How to draw a Leonardo da Vinci flying machine. Incredible inventions of Leonardo da Vinci
Painter, sculptor, architect, anatomist, naturalist, inventor, engineer, writer, thinker, musician, poet.
If you list only these areas of application of talent, without naming the person to whom they relate, anyone will say: Leonardo da Vinci. We will consider only one of the facets of the personality of the "great Leonardo" and talk about his technical inventions.
Da Vinci was a famous figure of his time, but the real glory came many centuries after his death. Only at the end of the 19th century were the theoretical notes of the scientist published for the first time. It was they who contained descriptions of strange and mysterious devices for their time. In the Renaissance, da Vinci could hardly count on the speedy implementation of all his inventions. The main obstacle to their implementation was the insufficient technical level. But in the 20th century, almost all the devices described in his writings became a reality. This suggests that the "Italian Faust" was not only a talented inventor, but also a person who was able to anticipate technological progress. Of course, Leonardo's deep knowledge contributed to this.
The scientist systematized his developments, creating the so-called "codes" - books containing records about certain aspects of science and technology. There is, for example, the Leicester Code, in which you can find descriptions of various natural phenomena, as well as mathematical calculations.
It is noteworthy that da Vinci's notes are made in the so-called "mirror" font. All letters are written from right to left and deployed vertically. You can only read them with a mirror. Until now, disputes have not subsided about why the scientist needed to keep records in this way. Rumor has it that this is how he intended to classify his works.
No technical invention causes such awe and admiration as a flying machine. That is why special attention has been riveted to da Vinci's aircraft at all times. The inventor always dreamed of the idea of aeronautics. Birds became a source of inspiration for the scientist. Leonardo tried to create a wing for an aircraft in the image and likeness of feathered wings. One of the devices he developed was set in motion with the help of movable wings, which rose and fell due to the rotation of the pedals by the pilot. The pilot himself was located horizontally (lying).
Another version of the flying machine was supposed to use not only the legs, but also the hands of the aeronaut for movement. Experiments with the "bird's" wing did not have practical success, and soon the inventor switched to the idea of a gliding flight. This is how the hang glider prototype appeared. By the way, in 2002, British testers proved the correctness of the da Vinci hang glider concept. Using an apparatus built according to the drawings of the master, the world champion in hang gliding Judy Liden was able to rise to a height of ten meters and stayed in the air for seventeen seconds.
No less interesting is the aircraft developed by da Vinci with a rotor. In our time, many consider this machine the prototype of a modern helicopter. Although the device is more like a gyroplane rather than a helicopter. Made of thin linen, the propeller had to be driven by four people. The helicopter was one of the first flying machines proposed by da Vinci. Perhaps that is why he had a number of serious shortcomings that would never have allowed him to take off. For example, the strength of four people was clearly not enough to create the thrust necessary for takeoff.
But the parachute was one of the simplest developments of genius. But this does not detract from the significance of the invention. According to Leonardo's idea, the parachute was supposed to have a pyramidal shape, and its design was supposed to be covered with fabric. In our time, testers have proven that the da Vinci parachute concept can be considered correct. In 2008, Swiss Olivier Tepp successfully landed using a pyramid-shaped tent. True, for this the parachute had to be made from modern materials.
Leonardo da Vinci was the illegitimate (illegitimate) son of the Tuscan notary Piero da Vinci. His mother was a simple peasant woman. Subsequently, Father Leonardo married a girl from a noble family. Since this marriage turned out to be childless, he soon took his son to him.
It is believed that da Vinci was a vegetarian. The following words are attributed to him: “If a person strives for freedom, why does he keep birds and animals in cages? .. Man is truly the king of animals, because he cruelly exterminates them. We live by killing others. We are walking graveyards! I gave up meat at an early age.”
Automobile
When you get acquainted with the works of da Vinci, you begin to understand why small Italy has become the birthplace of legendary car brands. Back in the 15th century, an Italian inventor was able to sketch a “self-propelled cart”, which became the prototype of modern cars. The trolley designed by Leonardo did not have a driver and was driven by a spring mechanism.
Although the latter is just an assumption of modern scientists. It is not known for certain how exactly the master intended to move his invention forward. Nor do we know what the first car was supposed to look like. Leonardo paid the main attention not to the appearance of the structure, but to the technical characteristics. The cart was three-wheeled, like a children's bicycle. The rear wheels rotated independently of each other.
In 2004, Italian researchers managed not only to build a car designed by da Vinci, but also to make it move! Scientist Carlo Pedretti managed to unravel the main secret of Leonardo da Vinci's wagon, namely, the principle of movement. The researcher suggested that the car was supposed to be driven not by springs, but by special springs, which were located at the bottom of the structure.
Tank
Bestialissima pazzia (translated from Italian. "Animal madness") - it was with such an unflattering epithet that the "titan of the Renaissance" awarded the war. Da Vinci mentioned in his notes that he hated war and killing machines. Paradoxically, this did not prevent him from developing new military equipment.
Do not forget that Leonardo did not live in peacetime. Italian cities were in complex relationships with each other, and there was also the threat of French intervention. By the end of the 15th century, da Vinci had become a well-known and respected military specialist. He presented his numerous military developments in a letter written to the Duke of Milan Sforza.
One of the scientist's most exciting ideas was... a tank. However, it would be much more correct to call Leonardo's design a distant prototype of armored vehicles of the 20th century. This design had a rounded shape and outwardly resembled a turtle, bristling with tools on all sides. The inventor hoped to solve the problem of movement with the help of horses. True, this idea was quickly abandoned: in a confined space, animals could become uncontrollable.
Instead, the “engine” of such a tank was to be eight people who would turn the levers connected to the wheels, and thus move the combat vehicle forward. Another crew member was supposed to be at the top of the apparatus and indicate the direction of movement. Interestingly, the design of the armored vehicle only allowed it to move forward. As you might guess, at that time the concept of the tank had little chance of being implemented.
