which extends partly around the tightening device and

page_text: engages therewith. The curved parts of these plates are cut away at the middle to
permit access to the said holes in the screw-nut.
In the arrangement shown in Figure 5, the metal plates g, gl are dispensed with
and the spiral spring e allowed to extend continuously along at the side of the
tightening device / which is enclosed in a tube m of steel or other suitable material
secured in the edge of the sheath and slotted to admit the adjusting pin or
'tommy." The said tube may be cemented to the sheath or one end soldered to
the coiled wire to prevent turning.
"
To permit of the valve or valves being passed through the centre of the wheel-
rim, the aforesaid closely-coiled wire k is made in two lengths, and between these
two lengths the binding wire f is made with a semi-circular bend f¹, Figures 6
and 8, which will extend around one side of the valve; one of such bends being
provided for each valve when two valves are employed, as shown in Figures 6.
The aforesaid spiral spring e is also made in two lengths, which are connected
by means of a connecting wire or rod h, Figures 6 and 7, brazed or otherwise
secured to the two lengths of the spring and having one or two semi-circular
bends to extend around the valve or valves on the same side thereof as the
bends of the binding wire f, a semi-circular piece being cut out of the edge of
the sheath on the opposite side of each valve. Each bend h¹ of the said connecting
wire or rod h is provided with a projection or flange ² to engage with the corre-
sponding bend of the binding wire and thus prevent blowing out of the said
connecting wire from beneath the binding wire f.
I prefer to provide each of the air-tubes with a separate valve for the intro-
duction of air under pressure, so that, should the outer tube be punctured and
deflated, the inner tube will nevertheless remain inflated and the velocipede can
be safely ridden upon, notwithstanding the puncture. I sometimes provide a
valve for the outer air-tube, comprising an india-rubber tube which is secured
to the under surface of the outer air-tube and which communicates with the
interior of the said air-tube. This valve-tube is kept closed by the flattening of
the same by the pressure of the inflated inner air-tube against the said valve-
tube, the latter extending around the said air-tube, and being connected to a
metal connecting-tube or a valve in the wheel-rim. Or the said valve-tube may be
kept closed by the flattening of the same by the inner flaps or lacing of the
sheath.
In Figure 9 I have shown a modification of my invention wherein a solid
ring or cushion E of india-rubber is enclosed in the outer concentric chamber of
the tyre and an air-tube A in the inner concentric chamber thereof. The inner
flaps above described are, in this arrangement dispensed with, and the sheath C
is contracted between the two chambers by means of continuous wires, ropes
or cords F, F', one at each side of the tyre outside the canvas sheath, which
wires, ropes or cords are laced or otherwise drawn tightly towards each other so as
to contract the sheath as required at this part. In the arrangement shown, the
wires, ropes or cords F, FI, are drawn together by means of a cord G passed
through the sides of the sheath and around the said continuous wires, ropes or
cords. A strip of canvas or like material may, if desired, be placed above and
below the lacing or stitching to complete the two chambers or compartments of
the sheath. I can, if desired, provide eyelets in the sides of the sheath for the
said cord to be passed through, or it can be passed through the canvas by means
of a needle. Or I can make the said continuous wires, ropes or cords with hooks
or the like extending through the sides of the sheath and lace them together by
a cord passed around or through the said hooks or the like. In the case of tyres
for heavy vehicles, the canvas sheath C can be made of several layers or thick-
nesses of material, as required.
In Figure 10 I have shown a tyre in which the lacing G extends through
the inner part of the ring or cushion E, which is preferably moulded or made with
grooves G to receive the said cords or lacing G, as shown in Figures 11 and 12.
I preferably "solution" or cement the cords or lacing G in their grooves or seats

page_text: so as to prevent the slackening of the contiguous cords if one should happen to
be severed.
When I make my tyre with a solid or hollow cushion in the outer chamber of
the sheath, I sometimes make the said sheath with inner flaps b, b', Figure 13,
having flanges n, of india-rubber embedded in the canvas, or other suitable
material, adapted to engage in a groove or grooves in the said cushion, and
secure the said cushion to the interior of the sheath and to the said flaps by means
of india-rubber solution or cement. In a tyre with a solid or hollow cushion in
the outer compartment, the outer coating of india-rubber may, if desired, cover
the aforesaid continuous wire provided with hooks, or with the aforesaid eyelets
and laces.
I can, if desired, use other means than those above mentioned for securing the
tyre upon the wheel-rim.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
First. A sheath or cover for a pneumatic tyre, having concentric compartments
and made of canvas or other flexible material in one piece folded upon itself so
as to form tubes or passages along the edges of the said sheath or cover and
internal flaps adapted to be secured together to close the outer compartment and
so as to form a treble thickness at the tread and a double thickness at other parts
of the said sheath or cover, substantially as hereinbefore described.
Second. The employment of a closely-coiled spiral wire in one edge of the
sheath or cover made in two lengths and having a binding-wire passed through
it and provided, between its two parts, with one or more semi-circular bends,
in combination with a spiral spring in the other edge of the sheath or cover,
also made in two lengths united by a connecting rod having one or more semi-
circular bends provided with flanges to engage with the bend or bends of the
binding wire, substantially as, and for the purposes, above specified.
Third. The improved valve for the outer air-tube comprising a flexible tube
secured to the under surface of the said tube and communicating with the interior
thereof through a passage which is kept closed by the pressure of the inner air-
tube when inflated, substantially as described.
Fourth. The combination, in a tyre having concentric compartments, of a
sheath or cover provided with wires, ropes or the like at the sides of the sheath,
secured together by lacing or otherwise to prevent lateral expansion or distension
of the said sheath or cover, substantially as hereinbefore described, and shown
in Figures 9 and 10 of the drawings.
Fifth. A tyre comprising an air-tube and a solid or hollow elastic ring or
cushion around and concentric with the same, both enclosed in a sheath or
cover the sides of which are held together between its concentric compartments
by means of wires or the like which lie outside the sheath at or near the junction
of adjacent compartments and are secured by lacing or otherwise, for the purposes
above specified.
Sixth. The improved tyre constructed substantially as hereinbefore described
with reference to either of the forms or modifications shown in the accompanying
drawings, for the purposes specified.
1
11
1
1000
ARTHUR T. COLLIER.