Pneumatic Tires
Most of the tires which have been used over the past 100 years have been pneumatic tires. They are made from rubber and allow for a way more comfortable ride than other kinds of materials. The world's contemporary transportation system completely relies on pneumatic tires.
The pneumatic tire is a toughened rubber tire and is then compressed with air. Motor vehicles such as cars, trucks, buses, airplanes and motorcycles all utilize pneumatic tires. Wheeled vehicles which are not motorized, such as bicycles, also utilize pneumatic tires.
History
The tire started following the invention or iron bands utilized around wooden wheels. It wasn't until the middle part of the 19th century that the utilization of solid rubber in the construction of tires. The very first patent for a successful pneumatic tire was issued in the year 1888 to Irishman John Dunlop who invented an inner-tube for a bicycle tire in the year 1888. This was when the word "pneumatic" started to describe tires.
Seven years after, in 1895, Andre and Edouard Michelin made pneumatic tires for an automobile in France. The Michelin brothers' company was destined to become a top manufacturer of tires for automobiles. The very first company in the US to make tires was Goodyear Tire company founded in the year 1898, followed by the Firestone Tire & Rubber company in 1900, the second company in the US to produce tires.
Function
For the first half of the 20th century, pneumatic tires required a rubber inner tube in order to hold the air pressure. Tires were made of toughened layers of plies or cord covered with rubber. The plies were laid on a bias or angle to strengthen it and to define the tire's shape. These "bias ply" tires had a tread pattern for traction.
Modern radial tires are constructed with the plies running at 90 degrees across the body of the tire. Inner tube is not necessary because the tire forms an airtight seal with the wheel. This was a creation of the Michelin company in the year 1948. The tires did not become commonly utilized until the latter parts of the 1970s. Radial tires last longer and offer better fuel economy.