A tank will become a truly effective weapon only when it is possible to create a suitable internal combustion engine. But the main merit of da Vinci was that he managed to open the curtain of history and look many centuries ahead.
Leonardo da Vinci was a truly versatile person. The inventor played the lyre perfectly and appeared in the records of the Milan court precisely as a musician. Da Vinci was also interested in cooking. For thirteen years, the organization of court feasts lay on his shoulders. Especially for culinary specialists, he developed several useful devices.
Chariot - scythe
Another very original and at the same time terrible invention of the genius of the Renaissance dates back to 1485. It received the uncomplicated name "chariot-scythe". This chariot was a horse carriage equipped with rotating scythes. The design does not claim to be the invention of the century. This invention was also not destined to come true. On the other hand, the war chariot demonstrates the breadth of da Vinci's thought as a military specialist.
Machine gun
One of the most famous inventions of da Vinci, ahead of its time, is considered to be a machine gun. Although the design of Leonardo is more correct to call a multi-barreled gun. Da Vinci had several designs for multiple rocket launchers. His most famous invention in this area is the so-called "musket in the form of an organ pipe." The design had a rotating platform, on which were placed three rows of muskets (arquebus) with eleven barrels each.
The da Vinci machine gun could fire only three shots without reloading, but they would be enough to defeat a large number of enemy soldiers. The main drawback of the design was that such a machine gun is extremely difficult to reload, especially in combat conditions. Another variant of the multi-barrel gun assumed the arrangement of a large number of muskets like a fan. The gun barrels were directed in different directions, increasing the radius of destruction. Like the previous development, the "fan" gun was supposed to be equipped with wheels to increase mobility.
Cannonballs and "mobile" bridges
Perhaps the most farsighted invention of da Vinci was the keeled cannonballs. Such cores were shaped like artillery shells of the 20th century. This development was many centuries ahead of its time. It demonstrates the scientists' deep understanding of the laws of aerodynamics.
Of great value for its time was an invention called the "revolving bridge". This bridge became the prototype of modern mobile mechanized bridges designed for the rapid crossing of troops from one coast to another. The Da Vinci Bridge was solid and attached to one bank. After the bridge was installed, it was supposed to turn it to the opposite bank using ropes.
The Vitruvian Man is one of the most famous drawings by Leonardo da Vinci. The drawing is notable for its detailed reproduction of the proportions of the human body. It is of scientific and cultural interest at the same time. It is noteworthy that long before the image of the "Vitruvian Man" by da Vinci, a similar drawing was made by the Italian scientist Mariano Taccola. True, the image of Taccola was only an unfinished sketch.
The Sforza dynasty was the ruling Milanese dynasty during the Renaissance. The first Duke of Milan was Francesco Sforza, who ruled until 1466. In 1480, the talented cultural figure Lodovico Sforza became the Duke of Milan. During his reign, the most capable artists and scientists of their time were invited to the court. One of them was Leonardo da Vinci.
"Mona Lisa" ("Gioconda") is perhaps the most mysterious example of painting in the world. Until now, the picture raises many questions. So, it is not known for certain who exactly da Vinci depicted on his canvas. It is believed that the painting depicts the noble Florentine Lisa Gherardini. One of the wildest theories is that the painting is a self-portrait of da Vinci himself.
Diving suit
Yes, yes, his invention is also attributed to da Vinci. The diving suit was made of leather and equipped with glass lenses. The diver could breathe with the help of reed tubes. The scientist proposed the concept of a diving suit in order to repel the threat posed by the Turkish fleet. According to the idea, divers had to dive to the bottom and wait for the arrival of enemy ships.
When enemy ships appeared above the water, the divers had to commit sabotage and put the ships to the bottom. It was not destined to prove the correctness of this concept. Venice was able to resist the Turkish fleet without the help of saboteurs. By the way, the world's first detachment of combat swimmers appeared in Italy, but this happened only in 1941. The very design of the space suit, presented by da Vinci, can be considered innovative.
Submarine, mine, gun details
The records of Leonardo da Vinci have survived to our time, on which you can clearly make out the prototype of a submarine. But there is very little information about her. Most likely, on the surface, the ship could move using sails. Under water, the ship had to move with the help of oar power.
To destroy enemy ships, da Vinci designed a special underwater mine. According to the inventor's plan, divers-saboteurs or a submarine could deliver such a mine to the board of an enemy ship. For the first time this idea was realized only in the second half of the 19th century, during the American Civil War.
Despite the abundance of inventions, only one of them brought da Vinci fame during his lifetime. This is a wheel lock for a pistol. In the 16th century, this development gave rise to a real technological boom. The design was so successful that it was used until the 19th century.
All of the above is not a complete list of da Vinci's inventions. In addition to these developments, among the ideas of the master were: a bearing, a mechanical ladder, a rapid-fire crossbow, a steam weapon, a ship with a double bottom, and much more.
Ideal City
If history had gone the other way, the small Italian town of Vidgevano near Milan could have become a real wonder of the world. It was there that Leonardo da Vinci intended to realize his most ambitious idea - the ideal city. The da Vinci project resembles a high-tech city of the future from the literary works of science fiction. Or a utopia generated by a stormy writer's fantasy.
The main feature of such a city was that it consisted of several tiers, interconnected by stairs and passages. As you might guess, the upper tier was intended for the upper strata of society. The lower one was reserved for trade and services. The most important elements of the transport infrastructure were also located there. The city was to become not only the greatest architectural achievement of that time, but also to embody many technical innovations. However, the project should not be perceived as a manifestation of a soulless technocracy. Da Vinci paid much attention to the comfort of the inhabitants of the city. Practicality and hygiene were at the forefront. The scientist decided to abandon the narrow medieval streets in favor of spacious roads and squares.
