Patent ID: 8800623

Claim:
A tire support system comprising: a plurality of support sectors, each support sector having a first end including an overlap extension extending therefrom and a second end including an overlap extension extending therefrom, each overlap extension including a terminal flange and a terminal flange engagement region, the terminal flange engagement region having a surface contoured to conform with the at least one terminal flange on at least one other support sector in the plurality of support sectors, each of the first and second ends of each sector further including at least one of a projection and a recess projecting from or into one of the sector and the overlap extension, wherein the respective overlap extensions of adjacent sectors overlap one another and the plurality of connected sectors when connected are configured to form an annular support ring, the overlap extension of the second end includes a hole that extends therethrough in a radial direction and is countersunk on a radially inward side of the overlap extension of the second end, the radial direction corresponding to a direction from the center of the annular support ring to an outer diameter of the annular support ring, the overlap extension of the first end includes a hole that extends in the radial direction, and the hole of the overlap extension of the second end and the hole of the overlap extension of the first end are configured to align with one another to create a path or channel for receiving a fastener configured to secure the support sectors together.