The air-filled or pneumatic tire is composed of a core filled with airtight sealed pressurized air. Usually, a reinforced steel belted tread or other type of materials, provides the contact part with the road and seals this inner core.
The tire will remain inflated with all the weight of the vehicle resting on it, as the pressure of the air inside the tire is greater than atmospheric air pressure. The air pressure inside the tire gives resistance against forces that try to deform the tire. This gives the tire a slight degree of a cushioning effect as the tire hits bumps in the road. If you have ever taken a ride in an old-fashioned carriage that had wooden wheels, you know precisely how huge of a difference a set of pneumatic tires could make.
Pneumatic tires also come with disadvantages. High-performance situations or highly dangerous applications for instance, these tires can suffer a puncture and this would result in a total failure. The consequence of a blowout at high speeds could lead to a serious car accident. Military planners should consider tires getting blown out by explosion shrapnel or gunfire. A vehicle crew's worst nightmare is becoming trapped within a fire zone due to all of their tires becoming flat. Airless tires obviously don't suffer from these kind of issues and hence, in certain applications, can be more suitable.
Pneumatic tires have another issue involving variations in tire performance and air pressure. Lower tire pressure can create increased comfort and improved traction. This is because of the fact that tires flatten a little and more tread is touching the road. The air pressure inside of the tire works to maintain the lateral stiffness of the tire as well as maintain the "up and down" stiffness. Therefore, reduced air pressure allows the sidewalls of the tires to flex. This results in poor handling unfortunately. Within an airless tire, the stiffness in those two dimensions is independent.
Air pressure factors into other problems also. When it comes to maintaining correct air pressure, customers are notoriously undependable. Improper air pressure inside tires can lead to really dangerous situations. It is vital to keep in mind that pneumatic tires are also prone to temperature changes, that can be responsible for changing the internal pressure of the tire. It is really essential to consider the kind of settings you would be needing your machine to function in so that you could frequently check the tires and keep the machine as safe as possible.