One of the key aspects of the concept was the widespread use of water channels. With the help of a complex hydraulic system, water had to flow into every building in the city. Da Vinci believed that in this way it would be possible to eliminate unsanitary conditions and reduce the spread of disease to a minimum.
Having become acquainted with the scientist's concept, the Milanese Duke Lodovico Sforza considered the idea too adventurous. At the end of his life, Leonardo presented the same project to the French King Francis I. The scientist proposed making the city the capital of the monarch, but the project remained on paper.
One of da Vinci's interests was anatomy. It is known that the master dismembered many corpses, trying to understand the mysteries of human anatomy. Most of all, the scientist was interested in the structure of muscles. Leonardo da Vinci wanted to understand the principle of human movement. After himself, he left many anatomical records.
Genius or plagiarist?
As you know, history develops in a spiral. Many inventions were born long before their development was appropriated by other inventors. Perhaps Leonardo da Vinci is no exception. Do not forget that da Vinci had access to the scientific heritage of ancient civilization. In addition, da Vinci lived surrounded by the best minds of his time. He had the opportunity to communicate with outstanding figures of science and culture. The scientist could adopt many ideas from his colleagues.
The artist and engineer Mariano Taccola is a forgotten genius of the Renaissance. He died in 1453 (da Vinci was born in 1452). Unlike da Vinci, Mariano Taccola did not receive recognition during his lifetime and did not gain worldwide fame after it. Meanwhile, many developments of Taccola found their continuation in the works of da Vinci. It is known that Leonardo was familiar with the works of Francesco di Giorgio, which, in turn, were based on the ideas of Taccola. For example, in the manuscripts of di Giorgio, da Vinci had the opportunity to familiarize himself with the concept of the Taccola diving suit.
It would be a mistake to consider da Vinci the inventor of flying machines. In the 11th century, the monk Aylmer of Malmesbury lived in England. With a wide knowledge of mathematics, he built a primitive hang glider and even made a short flight on it. Aylmer is known to have flown over two hundred meters.
It is highly likely that Leonardo also borrowed the concept of the helicopter. But already with the Chinese. In the 15th century, merchants from China brought toys resembling mini-helicopters to Europe. A similar point of view is shared by the British historian Gavin Menzies, who believes that da Vinci adopted his most famous inventions from the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire. Menzies claims that in 1430 a Chinese delegation visited Venice, handing over to the Venetians many of the developments of Chinese scientists.
Be that as it may, Leonardo da Vinci always remains for us one of the greatest inventors of all times and peoples. Many ideas were brought to life precisely thanks to Leonardo. The scientist improved various inventions and, more importantly, was able to give them visibility. Do not forget that Leonardo da Vinci was a talented artist.
The master left many sketches for his developments. And even if the ideas attributed to da Vinci do not belong to him, it cannot be denied that the scientist was able to systematize a huge layer of knowledge, bringing this knowledge to posterity.
Leonardo da Vinci was convinced that "a person who overcomes air resistance with the help of large artificial wings can take to the air."
Convinced that he was right, he began to develop an apparatus driven only by human muscle power, and allowing him to soar in the air like a bird. There are many drawings of such "ornitotteri" invented by Leonardo. Some of them depict a man lying down, who is about to take off with the help of mechanisms attached to the wings; others - forward movement with the help of a more advanced system of screws and a pulley. There are also drawings of a man standing upright in a flying ship, on the pedals of which he pressed his hands and feet.
To design the wings of the "ornitotteri", Leonardo studied the anatomy of the bird's wing, considering the function and distribution of its feathers. Observing the flight of a bird, the scientist noticed that it flaps its wings differently when it hovering in the air, flying forward or landing. He was also interested in the membranous wings of bats. Based on these observations, Leonardo designed huge wings designed not only to lift a person into the air, but also to keep him in flight, thanks to the ailerons and hinges. He was going to imitate the aerial acrobatics of birds, their ability to conserve energy in flight and land accurately. Until the end of the 15th century, Leonardo was convinced that he could carry out the project of mechanical flight. However, he was worried about the fact that the capabilities of human muscles are limited. So he was going to use the mechanism of the bow instead of the energy of the muscles, which would ensure the movement forward. However, the bow did not solve the problems of autonomy in flight, arising from the rapid unwinding of the spring.
From 1503 to 1506 Leonardo was busy with research in Tuscany. Atmospheric conditions, the presence or absence of wind, the corresponding meteorological and aerodynamic phenomena forced him to abandon his old idea of a "tool" based on the flapping of wings, and to recognize "flight without wing movement".
Observing how large birds allow air currents to pick them up and carry them in the air, Leonardo thought about equipping a person with large compound wings that would enable him to enter a suitable air current with simple body movements and not expend much effort on it. A person will float freely until he falls to the ground like a “dry leaf”.
Systematic studies undertaken by Leonardo at the beginning of the 16th century led him to the need to study the “quality and density of air”. For this purpose, he designed hydroscopic instruments. Leonardo emphasized that the laws of aerodynamics are similar to the laws of hydrostatics, i.e. the science of water is a mirror image of the science of wind, “which (the science of wind) we will show through the movement of water and this important science will be a step forward in understanding the flight of a bird in the air" .
In fact, the design of devices capable of flying has long attracted the attention of man. Passion for aircraft modeling, which for many begins with kites and paper planes, in our time has been successfully realized through manufacturers of radio-controlled models. Plane models can hardly be called toys, because most of them participate in serious competitions. Professionals divide aircraft modeling into amateur and sports, while the first type of hobby has the largest number of fans.
The idea of flight in the writings of Leonardo da Vinci
Dmitry Alekseevich Sobolev, Ph.D. Sciences, Institute of the History of Natural Science and Technology. S.I. Vavilov, RAS
One of the most interesting pages in the multifaceted work of Leonardo da Vinci is research on the problem of human flight. Leonardo was the first scientist to seriously study this topic. In his manuscripts there are drawings and brief descriptions of various aircraft. He returned to this topic throughout his entire creative activity: the first projects of flying machines date back to the mid-80s. XV century, and the latter date back to the second decade of the XVI century.
