TUBELESS TYRE TECHNOLOGY

TUBELESS TYRE TECHNOLOGY

ABSTRACT

It has been over a century from the time Dunlop patented his 'mummified wheel' to the modern radial tyres of today. Yet with all the improvements a tyre has undergone, one thing remained unchanged, which is only when it is inflated to the optimised level and that inflation is kept constant that it can deliver maximum comfort and performance. This is one of the basic reasons all tyre manufacturers try to focus on in the development stage of a tyre which can have the best air retention ability. Usage of a tube or an extra air container within the tyre was regarded as the best solution for many years. 
    It may come as a surprise to many that in 1903, engineer Paul Weeks Litchfield, then in his early 20s, was granted a patent for the first 'tubeless' tyres. He later rose to be the chairman of the Board of Goodyear in the year 1940. Just like many other patents, which were granted during that period, this concept was not pursued until late 1939 when the requirement for the first amphibious tyre was felt. The 120x33.5 - 66 smooth tread Marsh Buggy tyres, by far the largest tyres produced then, were used on Admiral Byrd's Snow Cruiser. This vehicle was capable of carrying very heavy loads over all sorts of terrain, even float on water. These were off-the-road tyres, flexible but inextensible pressure vessel that were pre-stressed and skin-stressed by air pressure. To produce such tyres Goodyear at Akron employed the idea of Litchfield, using nylon cords for the first time and a newly developed synthetic rubber compound called Chemigum to line the inner casing of this tyre to lighten its weight and eliminate the tube.