Improvements in Rims and Resilient Tyres. for Wheels.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 25th Sept., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 24th June, 1898-Accepted, 6th Aug., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rims and Resilient Tyres. for Wheels.
I, HENRY CONSTABLE, of 267, Ladbrooke Grove, London W., Gentleman, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in rims and resilient tyres for wheels.
An essential feature of my invention consists in providing inside the rim of the
wheel a flexible or resilient membrane that serves as a rest or support for the tyre
proper, and which membrane is stretched or supported between the edges of an
inner or supplementary rim fitted in the groove or trough of the wheel rim.
According to my invention I may construct the wheel rim with the edges or outer
portions of its sides arranged in the form of parallel flat rings or cheeks that are
slightly nearer to each other than are the sides of the body or trough portion of
the rim. The trough portion of the rim is made somewhat deep to adapt it to
receive the inner or supplementary trough shaped rim, which has its edges
curled or bent over inwardly, and is cut or divided to enable it to be sprung over
the edges of the wheel rim.
The said inner rim may be enclosed within a tube of india rubber so that when
said rim is in position, the portion of the said india rubber tube that is stretched
between its edges forms the resilient membrane or bed upon which the tyre proper
may rest.
The relative sizes of the two rims are such that, when the inner rim is
forced into position in the wheel rim, the rubber tube is firmly held between the
two rims. A suitable fastening or fastenings may be employed to secure the ends
of the inner rim together, and if desired the ends of the rubber tube may also be
fastened together when in place. I may however, so form the inner rim that
its elasticity or set" will give it sufficient hold or grip upon the wheel rim to retain
it in place, or I may secure said inner rim to the wheel rim by bolts or other
suitable devices.
66
In some cases I may first form the inner rim of somewhat larger diameter than
the wheel rim, and after such inner rim is cut or divided I may contract.or reduce
the width and depth thereof for a short distance at one of the ends, so that said end
will fit into or be overlapped by the other end. By this construction I avoid any
gap between the ends of said rim when it is extended in order to be sprung into
place, as if such a gap were formed the rubber tube might he caught therein and
so be cut or torn.
Instead of employing an india-rubber tube to form the resilient membrane.
I may employ a strip or band of india-rubber that is spliced or otherwise secured
at its edges to a strip or band of any suitable fabric thus forming a tube of which
only that portion adapted to rest across the edges of the inner rim consists of india-
rubber. Or I may solution the edges of the rubber strip to the sides of the inner
rim. Or I may employ a strip of india-rubber wound helically around the inner
rim. In any case I prefer to line those portions of the rubber tube or strip that
bear upon the edges or sides of the inner rim, with a suitable protective fabric.
I do not however confine myself to the use of india-rubber to form the resilient

page_text: membrane or bed, as it it obvious that I may employ any appropriate resilient
material therefor.
The tyre proper may consist of an endless band of any suitable shape in cross
section and may be formed of india-rubber, felt, cork, or the like, 'or of a coil of wire,
or indeed of any material or combination of materials having a suitable amount
of flexibility or resiliency. Said tyre is placed between the parallel flat ring portions
or cheeks of the rim proper, and when it is in position its outer surface or periphery
projects beyond the outer edges of said rim, so that the wheel is supported on
the ground through the tyre proper and its resilient bed or support.
Said tyre is retained on the wheel rim by the flat parallel rings or cheeks so that
it can yield or move radially to a slight extent; or it may be retained by an
outer covering, preferably in the form of a band, secured along each of its edges
to the rim. In the latter case said covering may be formed of leather, vulcanized
rubber, or the like, and constitutes the tread of the tyre.
Dated this 25th day of September 1897
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Rims and Resilient Tyres for Wheels.
I, HENRY CONSTABLE, of 267, Ladbrooke Grove, London W., Gentleman, 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 improvements in rims and resilient tyres for wheels.
An essential feature of my invention consists in providing inside the rim of the
wheel a flexible or resilient membrane that serves as a bed or support for the
tyre proper, and which membrane is stretched or supported between the edges of
an inner or supplementary rim fitted in the groove or trough of the wheel rim.
The tyre proper may consist of an endless band of any suitable shape in cross
section and may be formed of any suitable material. Said tyre is placed between
the edges or
sides of the wheel rim, and when it is in position its outer surface or
periphery projects beyond the said edges, so that the wheel is supported on the
ground through the tyre proper and its resilient bed or support.
The said tyre is retained in place by the edges or sides of the wheel rim in
such a manner that it can yield or move radially to a slight extent; or it may
be retained by an outer covering, preferably in the form of a band, secured along
each of its edges to the rim, and constituting the tread of the tyre.
In order that my invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into
effect I will describe the same more fully with reference to the accompanying
drawing, in which:-
Figures 1 and 2 are respectively a cross section and a longitudinal section of
a wheel rim and tyre constructed according to my invention. In Figure 2 the tyre
proper is not shown, in order to illustrate more clearly the construction of the rim
and the bed or support.
Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing another form of my improved
rim and tyre.
Figures 4 and 5 are detail views hereinafter referred to.
Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the wheel rim a is constructed with the edges or
outer portions of its sides a¹ in the form of parallel flat rings or cheeks that are