The most numerous projects of devices with flapping wings - ornithopters. This is quite natural, since the bird has always been a role model at an early stage in the development of aviation.
The first known project of a flying machine by Leonardo da Vinci is the ornithopter project, where a person must be in a supine position (1485-1487) (Fig. 1). For flapping wings, you need to use both the strength of the hands and the strength of the legs of the "pilot". The axis of the wing was located in such a way that, when moving down, it simultaneously moved backward, creating, along with lift, the forward force necessary for horizontal flight.
Leonardo not only gave a brief description of the design, but also gave recommendations on testing the apparatus. He wrote: “You will test this device over the lake and put on a long fur in the form of a belt so that you don’t drown when you fall. as you see kites and other birds do it, and besides, lowering with two legs is always more powerful than with one ... legs, this is better, because then your hands are freer "(Leonardo da Vinci. Selected natural scientific works. M.1955. S. 605).
To control the flight altitude, da Vinci proposed an original mechanism consisting of a movable horizontal tail unit connected to a hoop on a person's head. Raising and lowering his head, the tester, according to Leonardo's plan, had to raise and lower the tail surface of the ornithopter (Fig. 2).
In an effort to reduce the effort required to move the wings, the great Italian inventor proposed making special fabric flaps on the flapping surfaces, which, when the wing moved down, would be tightly pressed against the mesh stretched over the wing reinforcement, and would open on the return stroke, allowing air to pass freely. A similar idea was later applied by other ornithopter designers.
Another option ornithopter, proposed by Leonardo in the same years, was an apparatus in which a person had to flap his wings, like a cyclist turning wheels with his feet, connected by levers to the power structure of the wings (Fig. 3). On the sketch of this apparatus, something resembling a bell suspended in front of the "pilot's" face attracts attention. Researchers are still debating what it could be. In my opinion, this device is a pendulum designed to indicate position in space. It is known that around 1485 the scientist made a sketch of such a device (Fig. 4). If so, then we see the first drawing of an aircraft instrument.
The most famous project ornithopter boat(Fig. 5). It dates from about 1487. Apparently, a person had to sit or stand in a boat, moving levers connected to the wings. Another lever was intended for turning a horizontal steering wheel, resembling a bird's tail in shape.
At the end of the 1480s. Leonardo da Vinci makes a drawing and description of a large flying machine with two pairs of flapping wings (Fig. 6). Standing in something like a bowl, the man set the wings in motion using a system of blocks. Interestingly, the device had a retractable landing gear; the supports could be folded up with the help of a gate and cables (Fig. 7).
Leonardo explained the concept of his new ornithopter in this way: “I decided that standing on my feet is better than lying flat, because the device can never turn upside down ... Raising and lowering during movement [of the wings] will be done by lowering and raising both legs, which gives great strength, and the hands remain free. If you had to lie flat, then your legs, in the tibial joints, would be very tired ... "(Leonardo da Vinci. Selected Natural Scientific Works.. P. 606).
This reasoning is, of course, true, but nevertheless this project should be attributed to the least successful result of Leonardo da Vinci's creative research. The very large dimensions of the device: wingspan - 40 cubits (about 16 m), construction height - 25 cubits (10 m), complex and heavy transmission - all this made the chances of getting into the air even less real than with previous ornithopters.
Apparently, over time, Leonardo himself realized the unreality of his plan. Perhaps he even conducted some experiments, since in his notes of 1485-1490. there is a drawing of an experiment to determine the lift force of a flapping wing (Fig. 8). A little later, he pointed out the possibility of using a bow compressed with great force as a source of energy for the movement of the wings (Fig. 9). When straightened, a powerful bow could indeed create a large impulse of forces, but it would be very short-lived, and at best the machine could only jump up.
A hint for a way out of this impasse was given by a thorough study of the mechanism of bird flight, which the scientist became interested in at the turn of the 15th-16th centuries. Observation of birds prompted him to the right idea that the main thrust in flight is created by the end parts of the wing. As a result, at the very end of the XV century. Leonardo makes a drawing of a fundamentally new ornithopter project - with a wing consisting of two hinged parts (Fig. 10). The strokes were to be carried out by external parts, which make up about half of the total wing area. This idea, which is the first step in the birth of the concept of a fixed-wing apparatus - an airplane, found practical implementation in the last decade of the 19th century. in the experiments of the famous German aviation pioneer O. Lilienthal. It is known that he tried to fly with a glider, the ends of the wing were set in motion from an engine mounted on his body (Fig. 11).
The next step in the evolution of Leonardo's views on the design of a flying machine is associated with his study of the mechanism of soaring and gliding flight of birds. He concluded: "... When a bird is in the wind, it can stay on it without flapping its wings, because the same role that the wing performs in relation to the air when the air is still, the moving air performs in relation to the wings when the wings are motionless" ( Leonardo da Vinci, Selected Works of Natural Science, p.497).
Based on this principle, known today as the principle of the reversibility of motion, Leonardo comes to the conclusion: it is not a person who should push the air with his wings, but the wind should strike the wings and carry them in the air, as he moves a sailing ship. Then the pilot of the aircraft will only need to maintain balance with the help of the wings. "It does not take much force to support oneself and balance oneself on one's wings and direct them into the path of the winds and steer one's course, small movements of the wings are sufficient for this," writes Leonardo da Vinci in 1505 (Giacomelly, R. The aerodynamics of Leonardo da Vinci // Aernautical Journal 1930 Vol 34 P 1021)
Based on the concept he developed, the scientist decided to create a new type of aircraft. Most likely, it should have been fundamentally different from the ornithopters of previous years. According to the Italian researcher of the work of Leonardo da Vinci R. Giacomelli, it could be a monoplane with a wingspan of approximately 18 m, designed to fly in ascending air currents (according to modern terminology, a soaring glider). The wings were movable, but compared to previous projects, their mobility was very limited and would only serve for balancing (Giacomelly, R. Leonardo da Vinci e il volo meccanico // L "Aerotechnica. 1927. No. 8. P. 518-524 .).
