Joseph Cugnot

Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot (September 25th 1725 - October 2nd 1804) born with Void-Vacon in Meuse, is a Engineer military French known to have created the second Automobile one century after the father Belgian Jésuite Ferdinand Verbiest.

Its observations on the heavy artillery, the Transport and the Fortification give him some ideas of Invention S. Ainsi, it develops a special rifle used by the Militaire S with horse. However, having other prospects, relating to amongst other things the steam engines, it withdraws Armée in 1763, to devote itself to its own research.

Its great projects and its hour of glory

Its work remains centered nevertheless on the military field. After a short stay with Brussels, Cugnot returns to Paris and publishes in 1766 Éléments of the old and modern art of warfare , and, in 1769, Fortification of theoretical and practical countryside , work which will meet a certain success, thanks to which it is made known in the military mediums. Its concept of car to vapor, hitherto ever considered, is taken with the serious one. It should be recalled that the very new technology of the steam engine (see Denis Papin and James Watt) is then a field of latest research.

It is moreover, by chance, that the duke of Choiseul, Minister for the Foreign affairs, the Guerre and of the marine , tries at the same time to develop the Artillerie; Jean-Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval, the military engineer delegated to these missions, then gives its chance to Cugnot and the dray of this one. Itself very interested, Choiseul supports the construction of a prototype first “with the expenses of the King” in 1769. The tests will be carried out in October.

Those are conclusive, in spite of some engineering problems. The construction of a second Prototype full-scale is then ordered by Gribeauval: it is a great turning in the career of Cugnot: the exorbitant cost of the project and the strong reserves issued by the engineers as for his “feasibility” were not enough to invalidate the program.

Multiple obstacles and lapse of memory

The continuation of the life of Cugnot will be however sown disappointments. The vehicle “life size” being ready in 1770, its first tests take place in November of this year with Vanves. A first accident occurs: one does not manage to slow down the Fardier which destroys a wall by striking it. In spite of this hitch, other tests are envisaged. Addition of bad luck, whereas the machine is repaired in June 1771, Cugnot loses two of its invaluable supports, Choiseul and Gribeauval: the first leaves its functions earlier one year; the second, new the Minister showing less interest than his predecessor for the innovation (and of this fact the project neglects), sees private financial support necessary. The tests cannot continue. The prototype will thus be stored with the Arsenal, where it falls into the lapse of memory. From this moment, one does not hear any more of Cugnot in the field Militaire. It continues its research however only: it publishes in 1778 Théories of the Fortification . Starting from 1779, it touches a pension of 660 delivers S per annum, have regard to the interest of its inventions. Ten years later, whereas the French revolution with Paris bursts, it loses its incomes and leaves in Belgium. In 1800, after its return to Paris, a thin revenue of the Consulat is allotted to him, thanks to which it can finish its life without money worries. Cugnot dies in October 1804 with Paris, without descent.

An invention hinge and immortal: the " Carriage with feu" or dray of Cugnot

It is thus primarily the prototype known as " The Dray of Cugnot" who immortalisé the name of his creator. In spite of his premature abandonment by the public authorities of the time, the inventor of this machine, have regard to his major importance in the history of the techniques, deserves his place in the Pantheon of the famous scientists. According to some of its contemporaries, like Gribeauval, two " fardiers" were built officially, the first being a Modèle tiny room; however, it may be that a first Maquette was carried out by the Engineer him even, before 1769. We will be interested in this part at the origins of the project like in the realization, the technical details and the operation of the last prototype (realized in the real face), the only one which is preserved today.

From which does the idea come from such a machine?

It is undoubtedly at the time of its service in the Armée that Cugnot worked out its project of dray with vapor. The observation of enormous the Tank S travelling drawn by horses being used with displacement of the parts as Artillery in the preceding campaigns, the heavy intendance necessary to the maintenance of the animals, source of delay and slowness, undoubtedly suggested in Cugnot a solution aiming at replacing horse-drawn traction and thus stage its disadvantages. This problem had already been considered by its predecessor Denis Papin, who built a Steamer as of 1707, like by Thomas Newcomen, creator of the first steam engine itself. This capital invention, true revolution of the Age of Enlightenment, will influence Cugnot obviously: was it possible to build a vehicle only driven by the steam traction?

