Improvements in and relating to Tyres for the Wheels of Vehicles.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 4th June, 1898-Accepted, 9th July, 1898
[Communicated from abroad by DUDLEY HALL BRADLEE, of 155, High Street, Boston,
Massachusetts, and JERE MARBLE HALL, of Malden, County of Middlesex, both in
the United States of America, Merchants.]
Improvements in and relating to Tyres for the Wheels of Vehicles.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents, 45,
Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, 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:-
The present invention relates to a rubber tire and the means for securing the same
to a wheel rim, the tire being of that type in which the rubber tread portion is laterally
confined in a metallic channel suitably secured to the outside of the rim proper
Tires of this type have heretofore been commonly secured by wires or tapes embedded
in the rubber and extending longitudinally around the wheel within the rubber, the
said wires being welded together where they meet so as to afford a continuous band to
hold the rubber in place, or the tapes pulled through and fastened to the rim. In
practice it is found that the wires or tapes frequently stretch so that the tire loosens
and is liable to come off.
The object of the present invention is to obviate these difficulties by employing &
fastening strip which is practically incapable of stretching, and to secure the ends of
the said strip together and to the wheel by means of a mechanical fastening device
capable of being manipulated by anyone without any special skill. To these ends the
fastening device embodying the invention consists of a bar or strip of metal extending
longitudinally through the rubber tread portion of the tire, the said bar being of
sufficient size to obviate all tendency towards stretching, and practically constituting
an inner steel tire.
At the ends of the rubber tread portion the ends of the said bars are provided with rigid
vertical shoulders adapted to extend into an opening formed in the metallic channel
piece, and to be engaged by the said channel piece at the edges of said opening
and longitudinally held in position thereby. Each of the said ends 18 further provided
with a rigid horizontal shoulder to be engaged by a locking device, which 18 shown as
consisting of a bolt having a head adapted to overle both of said shoulders, and a
shank to extend through an opening in the rim and to be secured in position by
means of a nut. The terms "vertical" and "horizontal" are to be understood as
meaning substantially vertical and horizontal with relation to the axis of the wheel,
the vertical shoulder being practically radial to said axis and the horizontal shoulder
transverse thereto.
At the point where the vertical shoulder 18 formed the rubber is out away so as not
to interfere with the same, the upper portion of the rubber tread, however, extending
beyond the strip so that when the tire is in position the ends of the rubber portion
will meet to form a continuous tread surface. To apply the tire, therefore, (the tire
being furnished with the fastening strip applied thereto) it is necessary only to place
the rubber tread portion and contained strip in position in the channel piece and

page_text: push the ends of the tread portion back along the fastening strip far enough to insert
the locking bolt, and then insert and tighten up the said locking bolt.
Figure 11s a longitudinal section of a wheel rim having a tire, embodying the
invention, applied thereto; and Figure 2 is a transverse section of the same
The tire embodying the invention consists of the rubber tread portion a, which may
be of any suitable or usual shape, and the metallic channel portion b, which is directly
secured to the wheel rim c and which affords the direct means for laterally supporting
or retaining the said tread portion. The said channel b may be secured to the run in
any suitable or usual way, and is ordinarily permanently secured thereto, since the
only portion of a rubber tire which is likely to become worn and damaged and to
require renewal, apart from renewal of the entue wheel, is the rubber tread
portion a
To secure the said tread portion in the channel so that it will be held firmly in
contact therewith and incapable of being displaced by stretching, the said tread
portion is provided, in accordance with the present invention, with a metallic fastening
strip a which is threaded longitudinally through a suitable opening in the rubber
tread portion a between the tread surface thereof and the surface which lies in contact
with the channel piece. To lock the said fastening strip in position after the tire has
been applied to the wheel, the said strip is shown as provided at each end with a
vertical or radial shoulder a adapted to pass through an opening 62 m the channel
piece b, the said opening being of such length that when the tread portion and
fastening strip have been drawn to their proper position the shoulders a³ will engage
the edges of the channel piece at the ends of said opening and thus hold the two
ends of the tread portion together
To lock the said fastening strips in position in the opening 62 and prevent the
same from springing out of the same, they are arranged to be held in position by
means of a locking bolt d having a head d² arranged to overlie shoulders at which
are transverse to the shoulders a³, the sud shoulders a³ and a' being preferably formed
by permanently bending the strip, as shown.
The bolt d extends through a suitable opening in the rim caud is provided with a
uut d³ whereby the same can be drawn tightly down upon the shoulders a', thus
firmly holding the fastening device and tread portion in position
Froin the foregoing description it will be seen that while it 18 practically
impossible for the tire to become accidentally displaced, said tire can be put on
or taken off by an unskilled person without requiring any special appliances.
The metallic fastening device a² 18 of sufficient size not only to obviate all tendency
to stretch, but also to add greatly to the strength of the tire without affecting in any
way the resiliency of the rubber tread. The said fastening device is intended to be
of such length that when the ends thereof are drawn into the opening in the channel
piece they will compress the rubber below to a certain extent, thus holding the same
firmly in the said channel piece, it being obvious, however, that the part of the tread
between the actual tread surface and the said fastening device is not in any way
affected. The tire embodying the invention is practically a combined steel and rubber
tire, the fastening strip constituting what may be termed au inuer steel tire to afford
the necessary strength to the structure as a whole, while the rubber tread portion
which is held in position by said strip affords the desired resilience or cushioning
effect.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of шу said
invention and in what mauner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondents, I declare that what I claim is :-
1 A tire comprising a channel piece directly connected with the rim, a tread
portion of resilient material supported in said channel prece, a metallic
fastening strip or inner steel tire extending longitudinally through the said tread
portion and provided at its ends with rigid shoulders to cooperate with engaging
portions of the channel piece to hold the said strip longitudinally, rigid horizontal
shoulders at the end of said strip, and a clamping device cooperating with said

page_text: shoulders to hold the strip in engagement with said engaging portions, substantially
as described.
2. A tire comprising the channel portion b provided with the opening 6*, the tread
portion a, a fastening strip a' extending longitudinally through said tread portion and
provided with the rigid vertical shoulders as to engage the channel piece at the
edges of the opening be, the rigid horizontal shoulders at, and the locking bolt d
cooperating with said shoulders a', substantially as described.
Dated the 4th dosent To 1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.