The manned "artificial bird" was supposed to start from the top of Mount Ceccheri (Swan Mountain) in the vicinity of Florence and, picked up by vertical currents, take to the air. “The great bird will begin its first flight from the back of its gigantic swan, filling the universe with amazement, filling all scriptures with rumors about itself, with eternal glory to the nest where it was born,” wrote Leonardo da Vinci in his Treatise on the Flight of Birds (1505). ) (Leonardo da Vinci. Selected works of natural science. P.494).
But Italy was not destined to become the birthplace of gliding. Loaded with numerous orders, Leonardo was never able to start implementing his idea (or did not want to - it was always more interesting for him to generate projects and postulates than to put them into practice).
Shortly before his death, the scientist once again returned to thoughts about moving through the air with the help of a fixed wing. In his manuscript, kept at the Institute of France in Paris, there is a little-known drawing dating from 1510-1515. (Fig. 12). It depicts a man who, holding onto a plane with his hands, descends through the air, and there is an indication of the method of control: "This [man] will move to the right if he bends his right arm and straightens his left; and will then move from right to left when changing position hands "(Gibbs-Smith, C. Leonardo da Vinci" s aeronautics. London, 1967. P. 21.). Apparently, this idea of \u200b\u200bthe simplest balancing glider, or, more precisely, a controlled parachute, arose from Leonardo as a result of observing dropping a sheet of paper in the air.
Speaking about the research of Leonardo da Vinci in the field of flight, one cannot fail to mention two more pioneer projects - the parachute project and the helicopter project. Both were made in the 1480s, at the same time as the first proposals for ornithopters.
A drawing of a man descending on a pyramid-shaped parachute (Fig. 13) Leonardo accompanied with the inscription: "If a person has a tent made of starched linen, 12 cubits wide and 12 high, he will be able to throw himself from any great height without danger to himself" (Leonardo da Vinci. Selected works of natural science, p.615).
The familiar image of Leonardo da Vinci's helicopter (Fig. 14) is the first draft of a vertically taking off aircraft. Unlike modern helicopters with a bladed propeller, this machine had to take to the air with the help of a well-known in the 15th century. Archimedean screw, with a diameter of about 8 m. Despite the fact that the screw had to be untwisted by hand, Leonardo da Vinci believed in the feasibility of his project: "I say that when this device, made by a screw, is made well, i.e. from canvas, the pores of which are starched, and is quickly set in rotation [...] the named screw is screwed into the air and rises."
Like all first proposals, these projects were still imperfect. The parachute did not have a special hole at the top of the dome, which provides a stable descent trajectory, and the helicopter design did not take into account the influence of the reactive moment from the rotation of the propeller, which would spin the structure located below, the shape of the propeller was far from the best. Nevertheless, both of them represent outstanding technical visions.
The remarkable ideas of Leonardo da Vinci remained unknown for a long time, since he did not publish the results of his research. In the end, what Leonardo came to within a few decades dragged on for centuries. Only in the 18th century, the unsuccessful attempts to fly with the help of flapping wings attached to the arms and legs were replaced by the first projects of aircraft with a fixed wing forming lift and small movable wings to create a forward force - Swedenborg (Sweden, 1716), Bauer ( Germany, 1763), Cayley (England, 1799). Flights on balancing gliders began at the end of the 19th century, and the first helicopters appeared only in the 20th century.
An analysis of the development of views on the design of a winged aircraft in the works of Leonardo da Vinci and in the works of subsequent aviation pioneers allows us to draw the following general conclusion: contrary to the point of view common among aviation historians, the idea of an airplane did not originate in itself as an alternative concept to the ornithopter, but "grew" from designs of devices with a flapping wing through a number of intermediate samples of semi-airplanes, semi-ornithopters, the author of the first of which was the great Leonardo.
Vertical "ORNITOTTERO"
The need for a more powerful source of energy led Leonardo to the idea of using all parts of the human body in the process of flight. The figure shows a man who controls sliding mechanisms not only with his arms and legs, but also with his head, which, according to Leonardo, "has a force equal to 200 pounds." A man stands in the center of a huge vessel, which is a bowl with a diameter of 12 m, equipped with a ladder (12 m). The wings of the apparatus had a width of 24 m and a span of 4.8 m. On this apparatus, Leonardo intended to use two pairs of wings flapping alternately.
Helicopter
This drawing is an image of the "ancestor" of the modern helicopter. The radius of the screw is 4.8 m. It had a metal edging and a linen coating. The propeller was driven by people walking around the axle and pushing the levers. There was another way to start the propeller - it was necessary to quickly unwind the cable under the axle. "I think that if this screw mechanism is soundly made, that is, made of starched linen (to avoid tears) and quickly spun, then it will find support in the air and fly high up"
Hydroscope
The hydroscope is an instrument invented by Alberti. It was a simple set of scales with a hygroscopic substance (cotton wool, sponge, etc.) and wax that did not absorb water. According to Leonardo, the device was used in order “to find out the quality and density of the air and when it will rain”.
Tilt Meter
This device is a pendulum placed inside a glass vessel (in the shape of a bell), serving to "direct the apparatus (flying) straight or at an angle, as you prefer, i.e. when you want to fly straight, set the ball in the middle of the circle" .
Balancing Research
The movements of the glider in flight were controlled by the movable wings and the balancing of the pilot: "a person must be free from top to bottom from the waist so that he can balance himself, although he is in the boat, and so that his center of gravity coincides with the center of gravity of the entire structure and is balanced with him".
