EPCA PRESENTS AT THE This cartoon is part of an with the esteemed OCCASION OF ITS EDUCATION “ENCYCLAUTO” cartoon assistance of former ACTIVITIES AT THE 48TH strip series on the history journalist and Formula 1 pilot ANNUAL MEETING IN VIENNA of the automobile. Paul Frère and has been A COMIC STRIP ON: The original ENCYCLAUTO published in the original series has been outlined French version in Italy by: BERTHA BENZ’S HISTORIC DRIVE WITH THE WORLD’S FIRST AUTOMOBILE Design: Raphael Cruyt Scenario: Dominique Cruyt English translation: Kevin Saidler © IRSNB - KBIN EPCA AND EDUCATION the years, EPCA – the European towards a career in the chemical industry. This As you read through this brochure, we en- Over Petrochemical Association – has year, EPCA has chosen to adapt and redistribute courage you to have a think about how each organized a number of educational a prior publication of an ENCYCLAUTO comic of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineer- activities, comprising workshops and short strip, which describes a fascinating story ing & Mathematics) fields figures in Bertha films, in an ongoing effort to encourage young about science, collaboration, entrepreneurship Benz’s story, and what it says about the boys and girls to learn science and to aspire and innovation… importance of STEM in our everyday lives. Watch our short films “Science: Where Can It Take You?” and “Chemistry: All About You” at http://epca.eu/Publication-video-report 2 BEFORE THE DRIVE A B C C D E F G G 1844 1870 1872 1879 1883 1884 1885 1888 the end of his life, Bertha Benz. This story relates At Carl Benz - founder one of the most underrated ex- of Mercedes-Benz - ploits of Mrs. Benz…but first, a attributed his success to his wife, little background is needed… E - 1884: THE BENZ-PATENT MOTORWAGEN – A “HORSELESS CARRIAGE” While Carl was keen to invent on his own creations alone after new machinery, Rose and Essinger work. This led to his creation in wanted to focus their resources 1884 of the first gasoline-powered on the award-winning stationary automobile: the 3-wheeled Benz- engine instead. Forced to align with Patent Motorwagen (borrowed his associates, Carl began working from his tricycle). Bertha and Carl Benz E - A - 1844: BORN IN MUEHLDORF NEAR KARLSRUHE (GERMANY) Fatherless, Carl owes his graduate as a mechanical engineer upbringing to his mother. She lived from the Karlsruhe Politechnikum. just long enough to see her son B - 1872: The Benz Patent Motorwagen BENZ’S FIRST WORKSHOP - F - 1885: THE CARL BENZ & AUGUST RITTER WERKSTATTE A STROKE OF LUCK Married to Bertha Ringer, Carl Intelligent and devoted, she used Fortunately for Carl Benz and a had been working on developing opens his first machine tool to work the treadle of her sewing certain Gottlieb Daimler, Otto’s pat- a way to use the 4-stroke com- workshop with August Ritter in machine to charge her husband’s ent was revoked in 1885. Despite bustion engine (originally intended Mannheim. Overcome with finan- batteries: the spirit of cogeneration never having met Carl, Gottlieb, as a stationary power source) on cial difficulties, he often needs in its infancy! too, was a German inventor who road vehicles. his wife’s help in the workshop. G - 1885-1888: C - 1872-1879: THE AUTOMOBILE - EARLY INVENTIONS - MERELY A STATUS SYMBOL? THE INTERNAL COMBUSTION 2-STROKE ENGINE Otto’s patent being revoked, for world’s first motor-propelled For a long time, Carl focused his inventing his own 2-stroke design. Carl worked on finding a way automobile. He later developed attention on finding new ways Frustrated and about to give up, to use the 4-stroke engine in his three new concepts: the water to improve the patented internal Bertha persuaded him to make 3-wheeled Benz-Patent Motor- cooling radiator, the electric ignition combustion 4-stroke engine of one last effort on New Year’s Eve: wagen, earning a patent in 1886 and mechanically guided valves. German inventor Nikolaus Otto. this time it worked! But in 1878 he tried his luck at As Carl’s associates grumbled about what they thought was a waste D - 1883: of time and money, Bertha Benz became increasingly frustrated TIME FOR A FRESH START - with the lack of public interest in her husband’s invention. In 1888 THE BIRTH OF BENZ & CIE. RHEINISCHE GAZMOTORENFABRIK she decided to take matters into her own hands, presenting the Looking for a fresh start, Carl Max Rose and Friedrich Esslinger TYP III (3rd version of the Benz-Patent Motorwagen) in one of the founded a new company with most legendary publicity stunts in the history of the automobile… 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 AFTER THE DRIVE H I J K L M N 1888 1889 1893 1896 1899 1900 1926 1929 H - 1888: ... K - 1896: THE STORY CONTINUES THE BIRTH OF THE BOXER ENGINE Upon receiving the telegram from