*Ø* Blogmanac October 31, 1888 | John Dunlop's pneumatic tyre

John Dunlop, a Scottish veterinarian, was granted a patent for the pneumatic tyre. He is remembered for inventing the first commercially viable pneumatic tyre – for his son's bicycle.

In 1888 his small son was prescribed cycling as cure for a heavy cold and, as Dunlop watched his son ride his tricycle, he noticed that the boy was encountering difficulty and discomfort while riding over cobbled ground. Dunlop realized that this was because of the vehicle's solid rubber tyres and began looking for a way to improve them. The vet hit on the idea of filling a rubber tube with air to give it cushioning properties.