Equilibrium research
The scientist conducted a study of the balance of the glider in order to determine the center of gravity of the bird. Drawings of this glider do not exist, but it is known that it must have been built from lightweight materials: bamboo and fabric with fasteners and guy wires made of raw silk or special leather. A high reed structure in the form of a cylinder or parallelepiped, apparently, was stretched on straps from the very wide (about 10 m wide) wings of this glider. In this design, the pilot was located much lower than the wings, which created the balance of the device.
Lying "ORNITOTTERO"
This drawing is one of Leonardo's most famous drawings: "A rotates the wing, B turns it with a lever, C lowers it, D raises it." A man lies stretched out on the platform: "Here lies the heart." The legs are threaded into the stirrups in such a way that one leg raises the wing, the other lowers it. This is an aircraft in which a prostrate man pedals, raising and lowering the wings, bending and rotating them with the help of ropes and levers, i.e. this apparatus, as it were, “rows” through the air.
In another version of the Ornitottero, the four wings were propelled by the pilot's arms and legs. The hands raised the wings with the help of a drum, and the legs lowered one pair of wings in turn. Thus, the rhythm of flapping wings accelerated. The apparatus on the back of the pilot was controlled by winding the ropes on the drums and unwinding them.
Model "ORNITOTTERO"
Here is one of the variants of "ORNITOTTERO". The pilot with the equipment on his back was located under a metal semicircle; the movement of the wings was created by the movement of the legs. This was assisted by hands operating handles located under the semicircle. The steering wheel was placed on the pilot's neck. The direction of flight was determined by turning the head.
Ornithopter
The fuselage is shaped like a boat for the pilot. Apparently, Leonardo thought about air in the same terms as about water. Huge wings (similar to bat wings) are set in motion by a system of screws and nuts. Like boats, a rudder was provided. The wide tail plane must have been for altitude control.
The picture is not a glider controlled by a pilot, but an interesting "hybrid". The pilot hangs vertically in the center of the vehicle, the wingtips have connections that control the vehicle, and the rigid structure supports it.
Spring operated ornithopter
Convinced that it was impossible to operate such an apparatus with human muscle power alone, Leonardo provided alternative solutions. For example, he designed an apparatus with a starting spring device that transfers its energy to the wings of the “ornitottero” (in this case, vertical) at the moment the spring is straightened. In the detail on the left, Leonardo depicted a device similar to those he used in his "car" and in some clockwork. This system was theoretically so ahead of its time that it was even called the Leonardo Airplane. In practice, it proved to be imperfect due to the need to quickly unwind the spring and the difficulty in rewinding it during flight.
Parachute
"If a man has an awning made of dense fabric, each side of which is 12 arm lengths, and the height is 12, then he can jump without breaking from any significant height."
Flight of bird
Through systematic studies of bird flight, Leonardo decided to replace flapping flight with gliding flight. Around 1505, his book Codice sul Volo degli Uccelli was completed (at present it is in Turin, in the former Royal Library). These drawings are from this book.
Instrument for measuring wind speed
There was another type of anemometer. It was made of cone-shaped tubes and was used to determine whether the wind turning the wheel was proportional to the air intake in the cone, given identical wind intensity.
System of braces of levers and connections
Leonardo believed that the wings could be raised and lowered by a system of ropes and blocks, set in motion by the pilot's legs, threaded into the stirrups, and his hands operating the handles. Rising and falling, the wings were also bent and straightened with the help of an automatic system of braces, levers and joints.
Descent to the ground "dry leaf"
"A man will turn to the right if he bends his right arm and extends his left; by changing these movements, he will turn from right to left."
Anemometer
The figure shows a “plate anemometer”, or “brush”, as feathers were traditionally used to sample the wind. The device is a graduated cane with thin plates that move depending on the intensity of the wind.
Vertical takeoff and landing apparatus
On the vertical "ornitottero" Leonardo planned to place a system of retractable ladders. Nature served as an example for him: “look at the stone swift, which sat on the ground and cannot take off because of its short legs; and when it is in flight, pull out the ladder, as shown in the second image from above ... this is how you need to take off from the plane; these ladders serve as legs...". Regarding landing, he wrote: "These hooks (concave wedges - see details on the right), which are attached to the base of the stairs, serve the same purpose as the tips of the toes of a person who jumps on them and his whole body is not shaken while doing so. as if he were jumping on his heels."
Leonardo da Vinci impresses with the variety of his scientific interests. His research in the field of aircraft design is unique. He studied the flight and planning of birds, the structure of their wings, and created aircraft with flapping wings, a parachute, a model of a spiral propeller and other devices unique for their time. In the manuscripts of Leonardo there are dozens of images of various flying structures that have a number of interesting engineering solutions.
Wing structure
Leonardo began creating "planes" by studying the behavior of dragonflies in the air, and then came up with a flapping wing as a means of studying repulsion from the air. It was necessary to calculate the human strength required to lift the flyweight into the air, the total weight of which was supposed to be about 90 kg.
After carefully studying the flight of birds, Leonardo da Vinci designed his first flying machine, which had flapping wings like a bat. With its help, pushing off the air with the help of wings and using the strength of the muscles of the arms and legs, a person had to fly.
Wings were supposed not only to lift a person into the air, but also, thanks to such devices as ailerons and hinges, to keep him in the air. Then Leonardo was convinced that he could carry out human flight with the help of flapping wings. He was going to replace his insufficiently strong muscles with the energy of such a mechanism as a cocked bow, which, as he believed, would be quite enough for human flight. However, even when using this winding mechanism, there were problems with the rapid unwinding of the spring.
Years passed, and when Lenardo, after a break, again took up the study of flight, he was already thinking about soaring flight with the help of the wind, knowing that in this case less effort was required to keep and move the aircraft in the air.
Ornithopter with prone pilot
On such an apparatus, a person must be in a lying position during the flight and control the mechanisms of flapping wings with the movements of the arms and legs. The legs are threaded into the stirrups so that one leg raises the wing, the other lowers it, and then vice versa. The wings are bent and rotated using ropes and levers.