the Benz-Patent Motorwagen in Benz was granted a patent for top dead centre simultaneously, Pforzheim, Carl enters the vehicle the late summer of 1888, making his design of the flat (boxer) balancing each other through mo- in the Munich exhibition. Awarded it the first commercially available engine. This mechanical marvel mentum. To this day, this design the gold medal, he begins to sell automobile in history. had horizontally-opposed pistons is still used by Porsche, Subaru which allowed the pistons to reach and the BMW motorcycles. I - 1889: BENZ-PATENT WAGEN WIDE-SCALE DEBUT K - The early 1888 version of the place. With these improvements Motorwagen had no gears and made, Benz’s Model 3 made its could not climb hills unaided. This wide-scale debut to the world in limitation was noticed by Bertha the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris; Benz on her famous trip and the between 1886 and 1893 about addition of another gear was put in 25 Motorwagens were built. The birth of the Boxer engine. J - 1893: VON FISCHER AND GANß L - 1899: AND THE UNVEILING OF THE VICTORIA THE WORLD’S LARGEST AUTOMOBILE COMPANY The company was rapidly expand- create a less expensive automobile By 1899 Benz was producing 572 regarded as the world’s largest ing and in 1893 Benz & Cie be- suitable for mass production. In units per year and was widely automobile company. came a joint-stock company, with 1893 he unveiled the Victoria, a Friedrich von Fischer and Julius two-passenger automobile, which Ganß joining as Board members. could reach 18km/h. The model M - 1926: Under the new directors’ influence, was successful, with 85 units MERGER BETWEEN BENZ AND DAIMLER-MERCEDES Benz began exploring ways to sold in 1893. Although Daimler and Benz did with Daimler-Mercedes began not know each other, the two to challenge the leadership of inventors had been working Benz. In 1926 the two companies on similar projects for a while merged and their automobiles and eventually competition were renamed Mercedes-Benz. N - 1929: THE AUTOMOBILE - MERELY A STATUS SYMBOL? Alerted to Carl’s rapidly deteriorat- died two days later. Bertha Benz ing health, admirers from all over continued to reside in their home the country paraded their cars, in until her death in 1944; she was a last tribute, under the windows 95 years old. of his home in Ladenburg; Carl 12 FROM HORSE POWER TO HORSEPOWER the late 19th century, society remained reluc- WHAT CAN BERTHA BENZ’S STORY TEACH tant to switch to any kind of motor-powered US ABOUT STEM EDUCATION? vehicle, including the automobile. As we saw in the comic strip, Bertha’s jour- In completing the world’s first long distance ney with the Benz Patent Motorwagen was automobile trip, it had been Bertha Benz’s not without its challenges. While she did intention to demonstrate the effectiveness not have a background in science (education of the Benz Motorwagen as a cheaper, was not as accessible to women back then), cleaner and more reliable alternative to Bertha had learnt a lot from many years of the horse-drawn carriage. By parading it assisting her husband in the workshop. Note through villages, and in sharing her story that each of the STEM (Science, Technology, THE SIGNIFICANCE OF BERTHA BENZ’S along the way, Bertha was able to shed light Engineering & Mathematics) skills that she LONG-DISTANCE JOURNEY WITH THE on the various advantages of the automobile accumulated over this time were crucial to BENZ PATENT MOTORWAGEN in a way that had never been done before. ensuring the successful completion of her The 106 km trip from Mannheim to Pforzheim Very rapidly, contemporary observers came journey, and so the successful marketing of represented a dramatic turning point in the Benz to realise the practical uses of motor-powered the car. An application of some of these skills story. For centuries, horse-drawn carriages had vehicles and the public perception of the car are listed below – can you think of anymore? been the only viable mode of transport, and gradually shifted away from that of a “useless despite the vast technological progresses of curiosity with no future”. S + T + E + M = S + T + E + M SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY ENGINEERING MATHEMATICS Through chemistry, Bertha discov- Being technologically inclined, Bertha was not afraid to get her Mathematics provided Bertha ered that the chemical “lingroin” Bertha was able to understand hands dirty. In addition to using with important life skills, but would serve as a suitable fuel for what was at the time considered a a hat pin to clean a blocked car- above all it gave her the crucial the Benz Patent Wagen. When highly complex and technological burator, one of her most notable criticial thinking and logical rea- the Benz family ran out of petrol, piece of machinery.