Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021 The history and develo America's favorite m Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021 object: the

By Richard A. lentinello

afety glass. rubber tire~. carburetors. . and shocks. These are Just a few of the thou­ sands of mechanical innovations that came about due to the creation of the automobile. With a production period that has already spanned~ more than 100 years. the automobile remains today at the forefront of noteworthy technical achievements. Some of the more recent ideas that have emerged as a result of mankind's quest for safety. efficiency. and performance are the air bag. computer-controlled electronic fuel injection. run-flat tires. and compact global positioning systems. Like most remarkable objects that are incessantly re­ designed and refined until the end result meets. and often exceeds. the goal of the initial concept. the blueprint for the automobile actually started out as one man's crusade-in this case. to produce a self-propelled. steam-powered car­ riage. That man was Oliver Evans. The year: 1772. With the onset of the Revolutionary War looming in the not­ too-distant future. a young 20-something Evans focused all his creative energies on the development of a that would be used to power flour mills the electric telegraph in 1832, was tinker­ and wagons. U nfo rtunately fo r Evans, be­ ing with the concept of an electric motor. The following is alist of cause the U nited States Office was But the honor of inventing and patenting still a few years away from being estab­ the first electric motor went to the top 10 engineering lished, he never was able to secure the native Thomas D avenport, a achievements of the 20th proper protection fo r his steam-powered (see "The Blacksmith's M otor," July 1999). inventions, despite the state of M aryland's D avenport's motor design instituted the century as selected by our approval fo r patent protection in 1787. fi rst configuration of a commutator, whose Then in 1791, and readers. In ascending orderl concept is used in electric motors today. Thomas Jefferso n signed the document As a res ult of Davenport's experimenta­ Mechanical Engineering giving M assachusetts' N athan R ead , a tion w ith the electric m otor, M oses G.

will run artides commem­ H arva rd graduate, the patent for a high­ Farmer of M assachusetts bolted an electric Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021 pressure boiler. Read had drafted plans in motor onto a carriage in 1847 and became orating each achievement 1790 for a steam-powered land carriage us­ the first unoffi cial electric car builder. every month this year. ing two such engines, with each one dri­ Farm er's electric carriage was powered by ving a wheel. 48 Grove cells and could carry two people. Shortly thereafter, W as hington , D. c. , AN INGENIOUS STEAM ENGINE professor Charles G. Page was able to trans­ N ot to be outdone, O liver Evans then port 12 people along the W &B railroad at 1.Awoom00Ue designed a reciprocating steam en- 1 e 11 19 mph by using a more powerful gll1e. an d a ro tary en gll1. e. \. ca g .i ~ 16- motor driven Although the ~ ~ by 100 Grove cells. Page 2. Apollo ~ was never patented, Evans ~ ~ wen t on to inven t the did receive a patent for (,; ,~--...... ,.... Page ignition coil. 3. Power Generation his ingenious steam en- aJ ~ gine, w hich used 100 S A DIFFERENT pounds of pressure per TYPE OF ENGINE 4. Agricultural square inch. T his use of While man y high-pressure steam was inventive minds Mechanizalion unheard of, and was even continued to condemned by the noted ACHIEVEMENTS perfect their own British inventor . versions of steam en­ 5. Airplane Although documentation ex- gines and electric mo- ists that proves several steam-powered tors through out the 1800s, land carriages had been built and driven an en gine of a to tally differen t 6.lntegrated Circuit prior to 1850 in th e United States, it wasn't design was being d evelop ed at ME Produdion until 1851, with the official launch of the the same time. T he theory behind American Steam Carriage Co. in N ew this engine is the foundation of the York City, that the first serious steam-dri­ one powering the car that tra ns­ 7. Air Conditioning ven carriage manufac turer was founded. ported you to work and back to­ ft Inventor William James is credited with d ay. It is the internal combus­ the creation of several steam-powered tion engine. wagons, one of which was powered by a Starting in 1835, Alfred Drake of 8. CAD/ ft other two-cylinder reciprocating en gine and developed an internal driven on the streets of N ew York back in combustion engine over a 20-year om Technoqy 1829. Later on, in 185 1, the experienced period. His engines had a primi­ steam engineer, Jo hn Ken rick Fisher, tive ignition system in the form of joined the American Steam Carriage Co. heated tubes that were used to ig­ and duly built a carriage that had a top nite the fu el m ixture. Several speed of 15 mph. were iss ued as a res ult of Steam wasn't the only means of motiva­ Drake's ingenious ignition . 10. Codes ft standards . ti on being tried. Besides his other experi­ T he most effective internal com­ ments, Samuel F.B. Morse, w ho invented busti on en gine design until this p o int was th at of Stuart Perry. R ich ard A. L entinello, a lifelong hands-on Patented in 1844 and 1846, Perry's automotive enthusiast, is the exew tive engine was engineered and built in edi tor of Hemmings Motor News and N ew York C ity. Very m uch like the company's associated publications in contemporary internal combus­ B ennington, Vt. tion engines, this two-cycle en-