Ornithopter
This aircraft has a hull shaped like a boat. Huge wings, similar to bat wings, are set in motion with the help of mechanisms. Like on boats, a steering wheel is provided for control. The wide tail plane was intended most likely for altitude control.
vertical aircraft
The vertically flying machine is considered the forerunner of the helicopter.
In this apparatus, the inventor provided for two pairs of wings flapping in turn. During the flight, a person had to stand inside a huge bowl with a diameter of 12 m. The wings of the apparatus had to have a width of 24 m, and their span should be about 5 m. To control the mechanisms of the apparatus, the pilot's hands, legs and even the head had to be involved. The flapping of the wings had to take place crosswise, up and down, like the wings of a bird. If this were built, the machine would be so heavy that it would be impossible to fly. Leonardo recognized this problem and tried to reduce weight using lighter materials.
Vertical takeoff aircraft
Leonardo wanted to install a system of retractable ladders on this apparatus, an analogue of a modern retractable landing gear. Upon landing, concave wedges attached to the base of the stairs would have served as shock absorbers.
Air propeller
In the sketches, Leonardo also depicts a completely different aircraft - a "propeller" capable of taking off into the air. An apparatus with such a propeller should fly by screwing into the air! The radius of the screw is 4.8 m. It had a metal edging and a starched linen coating. The screw had to be driven by people who walked around the axis and pushed the levers. There was another way to start the propeller - it was necessary to quickly unwind the cable under the axle.
Reconstruction:
The model is made on the basis of a square wooden frame, from the corners of which there are also wooden rails fastened above the center of the frame. The material attached to the frame forms an exhaust hood. Ropes are attached to the corners of the frame, on which a person weighs below. However, in practice, the descent on such a parachute cannot be safe, because. the material will simply be torn apart by the pressure of air. As Leonardo da Vinci believed, "if a person has an awning made of dense fabric, each side of which is 12 arm lengths, and the height is 12, then he can jump without breaking from any significant height." He did not manage to test this device himself.
Reconstruction:
However, the flying devices of the great inventor Leonardo da Vinci never took off. Everything remained only on paper.
After 500 years of oblivion
The aircraft invented by Leonardo da Vinci has finally risen into the sky. Recently, over the English county of Surrey, a prototype of a modern hang glider, designed exactly according to the drawings of a scientist, was successfully tested. The flying machine was made entirely from materials available during Leonardo's lifetime. The medieval hang glider resembled the skeleton of a bird from above. It was made from Italian poplar, cane, flax, animal sinew, and flax treated with a glaze derived from beetle secretions. On test flights from the hills, it was possible to raise the "delta plan" to a maximum height of 10 m and stay in the air for 17 seconds. It cannot be used for aerobatics, but it lifts off the ground and flies beautifully.
Leonardo da Vinci may have been the greatest inventor in history, but the technology was so weak in his time that all sketches of genius remained on paper at best. Da Vinci drew sketches and diagrams of his devices and kept notes. But either he did not have the desire to translate them into reality, or he did not have enough funds. As a result, during the life of da Vinci, almost none of his inventions saw the light of day. Yes, and they learned about the works of the brilliant inventor only after his death, since he never submitted his notes for public discussion.
And it's incredibly sad, because da Vinci's design skills were way ahead of their time. If they were embodied in real inventions, who knows, maybe the revolution in the world of technology would have happened much earlier. On the other hand, many of da Vinci's sketches could not have been realized with the tools of the 15th and 16th century. But in the 21st century, many engineers took to the implementation of da Vinci's projects with pleasure and found out that they really work. And they would have worked if da Vinci had been a little bolder and even a little more inventive.
Let's look at da Vinci's inventions through the eyes of the layman of the twenty-first century.
Not impressed? Well, a bearing may not be the coolest thing an inventor can afford, but a lot of modern technology works with bearings. Ball bearings allow drive shafts to rotate, push goods through a store or factory, and are the backbone of virtually any moving mechanism. Smooth balls placed between two moving surfaces virtually eliminate friction. For the first time, the idea, as many believe, was born back in the time of the Roman Empire, but historians believe that it was in da Vinci's notebooks that the first sketches of the bearing appeared. Many of the devices invented by the genius would not work without bearings. But as is the case with many of the inventor's other concepts, the bearing had to be reinvented by someone else.
, with which the body falls depends on two factors: the force of gravity, which pulls down, and the resistance of the atmosphere in which it falls. In the absence of an atmosphere, a falling body will simply accelerate to tremendous speed until it hits the surface, but the air slows down the fall until the body reaches the so-called terminal speed. Different objects have different speed limits. For a person falling in the Earth's atmosphere - a skydiver, for example - this speed is approximately 193.1 km / h. Slow, right? So be it, but this is enough for a person who has fallen from an airplane to turn into a cake after hitting the surface of the earth. Only a parachute can save him.
Da Vinci, fascinated by the idea of a flying man, conceived his parachute as a means to drift through the air. Its pyramidal structure was draped with cloth. As da Vinci wrote in his notes, such a device would allow a person to “fall from any height without any injury or damage.” Naturalists of the twenty-first century, who realized the plan of da Vinci, recognized that it works exactly as he predicted.
Da Vinci was inspired by birds. He watched them, drew them and thought about creating his own aircraft. One result of this hobby was the ornithopter, a device devised by da Vinci that could theoretically lift a person into the air like a bird. While a da Vinci parachute would have allowed a man to jump off a cliff and stay alive, an ornithopter would have allowed him to hover in the air above the earth.
On paper, an ornithopter looks more like a bird (or bat) than modern aircraft. Its wings will start to work after the pilot turns the handle. This invention demonstrates a deep understanding of da Vinci's aerodynamics. Modern attempts to reproduce the ornithopter have shown that it could indeed fly - if it was lifted into the air. It would be more difficult to build an aircraft that uses weak human muscles.
