Are You Able to Solve It? That Forgotten Dutch Creation That Shaped our Modern World
There are numerous contenders to claim the title of “world’s greatest invention.” The circular axle. The printing press. The steam engine.
As per a new book, however, that title should go to the automated timber mill conceived by Dutchman Cornelis Corneliszoon during 1593.
“Prior to mechanised sawing, constructing a simple trading ship necessitated approximately 10 sawyers laboring over three months,” writes the author. “With wind-powered lumber mills, an identical amount of processed timber might be manufactured in less than seven days.”
Thanks to this speedy automated cutter, that turned logs into boards with virtually no manual labor, Dutch builders were able to construct ships faster than any other nation, which sparked one hundred years of Netherlands maritime, financial and artistic supremacy across Europe and the globe.
The Original Genuine Manufacturing Machine
The inventor's sawmill, argues the writer, represented “mankind’s first authentic industrial machine.” A windmill rotated a gear. One component transformed its rotary movement into vertical motion to power the cutting blade. A separate mechanism transformed the spinning motion into a sideway’s movement feeding the log toward the cutter. A geared mechanism shifted the wood forward one precise increment each stroke.
“Every component was modest by itself. The Dutchman’s brilliance was to integrate these parts in order that they acted in a precisely synchronized order, sawing with each descending motion and moving on every return stroke. This constituted a remarkably intelligent application of basic parts.”
Which brings us to today’s challenge. The task is you to reimagine a key the fundamental concepts behind Corneliszoon’s machine.
Circular to Vertical
Construct a machine which converts circular movement into vertical action. Your available these items only: A rotating disc. Two pins. Two bars. A “guide”, which is a tube or housing through which one of the rods will fit perfectly. (Consider that you can put things on a stand, so the parts do not fall down.)
I’ll be back later today UK time with the solution.
Meanwhile, PLEASE NO HINTS. Rather, please propose (less celebrated) contenders as the planet’s greatest creation.
