Pneumatic Tires
Most tires used in modern times are considered to be pneumatic tires. The use of rubber in tires allowed the creation of pneumatic tires which allowed for a much more comfortable ride. The contemporary transportation system of the world relies entirely on pneumatic tires.
The pneumatic tire is a reinforced rubber tire and is then compressed with air. Motor vehicles like cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles and airplanes all utilize pneumatic tires. Non-motorized wheeled vehicles, like bicycles, also utilize pneumatic tires.
History
The tire began after the invention or iron bands used around wooden wheels. It wasn't until the mid-19th century that the use of solid rubber in the creation of tires. The 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. This was when the term "pneumatic" started to describe tires.
In 1895, Edouard and Andre Michelin made the first pneumatic tires for automobiles in France. The company of the Michelin brothers was destined to become a leading producer of car tires. The first company in the US to make tires was Goodyear Tire company established in the year 1898, followed by the Firestone Tire & Rubber company in the year 1900, the second United States company to make tires.
Function
For the first part of the 20th century, pneumatic tires required a rubber inner tube in order to hold the air pressure. Tires were constructed of reinforced layers of cord or plies covered with rubber. The plies were laid on a bias or angle to strengthen it and to define the shape of the tire. 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. They require no inner tube as the tire forms an airtight seal with the wheel. This was an invention of the Michelin company in the year 1948. The tires did not become widely used until the latter parts of the 1970s. Radial tires last longer and provide better fuel economy.