88 NOVEMBER 2000 M EC H AN ICAL ENG INEER I NG gine was of a vertical design and had a Since the earl y 1800s, as automobiles cylinder head with separate inlet and ex­ progressed from experimental backyard hau t . Other traditional features in­ carriages to modern , high-tech com­ cluded a and cylinder, camshaft, puter-controlled machines capable of water pump, throttle , igniter, and a speeds in excess of 200 mph, they have lubrication system. brought together similar creative minds, Many experts are in agreement that individuals with vision and the desire to Charles E. Duryea built America's first make things happen. Because of these ,. gasoline-powered car in the 1890s. talented, goal-oriented designers, engi­ Others cite Elwood Haynes' car of ap­ neers, craftsmen, and industrialists, the proxintately the same time. world has progressed farther during the

last century than in any century before. I Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021 MOTIVATION FOR THE MASSES And the simple reason is the invention The man who deserves perhaps the great­ of the automobile. I est amount of credit for perfecting the When perfected the idea of gasoline-powered internal combustion mass-producing automobiles on a pro­ I engine-and thus forging the way for the duction line, he created the need for spe­ mass production of gasoline-powered au­ cialized tools and heavy-duty machinery. I tomobiles-is German engineer Nicolaus As a result, machine tool manufacturers August Otto. It was Otto's four-cycle de­ developed more efficient methods of I sign that transformed the internal com­ manufacturing parts. They created spe­ bustion engine into a viable means of cialized tools, thus fostering a need for I motivation for the masses. Patented on better, and different, raw materials. Aug. 14, 1877, the principle behind this Consequently, th e steelmakers, because I engine is what is commonly referred to they too had to m eet the fast-growing as the Otto cycle. demands placed upon society by the I I

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M EC HA N IC AL E N G I Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021

automobile, developed better, more mod­ Manufacturers such as Day-Elder, Divco, ern manufacturing processes, not to men­ Mack, International, and Sterling are just tion more mills. some of the better known truck builders The building of new mills created thou­ that were founded to produce distinct sands of jobs for construction workers, types of trucks designed to meet specific electricians, and plant workers. The need transportation needs generated by auto­ for new plants created opportunities for mobile manufacturers, and more engineers, hence the proliferation of by society in general. engineering schools throughout the country and the creation of new jobs for ApPEALING TO teachers. CAR BUYERS Authors were in great demand as well, As the automobile pro­ to write much-needed books, repair gressed through the early manuals, dealer brochures, and owner's part of the 20th centu ry, handbooks. This resulted in growth for new car manufacturers the publishing industry in order to meet sprouted like mushrooms. the demand for the new print products, To keep ahead of the com­ and, naturally, increased business for petition, manufacturers in­ paper mills, printing presses, and even troduced innovations on .•, . ink producers . their automobiles, hoping ,1----J to capture the fancy of car­ ---~~-----______-l SPECIALIZED CAR TRANSPORTS buyers everywhere. These ------.... 1...... · ~,.J,j Most importantly, to distribute these innovations made cars I t:: I 11 I products in the most efficient manner more reliable and durable, : :J.J possible, the growth of the commercial safer, faster, more efficient, ~ ___ • .J transportation industry soon paralleled and far more comfortable I 1 that of the automobile, resulting in spe­ with each passing year. I I cialized boxcars, hoppers, flat cars, and From small-displacement, rail cars, not to mention n10re powerful low-compression, four­ •...., diesel , to transport cars and cylinder engines of the i-',.... the raw materials required for automo­ early 1920s to the massive -~ bile manufacturing. V-12s of the '30s to the big­ ....p:)., Where trains couldn't travel, trucks did. block torque monsters

