Can You Crack It? That Forgotten Dutch Invention Which Shaped the Contemporary World
One can find many contenders for the title of “planet’s greatest invention.” The wheel. The movable type. The steam engine.
As per a recent publication, though, that honor belongs to the mechanised sawmill invented by Dutchman Cornelis Corneliszoon during 1593.
“Prior to automated sawing, building a simple merchant vessel required approximately 10 lumberjacks working for 90 days,” notes the author. “With wind-driven sawmills, an identical amount of cut lumber could be produced within seven days.”
Thanks to their rapid mechanical saw, that turned logs into planks with almost no human effort, the Dutch were able to build ships more quickly compared to anyone else, which sparked a century of Netherlands maritime, economic as well as artistic supremacy across Europe and the world.
The First Genuine Manufacturing Device
Corneliszoon’s sawmill, argues the writer, was “humanity’s initial true industrial machine.” A wind turbine turned a wheel. One component converted the rotary movement into vertical motion for the cutting blade. Another component changed the rotary motion into a lateral movement advancing the timber to the blade. A ratchet system moved the log ahead one precise increment per stroke.
“Every component seemed modest by itself. Corneliszoon’s brilliance was to integrate these parts so the machine acted within a precisely synchronized order, cutting with each downward motion and advancing with each upward motion. This constituted a remarkably intelligent application of basic components.”
A fact that leads us to the current challenge. I’d like for you to reinvent one of the fundamental concepts behind Corneliszoon’s invention.
Round and Up
Design a mechanism that turns rotary motion into vertical motion. You have these items only: A spinning wheel. Two pegs. Two bars. A “sleeve”, which is a cylinder or sleeve through which one of the rods will fit perfectly. (Assume it is possible to mount components on a base, so the components do not fall down.)
I’ll be back at 5pm UK featuring the answer.
Meanwhile, NO SPOILERS. Instead, feel free to suggest (less celebrated) contenders for the world’s most impactful invention.
