Are You Able to Crack This? The Overlooked Dutch Invention Which Shaped the Contemporary Globe
One can find numerous candidates to claim the designation as “world’s greatest innovation.” The wheel. The printing press. The steam engine.
As per a recent publication, however, that honor should go to a automated sawmill invented by Dutchman Corneliszoon van Uitgeest during 1593.
“Before automated sawing, constructing a modest merchant vessel necessitated approximately 10 lumberjacks working over 90 days,” writes Jaime Dávila. “With wind-powered sawmills, the same amount of cut lumber could be manufactured in less than a week.”
Thanks to their rapid automated saw, which turned timber into planks using almost no manual labor, the Dutch were able to construct ships faster compared to anyone else, an advantage that sparked a century of Dutch maritime, economic as well as cultural supremacy in the continent and the globe.
The Original Genuine Manufacturing Machine
The inventor's lumber mill, contends the writer, represented “humanity’s initial authentic factory machine.” A wind turbine rotated a wheel. A single part transformed the rotary motion to vertical action for the cutting blade. Another component transformed the spinning movement into a lateral motion feeding the timber toward the cutter. A geared mechanism moved the wood ahead one precise increment each stroke.
“Every component seemed modest by itself. Corneliszoon’s genius was to integrate these parts so they operated within a precisely synchronized order, sawing with each descending stroke while moving on every upward stroke. This constituted a remarkably intelligent use of fundamental parts.”
Which brings us to today’s puzzle. The task is for you to reinvent one of the fundamental ideas underpinning this historic machine.
Circular to Vertical
Construct a machine that turns circular motion into vertical motion. You have these components only: A rotating disc. Two pegs. Two bars. A “guide”, which is a cylinder or sleeve through which one of the bars can slide snugly. (Assume you can mount components on a stand, so the parts don’t fall down.)
I’ll be back later today UK time featuring the solution.
In the interim, PLEASE NO HINTS. Instead, feel free to propose (less celebrated) candidates as the planet’s most impactful creation.