90 NOVEM/lER 2000 MECHANICAL ENG INEERIN G among the late-'60s muscle er generating plants, chemical plants, oil cars, m an 's insa tiable desire refi neries, bridges, and dam s, all of which for more horsepower has led affect our lives every day. to the development of nu­ The transmission is an o ther grea t in­ merous mechanical n1arvels, novation . From it developed the clutch m any of w hich have b een and press ure plate, torque converter, incorporated into the car valve body, hypoid gears, and syn chro­ parked inside your garage. m es h . Far removed from yesteryear 's There h as been an abun­ bas ic two- speeds, today's transmission dant amount of com.ponen­ has as m any as six forward gears, which try specifically designed to contribute to longer e n g ine life and accommodate the require­ reduced gas consumption. m ents of the internal com­ Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021 bustion engine. GIVE 'EM A BRAKE These p arts include the With the advent of additional horsepower engine block, , through the years, brakes played an even pisto n , connecting ro d , mo re important role than ever before. camshaft, lifter, rocker arm, Thanks to Jaguar's pioneering use of disc pushrod, valve, carburetor, brakes on the D-Type race car during the intake m ani fold, exhaust mid-1950s, cars are safer to drive than manifold, generato r/ alter­ ever before. nator, voltage regulator, wa­ This same disc brake innovation has been ter pump, oil pUlTlp, fuel adopted for use on m otorcycles, buses, pump, starter, distributor, trucks, and numerous recrea tional vehi­ coil, ignition wires, spark cl es. Although the design was first devel­ plug, fl ywh eel , and , of oped fo r the aviation industry, nearly all of course, bearings, gaskets, filters, belts, today's cars incorporate so m e fo rm of hoses, and asso rted fas teners. These are anti- lock brakes . M ass production of the the sa me components used in the engines automobile h as res ulted in a safer and that power airplanes, boats, trucks, trains, m o re effective system, w ith the added lawn mowers, and chain saws, as well as in bonus of reduced highway fatalities. industrial engines that are needed in pow- Other less obvious developments that

MEC HA N ICAL ENG I NEERI NG NOV EMI3 ER 2000 91 Downloaded from http://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/memagazineselect/article-pdf/122/11/86/6382546/me-2000-nov3.pdf by guest on 03 October 2021

I

The one-cylinder Duryea bu ggy, built in 1892, is thought to be the first gas-powered automobile built in the United States.

are directly attributed to the automobile Due to ever-increasing emission stan­ are ball joints, tie rods, shock absorbers, dards, the automobile is forever linked to coil springs, fiberglass leaf springs, rack­ the catalytic converter, oxygen sensor, air and-pinion steering, universal joints, pump, and the electronic control module. miniature fuses, specific electrical connec­ The control module is designed to adjust tions, lightweight alloy wheels, positrac­ the engine's ignition tinting thousands of tion differentials, laminated safety glass, times every second to ensure that the small­ electronic fuel injection, on-board diag­ est amount of hydrocarbons are released nostic systems, and different types of in­ into the atmosphere. strumentation, including, of course, the The automobile continues to clean up speedometer and tachometer. its own act and inspire the development of We have the automobile to thank for the increasingly sophisticated technology, success of the pneumatic tire. Pioneers like which underpins the prosperity of North Harvey Firestone developed inflatable tires America. to make cars ride smoother, which helped Thanks to Otto's four-cycle internal increase automobile sales. combustion engine and the contributions of pioneers before and after him, the mo­ CRAYONS AND TIRES tor vehicle has transformed society. If it weren't for the founders of Binney & No matter how distant a town or farm, Smith Inc., the maker of Crayola crayons, for instance, if there is a road, the place is tires would still be white. Experienced in no longer isolated. Trucks carry food, the development of pigments for the medicine, and goods of all kinds across manufacture of crayons and chalk, Edwin continents. Ambulances rush the desper­ Binney and C. Harold Smith added a ately sick to the sites of the best care. special carbon pigment blend to a rubber What's more, the auto has brought un­ mixture and thus was born the first black precedented freedom of movement tire. But the effect was not entirely a mat­ to individual members of society, and ter of appearance: The addition of the with that freedom comes another-the black pigment made the tires about five enlarged freedom of choice within an times stronger. expanded horizon. _

HA N IC AL ENG I N E E RI NG