Can You Solve It? That Forgotten Dutch Invention That Shaped the Contemporary Globe
There are numerous contenders to claim the title of “planet’s greatest invention.” The wheel. The printing press. The steam engine.
As per a new book, though, that title should go to the mechanised timber mill invented through Dutchman Corneliszoon van Uitgeest in 1593.
“Prior to mechanised cutting, building a modest merchant vessel required approximately ten sawyers working over 90 days,” notes the author. “Using wind-powered sawmills, the same quantity of cut lumber could be manufactured in less than a week.”
Thanks to this speedy mechanical saw, that turned logs to planks with virtually no human effort, Dutch builders could construct ships more quickly compared to any other nation, which sparked one hundred years of Netherlands naval, financial as well as artistic supremacy across Europe and the globe.
The First Genuine Industrial Device
The inventor's sawmill, contends the writer, was “mankind’s initial authentic factory apparatus.” A windmill rotated a wheel. One component converted the rotary motion into up-and-down action to power the cutting blade. A separate mechanism changed that same rotary movement into a lateral motion feeding the log toward the blade. A geared mechanism moved the log ahead one precise increment per stroke.
“Each element was simple on its own. Corneliszoon’s genius lay in how to combine these parts so they operated within a precisely synchronized order, cutting on every downward stroke while advancing with each upward stroke. It was a remarkably intelligent application of basic parts.”
Which brings us to today’s challenge. I’d like for you to reimagine a key the fundamental concepts behind Corneliszoon’s machine.
Round and Up
Design a mechanism that turns rotary movement to up-and-down motion. You have these items only: A spinning wheel. Two pins. Two bars. A “guide”, that is a tube or housing into which a single the rods will fit snugly. (Consider that it is possible to mount components on a stand, so the components do not fall down.)
I’ll be back later today UK featuring the solution.
In the interim, PLEASE NO HINTS. Instead, feel free to suggest (less celebrated) candidates as the world’s most impactful invention.
