Wheel for in-line roller skates

Claim 1

A wheel for an in-line roller skate of the type having aligned wheels supported by a pivot and ball bearings for rolling on a contact surface, comprising: a cylindrical hub formed of plastic material, the hub including a cylindrical wall having an axial hole for receiving the pivot and at least one receptacle for receiving the ball bearings and a temporary removable cylindrical extension extending from a side portion of the wall to protect the hub during molding of the tire; at least one ring extending outwardly from the wall and concentric therewith formed of radial web portions and corresponding annular sections extending laterally from said web portions to define annular spaces located at opposite sides of the web portions between the hub and the annular sections, said radial web portions formed with a plurality of transverse openings interconnecting the annular spaces; and a tire molded onto the hub formed of a moldable material for rolling on the contact surface, said tire formed with a plurality of annular rings and connections therebetween, the annular rings extending into the annular spaces and being generally equally spaced from one another and the connections extending through the transverse openings, each of said annular rings being connected through said transverse openings to the annular rings so as to secure the tire to the hub.