Are You Able to Solve It? The Forgotten Dutch Creation That Shaped the Contemporary Globe
One can find many contenders to claim the designation as “world’s greatest innovation.” The circular axle. The printing press. The steam engine.
As per a recent publication, though, that title belongs to a automated sawmill conceived by Dutchman Cornelis Corneliszoon during 1593.
“Before automated cutting, constructing a simple trading ship required approximately 10 sawyers working for three months,” writes the author. “Using wind-driven sawmills, an identical amount of processed timber might be produced in less than a week.”
Owing to this speedy automated saw, that converted timber to planks with almost no human effort, Dutch builders could construct ships faster compared to anyone else, which unleashed one hundred years of Netherlands maritime, economic and artistic dominance across Europe and the world.
The Original True Industrial Device
Corneliszoon’s lumber mill, argues Dávila, represented “mankind’s first true industrial machine.” A wind turbine rotated a gear. One component converted the rotary motion into vertical motion for the saw. A separate mechanism changed the spinning movement into a lateral motion advancing the log toward the cutter. A ratchet system shifted the log ahead a measured step each cycle.
“Each element was simple by itself. Corneliszoon’s genius lay in how to combine these parts in order that the machine operated in a precisely synchronized sequence, sawing on every downward stroke while advancing with each upward motion. This constituted a remarkably clever use of basic parts.”
A fact that brings us up to today’s challenge. The task is you to reimagine one of the basic concepts behind Corneliszoon’s machine.
Round and Up
Design a mechanism that turns rotary motion to vertical action. You have these components exclusively: A spinning wheel. Two pegs. Two bars. A “guide”, that is a cylinder or sleeve into which a single the bars will fit perfectly. (Assume it is possible to mount components on a stand, so the parts don’t fall down.)
I’ll be back later today UK time featuring the answer.
Meanwhile, NO SPOILERS. Rather, feel free to suggest (less celebrated) contenders for the planet’s greatest creation.