An ambitious project for the time

Dimensions of the Véhicule are impressive: 7,25 m length, 2,19 broad. The aft wheels make 1,23 m in diameter. It does not weigh less than 2,8 ton S with vacuum and approximately 8 ton S in load: ancestor, in addition to car, our tanks modern, the dray before is very designed for the transport of the gun S. celebrates It “pot”, tank with water of the system of propulsion, makes nearly one meter fifty of diameter. The realization of such a " programme" thus require considerable funds: he costs approximately 20.000 thousand books of the time, i.e. between 300.000 and 450.000 Euro S! The army stinginess thus not, this new transport system of heavy weapons arouses an undeniable interest.

It is thanks to the financial support of Gribeauval and Choiseul that the second dray will be built after the tests of the first in 1769: one then calls upon Brezin as of April 1770 for the launching of the “Chantier”; the Pompe S (Cylinder S and Piston S) are manufactured with the Arsenal of Strasbourg. Nothing is refused with good progress of this project avant-garde. The " Carriage with feu" , after its repair (cf accident of 1770), is ready in June 1771.

The Dray in detail

The vehicle is composed of two principal parts: the Driving (Hearth and Boiler), i.e. the pot located at front, enormous pressure vessel in Copper, and the Frames made up of two longitudinal Beam S connected by Cross-piece S) in Wood, structure where seat the driver and the loading must take. The load rests primarily on both large Roue S backs. Being the front part, tractory, the ideas of Cugnot are already innovating: the " moteur" consists of a Steam engine with two Cylindre S, the Piston S involving single a driving Roue. The pot feeds the Steam engine thanks to a system of transmission of Steam under pressure. The Machine involving the driving Roue by Piston S is the simplified prototype of the engines with vapor of the next century: the industrial revolution is moving. Name “Dray” indicated this type of Chariot S intended for the transport of the very heavy loads (burden).

Operation and use of the Dray

The " Carriage with feu" of Cugnot is the first true one and single prototype of motor vehicle able to transport an adult of the human history, and it is also the first rotating steam engine. It is to say its historical importance in the history of the techniques. The dray used an engine derived from the machine of Thomas Newcomen to make turn a single driving wheel using two pistons transmitting the energy provided by a steam boiler. As one sees it on the lustration, the " marmite" a water reserve carried with boiling by a hearth contained has wood, the vapor being transmitted by a pipe with two pistons involving a circular motion of the wheel (machine known as " atmosphérique" of Newcomen type). The Véhicule had four orders: Brake, handles of direction (kind of Stealing which acted on the driving Roue), a Tringle (which played the part of Accélérateur by actuating the Robinet vapor), like two Cliquet S reversing the movement for double purpose of the Piston S, involving a step back).

Being only one prototype, the dray suffers from serious defects of youth. First of all starting is excessively long: the Eau must reach the desired temperature. The Combustible S are consumed moreover very quickly. The pauses to reload the Moteur are thus frequent: every approximately twelve minutes. Moreover, the Dray, when it is in Côte, does not develop enough any more of power because of low pressure of the vapor. The passengers (if it of a) must there then help the Chauffeur by pushing it, which, have regard to its excessive weight, is a major disadvantage. Cugnot did not solve the problem of the Freinage, which could be fatal in Descente: simple the Pédale which is used as Frein is practically inoperative in this case. Lastly, the maximum Speed, although constituting a remarkable scientific success, (between 3,5 and 4 km/h) just made it possible nevertheless to follow a Armée to foot. In spite of its unquestionable utility in the transport of heavy loads, the dray of 1771 was not, in the state, able to replace the horses effectively. Notwithstanding, alas, the premature setting with the rencart of the program, brilliant Cugnot had most probably cured the inevitable defects of a stammering technology, perhaps accelerating fifty years the advent of mechanized transport which was to change the face of the world.

The Dray after Cugnot and nowadays

Thirty years after the end of the tests of the Carriage, the general Police chief of the Artillery of Napoleon 1st, named Roland, announces the existence of the machine, always stored with the Arsenal, and proposes new tests with Bonaparte. But this last, occupied preparing the countryside of Egypt, refuses. By preoccupation with a space saver, one then transfers it in the St-Martin-of-Fields abbey, which forms today part of the Musée of Arts and Métiers, where it is always preserved.

This single specimen of the first motor vehicle of the history miraculeusement arrived to us in a remarkable state of conservation. It is one of the most invaluable museum pieces in the world in the field of the history.

Documentation

Rauck, max J.B. : Cugnot , 1769
Münchener Zeitungsverlag : Der Urahn unseres Cars fuhr VOR 200 Jahren 1969.

References

Random links: