High performance resilient skate wheel with compression modulus gradient

Abstract

A high performance resilient skate wheel (100) including a solid core tire (102) and a hub (104) defining a bearing axis. The solid core tire (102) includes an inner ring (106) and an outer tire material (108) disposed about the inner ring and forming a rolling surface of the wheel. The outer tire material (108) is harder than the inner ring (106). The inner ring (106) has a stepped profile in cross section, defining a middle portion disposed axially between lateral portions of the inner ring, with the middle portion having a greater outer diameter than the lateral portions. Making the solid core skate wheel (100) includes providing a hub assembly having an inner ring (106) with a stepped profile in cross section disposed about a wheel hub (104), and over molding the inner ring with a tire material (108) forming a rolling surface of the wheel.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.