Patent ID: 7972550

Claim:
A method of increasing the load carrying capacity of an underground mine radial tire of a fixed overall diameter of 55.0 inches or less and a nominal bead diameter of 20.0 inches or less comprising the steps of: determining a maximum load, x+y; providing a mold for a radial tire capable of molding a tire having a rated load x; adding a spacer between adjacent mold halves thereby increasing the axial width while maintaining the overall diameter of the mold to achieve the rated load x+y, wherein the average rated load increase over the range of inflation pressure is 30 percent, wherein the spacer has a smooth internal surface for forming a continuous tread rib; designing an unvulcanized tire having a steel cord reinforced belt structure comprised of four belt layers, and a steel cord reinforced radial ply, extending from under the belt structure to a pair of bead cores of steel wires, by increasing the width of the belt structure and ply width of the tire and applying additional sidewall rubber in the sidewall to maintain a natural ply path curvature under the belt structure, wherein the natural ply path curvature has a substantially constant radius of curvature Rs forming a smooth transition to the region radially inward of the belts extending to above the bead core, wherein the step of designing includes the step of increasing the reinforcing strength of the tire structure by changing one or more of the strengths of the bead core steel wires, the steel cords of the radial ply or the steel cords of the belt structure; and molding the tire.