The parachute and the ornithopter were only two of the flying machines described by da Vinci in his notebooks. Others included both a glider and a helicopter-like aircraft, which we may discuss later.
The da Vinci machine gun or "33-barrel organ" was not a machine gun in the modern sense. He could not quickly fire bullets from one barrel. But on the other hand, it could fire volleys at short intervals, and if it had been built, it would have effectively mowed down the advancing infantry.
The mechanism of this machine gun is simple. Da Vinci suggested assembling 11 muskets on a rectangular board, and then folding three such boards into a triangle. By placing a shaft in the middle, it would be possible to rotate this whole thing so that one set of 11 guns fires while the other two cool down and reload. After that, the whole mechanism turned over and gave another volley.
And although da Vinci constantly noted in his notebooks that he hated war and cursed killing machines, he needed money, and he could easily convince wealthy patrons that such machines would help them defeat their enemies. Perhaps it's for the best that none of the killing machines da Vinci conceived were ever built.
While living in Venice in the late 15th century, da Vinci developed the idea to repel invading ships. It was enough to send men to the bottom of the harbor in diving suits, and there they would simply open the bottoms of the ships like tin cans. Perhaps this idea does not impress you, since at present its implementation seems to be quite simple. But in da Vinci's time, this was unheard of. Da Vinci divers could breathe with the help of an underwater air bell, put on masks with glass holes through which one could see underwater. In another version of the concept, divers could breathe using wine bottles filled with air. In both cases, the men would carry bottles with them to urinate in, so they could stay underwater for a very long time. Da Vinci's plan was not only feasible - it was practical!
These diving suits were actually created, but the invaders against whom they were supposed to be used were successfully defeated by the Venetian fleet before underwater sabotage was needed.
armored tank
Working for the Duke of Milan, Lodovico Sforza, da Vinci proposed what could be the pinnacle of his creation in the field of military vehicles: an armored tank. Assisted by eight strong men, the armored tank looked like a turtle that bristled with 36 guns from all sides. It was equipped with a system of gears that made up a sequence. Eight people were protected from battle by an outer shell, so they could deliver such a “hedgehog” on foot right into the thick of the battle without being wounded. Shooting in all directions, weapons from an armored tank could be fatal to an opponent's detachment.
The scheme of the armored tank in da Vinci's notes contains a funny flaw: the wheels for moving forward were spinning in the opposite direction from the rear wheels. Built in this way, the tank could not move. Da Vinci was too smart to make such an unfortunate mistake, so historians have given several reasons why the inventor deliberately made such a mistake. Perhaps he really did not want this machine to be built. Another option is that he was afraid that the scheme would fall into the clutches of enemies, so he made a mistake to make sure that no one but him could build a tank.
self-propelled cart
working model.
Da Vinci's self-propelled cart is put forward as the first automobile in history. Moreover, since it did not have a driver, it can also be considered as the first robotic transport in history.
The drawings made by da Vinci do not fully reveal the internal mechanism, so modern engineers have had to guess what made the cart go forward. The best guess was a spring mechanism like the one used in watches. The springs were hidden in drum-shaped cases and could be wound by hand. And while the spring unwinds, the trolley rides forward like a clockwork toy. The steering wheel could be programmed with a series of blocks in the gear chain, although the fact that the bogie could only turn to the right would have severely limited its usefulness.
Leonardo apparently regarded his cart as something of a toy, but there is no doubt that if it were built, more useful improvements would soon follow.
Cities of the future
Leonardo da Vinci Bridge.
When Leonardo lived in Milan around 1400, the black plague was rampant in Europe. Cities suffered far more than the countryside, and da Vinci suggested that there was something special about cities that made them vulnerable to disease. This idea is surprisingly close to the present, given that the theory of microbial disease was developed only at the beginning of the 20th century. Da Vinci set out to develop his own plan: a city, originally designed and built from scratch, that would be sanitary and habitable.
The result was an urban planning triumph that was never built. Da Vinci's "ideal city" was divided into several levels, each of which had minimal unsanitary conditions, and a network of canals facilitated the rapid removal of waste. Water was supposed to provide buildings through a hydraulic system, which served as the prototype of the modern one. The resources needed to create such a city were beyond the means available to da Vinci, and he could not find a patron willing to put his money on the construction of such a city.
Air propeller
The da Vinci propeller is probably the coolest project ever found in his notebooks. It would work on the principle of a modern helicopter. The flying machine looked like a huge pinwheel. The "blades" of the helicopter were made of linen. If spun fast enough, they could create thrust, the aerodynamic phenomenon that allows airplanes and helicopters to fly. The air would create pressure under each of the blades, thereby lifting the flying machine into the sky.
The idea, anyway, was this. Could such a propeller fly? Hardly. But it would be cool.
robot knight
Leonardo da Vinci carefully studied human anatomy.
If da Vinci's self-propelled cart was the first working design for robotic transportation, the robot knight could be the first humanoid robot, C-3PO of the 15th century. Da Vinci carefully studied the anatomy of the human body and spent hours dismembering corpses to figure out how it works. He realized that muscles move bones. After that, he decided that the same principle could form the basis of the machine. Unlike most of da Vinci's inventions, Leonardo does appear to have built a robotic knight, but it was used primarily for party entertainment by the genius's lavish patron, Lodovico Sforza. Of course, that robot was much different from .
The da Vinci robot has not survived, and no one knows exactly what it was capable of. But apparently, he walked, sat and even worked with his jaws. In his work, a system of pulleys and gears was used. In 2002, robotics expert Mark Rosheim took da Vinci's workbooks to build a working model of a 15th century robot. As a result, Rosheim borrowed some ideas to create planetary reconnaissance robots that.
As you can see, after half a century of space research, Leonardo da Vinci's projects finally went into outer space.
