Contact patch is the portion of a vehicle's tire that is in actual contact with the road surface. It is most commonly used in the discussion of pneumatic tires, (i.e. pressurized tires), where the term is strictly used to describe the portion of the tire’s tread that touches the road surface. The term “footprint” is used almost synonymously.
The following discussion only applies to pneumatic tires.
Famous quotes containing the words contact and/or patch:
“To write weekly, to write daily, to write shortly, to write for busy people catching trains in the morning or for tired people coming home in the evening, is a heartbreaking task for men who know good writing from bad. They do it, but instinctively draw out of harm’s way anything precious that might be damaged by contact with the public, or anything sharp that might irritate its skin.”
—Virginia Woolf (1882–1941)
“Whatever patch of limb
he gazes on
with unblinking eyes,
I cover up
but I want him to see it all anyway.”
—Hla Stavhana (c. 50 A.D.)