Are You Able to Crack It? That Forgotten Netherlands Creation Which Forged the Contemporary World
There are numerous contenders to claim the designation as “world’s greatest invention.” The circular axle. The movable type. The combustion motor.
As per a new book, however, that honor should go to a automated sawmill invented through Dutchman Corneliszoon van Uitgeest in 1593.
“Prior to mechanised sawing, building a simple trading ship necessitated around ten sawyers working for 90 days,” writes the author. “Using wind-powered sawmills, the same amount of processed timber could be manufactured within a week.”
Thanks to this speedy automated cutter, that converted timber into planks using almost no human effort, the Dutch could construct vessels more quickly compared to anyone else, which sparked a century of Netherlands naval, financial as well as cultural supremacy across Europe and the globe.
The Original True Manufacturing Machine
The inventor's lumber mill, argues Dávila, represented “mankind’s initial true factory apparatus.” A wind turbine rotated a gear. A single part transformed the rotary movement to vertical action for the cutting blade. Another component transformed the spinning movement into a lateral motion feeding the timber to the blade. A ratchet system moved the log forward a measured step each stroke.
“Each element was modest by itself. The Dutchman’s genius lay in how to combine these parts in order that the machine operated in a precisely synchronized order, sawing on every descending motion and advancing with each upward stroke. This constituted a remarkably clever application of fundamental components.”
A fact that leads us up to the current challenge. I’d like you to reinvent a key the fundamental ideas behind this historic invention.
Circular to Vertical
Construct a machine which converts rotary motion into up-and-down action. You have these items only: A spinning wheel. Two pegs. Two rods. A “guide”, which is a cylinder or housing through which one of the rods will fit snugly. (Consider that you can mount components on a stand, so the components don’t collapse.)
The solution returns at 5pm UK with the solution.
In the interim, NO SPOILERS. Rather, please propose (less celebrated) candidates as the planet’s greatest invention.