page_text: ssed inward so as to be slightly nearer to each other en
ly or trough portion of the rim. Internal shoulders a² are thus formed between
cheeks a and the trough portion of the rim.
This trough portion is made somewhat deep to adapt it to receive an inner or
pplementary trough shaped rim b, formed of metal, hard rubber, vulcanite,
lluloid or other suitable material, which has its edges b' curled or bent over
wardly and adapted, when said rim is in position, to resti under the shoulders a³
the wheel rim. Said inner rim is cut or divided to enable it to be sprung into
lace over the edges of the wheel rim.
The inner rim is enclosed within a tube or tubes of india-rubber c and the
ortion of the said tube that is stretched between its edges b' forms the resilient
A suitable
membrane or bed upon which the tyre proper d may rest. The relative sizes of
the two rims are such that, when the inner rim is forced into position in the
" will
wheel rim, the rubber tube is firmly held between the two rims.
fastening may be employed to secure the ends of the inner rim together, and if
desired the ends of the rubber tube or tubes may also be fastened together when in
place. I may, however, so form the inner rim that its elasticity or
give it sufficient hold or grip upon the wheel rim to retain it in place, or I may
secure said inner rim to the wheel rim by bolts or other suitable devices.
set
I prefer to first form the inner rim of somewhat larger diameter than the
wheel rim, and after such inner rim is cut or divided I contract or reduce the
width and depth thereof for a short distance at one of the ends as shown at 62
in Figure 2, so that said end will fit into or be overlapped by the other end. By
this construction I avoid any gap between the ends of said rim when it is extended
5. in order to be sprung into place, as if such a gap were formed the rubber tube
might be caught therein and so be cut or torn.
I may reduce the weight of the inner rim by suitably perforating or slotting the
same, so as to remove portions of the material thereof.
When placing the inner rim in position the sides thereof are temporarily pressed
30 towards each other to permit it to be pushed between the cheeks a¹ of the wheel
rim. The inner rim is so constructed that the edges thereof have a tendency to
expand or separate, so that as soon as said rim is pushed beyond the shoulders a
the said edges spring under said shoulders and press against the side of the trough
portion of the wheel rim, whereby not only is the inner rim retained securely in
35 place, but the resilient bed is also clamped or held between the edges of the
inner rim and the adjacent portions of the wheel rim.
In order to obtain a more perfect lateral resiliency of the inner rim I sometimes
construct the same with corrugations 3 running in a longitudinal or circum
ferential direction. In Figure 4 I have shown a cross section of such an inne
40 rim.
The inner rim may be removed from the wheel rim when desired by means of
suitably bent lever, or a pair of such levers pivoted together after the manne
of a pair of scissors.
Instead of employing an india-rubber tube to form the resilient membran
45 I may employ a strip of india-rubber wound helically around the inner ri
as shown in Figure 5. Or I may employ a strip or band of india-rubber that
spliced or otherwise secured at its edges to a strip or band of any suitable fab
Or may solution the edges of
thus forming a tube of which only that portion adapted to extend across the edg
of the inner rim consists of india-rubber.
50 rubber strip such as I have just described directly to the sides of the inner r
I prefer to line those portions of the rubber tube or strip that bear upon the ed
or sides of the inner rim, with a suitable protective fabric. In the case o
helically wound strip, I may stitch or otherwise secure the adjacent edges the
to each other, at intervals or along the entire length.
55
I do not however confine myself to the use of india-rubber to form the resil
mbrane or bed, as it is obvious that I may employ any appropriate mate

page_text: In some cases the bed may be formed of flexible non-elastic material, and the
necessary elasticity or resiliency would then be afforded by the lateral resiliency
of the inner rim.
By arranging the material constituting the bed in tubular form I am enabled,
should the wearing surface thereof become damaged, to present a new surface for
supporting the tyre by merely shifting said bed around the inner rim.
is the tyre proper, which may be formed of india rubber, felt, cork, or the
like, or of a coil of wire or of any other material or combination of materials having
a suitable amount of flexibility or resiliency. It may be of circular or other shape
in cross section, but I prefer to employ a tyre of the shape shown in Figure 1. Such
a tyre is capable of being turned so as to present any one of its sides as the wearing
surface, so that when one side becomes worn or cut the tyre may be removed from
the wheel rim, turned, and replaced with a different side outwards.
The said tyre is guided or retained in its central position by the cheeks a¹ of
the wheel rim, but is capable of radial movement to the extent permitted by its
own elasticity and that of the resilient bed c. The tyre illustrated in Figure 1 is
retained upon the wheel rim by being so constructed that it will not readily extend
sufficiently to allow it to slip over the sides or edges of said wheel rim.
In some cases however I may employ a cover for retaining the tyre in position,
as shown in Figure 3, where e is the cover constituting the tread of the tyre,
and formed of leather, vulcanized rubber, or other suitable material. Said cover
is secured to the edges or sides of the wheel rim in any convenient manner.
I sometimes dispense with the shoulders a² in the wheel rim and in such cases
I prefer to so form the inner periphery of the tyre that it rests upon the resilient
bed only at or about the centre thereof, as shown in Figure 3, so as to obtain the
full advantage of the resiliency of said bed.
My invention provides a tyre possessing a high degree of resiliency, and wherein
the means for affording this resiliency are not liable to wear, or injury and are
separate from and independent of the body or wearing portion of the tyre, which
may therefore be constructed of any cheap or hard wearing material without
detriment to the resiliency. My tyre is moreover capable of being constructed in
various degrees of strength and weight to suit all kinds of vehicles.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I leclare that what
I claim in a resilient wheel-tyre is:-
.
1. A detachable supplementary rim provided with suitable material to serve
as a resilient bed or support for the tyre and adapted to lie within the rim of
the wheel, substantially as described.
2. The construction of the wheel rim proper with shoulders a² and flat parallel
sides or flanges a', for the purpose specified.
3. The wheel rim, detachable supplementary rim and tyre constructed and com-
bined substantially as described with reference to Figures 1 and 2 or Figure 3
of the accompanying drawings and for the purpose specified.
Dated this 24th day of June 1898.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.