FOLDABLE TIRE

Abstract

A foldable tire includes a tire main body provided at two edges thereof with two tire beads respectively. A plurality of rings are disposed in each of the tire beads. Each of the rings has a reinforcing core, which includes a plurality of flexible steel filaments helically entwined with each other and has a diameter ranging from 0.2 millimeters to 0.5 millimeters, and a cladding layer clothing the reinforcing core, so that the reinforcing cores located in each of the tire beads are separated from each other.

Claims

1. A foldable tire comprising: a tire main body provided at two edges thereof with two tire beads respectively; and a plurality of rings disposed in each of the tire beads, each of the rings having a reinforcing core, which comprises a plurality of flexible steel filaments helically entwined with each other and has a diameter ranging from 0.2 millimeters to 0.5 millimeters, and a cladding layer clothing the reinforcing core therein, such that the reinforcing cores located in each of the tire beads are separated from each other.

2. The foldable tire as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cladding layers of the rings located in each of the tire beads contact with and adhere to each other.

3. The foldable tire as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cladding layers of the rings are made of rubber.

4. The foldable tire as claimed in claim 1, wherein the tire beads and the cladding layers of the rings are made of same rubber material.

5. The foldable tire as claimed in claim 1, wherein the flexible steel filaments of the reinforcing core of each of the rings are helically entwined with a reinforcing wire.

6. The foldable tire as claimed in claim 1, wherein a rope is coiled into the rings located in each of the tire beads.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:

[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a wheel rim and a foldable tire according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0014] FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of a tire bead of the foldable tire according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] FIG. 3 is a sectional perspective view of the foldable tire according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view of a ring of the foldable tire according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of a reinforcing core of the ring of the foldable tire according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of a ring of a foldable tire according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

[0019] FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of a reinforcing core of the ring of the foldable tire according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a foldable tire according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a tire main body 1 which is provided at two edges thereof with two tire beads 2. There are four (or maybe three) rings 3 disposed in each of the tire beads 2. Each of the rings 3 is shaped as a circle centering around the center of the tire. Each of the rings 3 may be formed in a way that a rope is coiled into a loop centering around the center of the tire, such that the rings 3 are formed by four (or maybe three) individual loops. Alternately, a rope may be directly coiled into four (or maybe three) loops centering around the center of the tire to become the four (or maybe three) rings 3 located in the same tire bead 2.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 2, the rings 3 located in the same tire bead 2 are concentrated into a bundle irregularly, but may be concentrated into a bundle regularly, and entirely clad in the tire bead 2. Each of the rings 3 has a reinforcing core 32 and a cladding layer 34. As shown in FIGS. 4-5, the reinforcing core 32 includes a plurality of flexible steel filaments 4 helically entwined with each other. The reinforcing core 32 usually includes two to thirty flexible steel filaments 4. In this embodiment, the reinforcing core 32 includes nineteen flexible steel filaments 4, as shown in FIGS. 4-5.

[0022] In each of the rings 3, there may, but not limited to, be a reinforcing wire 5 helically entwined with the flexible steel filaments 4 of the reinforcing core 32 for reinforcing the combination among the flexible steel filaments 4, such as that in a second preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIGS. 6-7. The reinforcing wire 5 may be cotton yarn, flexible steel filament, and so on. In the second preferred embodiment, the reinforcing wire 5 is disposed at the outside of the bundle of the flexible steel filaments 4 to tighten up the flexible steel filaments 4.

[0023] The reinforcing core 32 of each of the rings 3, which is composed of flexible steel filaments 4 helically entwined with each other and has a diameter ranging from 0.2 millimeters to 0.5 millimeters, is so firm in structure as to keep the tire beads 2 ring-shaped, thereby enabling the tire beads 2 to sustain the pressure from the gas inside the tire main body 1 and be tightly fixed in a wheel rim 6.

[0024] For each of the rings 3, the reinforcing core 32 is clad in the cladding layer 34, so that the reinforcing cores 32 located in each of the tire beads 2 are separated from each other, which means the reinforcing cores 32 located in the same tire bead 2 are not in contact with each other, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3. Such structure of the rings 3 brings the foldable tire of the present invention relatively higher flexibility, so that the foldable tire can be easily folded to become relatively smaller, thereby convenient in storage and transportation. Besides, once the tire main body 1 is damaged to let water permeate into the tire bead 2, water will not spread to all the reinforcing cores 32 located in the tire bead 2. Therefore, not all the reinforcing cores 32 but only parts of the reinforcing cores 32 may be in contact with water, so that the foldable tire of the present invention has relatively longer life of time.

[0025] Because the cladding layers 34 of the rings 3 ensure the reinforcing cores 32 located in the same tire bead 2 being not in contact with each other, it is convenient to separate the reinforcing cores 32 from each other in the tire manufacturing process. Besides, as shown in FIG. 2, the cladding layers 34 of the rings 3 located in the same tire bead 2 may contact with and adhere to each other to make the rings 3 fixed with each other to become a bundle, which causes convenience to the tire manufacturing process. The cladding layers 34 of the rings 3 may be made of the material enabling the cladding layers 34 to adhere to each other, such as rubber. The cladding layers 34 of the rings 3 and the tire beads 2 may be even all made of same rubber material, so that the rings 3 in the same tire bead 2 can be easily fixed with each other to become a bundle in a way that the vulcanization process makes the cladding layers 34 of the rings 3 adhere to each other, and the rings 3 can be combined with the tire bead 2 relatively more firmly.

[0026] The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.