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From steam to spark plug and patent problems

The USA likes to let the world know that everything started in the land of unlimited possibilities. Nowadays people have lost their way, but in the past they knew what they were doing. Step by step the most important inventions and achievements are described, not only from the USA. It is not a complete story but a description of highlights.

Steam vehicles

1769

 

Nicholas-Joseph Cugnot (1725-1804), a French inventor,  builds a steam-powered weapon tractor that reaches a top speed of 4  km/h. Every 15 minutes the machine had to stop to build up steam power. The device could  pull an artillery piece up to 4 tons. The following year, Cugnot built a tricycle that could carry 4 people. The device was barely  and in 1771 the vehicle caused the first motorized traffic accident by hitting a stone wall. After his boss dies and the others are banned, he stops further development because there is no money left for further development. Watchmaker Onésiphore Pecqueur (1792-1852) continues the improvement and also invents the first automobile differential in 1827. Many techniques, such as the differential,  come from the clock world.

Cugnot steam tractor 1769

The 'Puffing Devil' of 1801

1790/1805

 

Oliver Evans (1755-1819) was an inquisitive person who could quickly make connections to see the big picture. Despite the few books at his disposal, one of those books described Newcomen's atmospheric steam engine (used in mines to pump water but with an efficiency of 1 percent). He soon saw that much more was possible with it. Evans was already looking at how  carts  no longer had to be propelled by horses.  He already had this 'problem'  dismissed as 'insoluble'. Until the book about  Newcomers.  

 

When his brothers asked him to help them with their mill, he saw that working in such a mill was very hard and started to automate the process. In the meantime he described the application of the steam engine for use on the road and in boats. In 1786 he patented his mill automation system and the use of high pressure steam engines in road vehicles. In 1787 he received the patent for both for a period of 14 years. Approved by Thomas Jefferson, among others. The patent on  the new application of the steam engine is seen as useless  but also as innocent. In 1790 the US Patent law was enacted. Oliver Evans immediately applies for a patent on his mill system and gets it, it is one of 3 patents that year. T he first US patent for a steam-powered vehicle was also  awarded to Oliver Evans. It  Integrating and automating multiple processes in a mill is considered the first fully automated industrial process and would form the basis for mass production.

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After a period of little luck and money, he started in 1801 with the development of a steam vehicle. Completely of his own resources and mainly because he felt that he  Patent Office was guilty. His first machine was a stationary 6 cylinder,  which had cost him a total of $4,700. He sold the first, after a demonstration in the town square, for use on a steamboat on the Mississippi. However, it would never be used on the boat due to other problems. The engine  was then used to saw wood. This went on for a year without any problems after which the mill was destroyed by companies in the surrounding area who suffered from the efficiency of the mill with this machine. Evans  built his first steam-powered  boat, the  'oruktor amphibolis', commissioned years later by the City of Philadelphia after first trying to convince the Lancaster Turnpike Company that using his 'vehicle' was more efficient than transporting products by horse and cart. However, this proposal was rejected. The city of Philadelphia was looking for a way to  to dredge the river. Evans' design became the first amphibious vehicle to be used for dredges. Because the oruktor had to be brought to the river, it was  equipped with wheels. The device would have driven to the river under its own power, making it the first vehicle in the US and the first moving amphibious vehicle in the world. There is no evidence of the build of the vehicle other than in Evans' own papers.  next to Evans  steam engine, there were still 5 to 6 steam engines in the US, according to a study by Mr. labrobe.  

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After his patents were extended, he actually started to earn something by converting the mills. However, people did not always pay and many lawsuits followed. Even one where Jefferson denounced the applicability of patents but ultimately defended the patent laws. The state tried to water down Evans' patents. however, this did not work. Evans  started his company 'Mars Iron Works' in 1806. His high-pressure steam engines were eventually  used on boats in the Mississippi. Evans wrote a lot about mechanically powered vehicles but never got the funding  for each other. In 1812 he published A Foresight of Transport in the Future. A nationwide network of tracks and steam locomotives. A locomotive in 1812 was a curiosity that was not taken seriously. In 1812 a piece was also published on the dangers of high pressure steam. In England, a boiler had exploded from a Trevithick machine. James Watt (inventor of the steam locomotive, patent in 1784 and proponent of low-pressure steam systems) thought the best man should be hanged. This accident did not help Evans' plan to succeed. In  In 1815 he had a piece placed in the newspapers in which he presented his techniques for powering boats and vehicles. Unfortunately without success. While in New York in 1819, he was told that his business was on fire. This hurt him so much that he died that same month, almost at the same time as James Watt.

 

1801

 

In France and England steam vehicles have already been driving around. Richard Trevithick builds a full-size door  steam powered car.  The 'Puffing Devil'. It concerns a small steam engine with high pressure that is attached  on a wagon with wheels. He used it to drive through the streets of Cornwall with friends. The steam boiler was only able to maintain sufficient pressure for a short time  and was therefore poorly usable. It was the first machine  which used high-pressure steam.  

 

1803

 

Trevithick builds the 'London Steam Carriage'. This one lasted longer than the 'Puffing Devil'. There was a lot of interest from the public and the press when he drove it in London from Holborn to Paddington and back. However, it was uncomfortable and more expensive than using horses. The project was therefore also stopped. In the same year, one of his stationary pump explodes  motorcycles that kill 4 people. He attributes this accident to incorrect operation of the engine. James Watt took full advantage of this incident to promote his low pressure systems. Trevithick then built safety valves into his machines. After this he builds the first steam locomotive for use in an iron mine. The first ride was on February 21, 1804. The 9.75 mile trip was completed in 4:05 hours with 10 tons of iron, 5 wagons and 70 people. The device was not reliable and had many issues. George Stephenson is therefore seen as the real inventor of deployable locomotives. The first Stephenson locomotive was put into service 10 years after that of Trevithick.

1831-1850

 

Between 1824 and 1836 Walter Hancock builds  (brother of Thomas Hancock, inventor of rubber mixing and the vulcanization process) some steam powered vehicles in Stratford (UK). The by him and his colleagues Sir Goldsworthy Gurney and, among others, John Scott Russell in Britain  used steam carriages were much more successful commercially. In 1827 Hancock patented  a boiler with separated  chambers through which a cauldron could only rupture and cease to explode. A very big step in the field of safety. Hancock has been able to use various steam vehicles for paid passenger transport for several years. Unfortunately, the high tolls introduced by the Turnpike Acts discouraged the use of these carriages. This kept the monopoly of horse traction possible until the great tracks were built in the 1840s and 50s. In total, Hancock had covered 4,200 miles, carrying 12,761 people. Charles Deitz steam tractors pull carriages with  passengers through Paris and Bordeaux.

 

1850-1872

 

Several inventors in Europe and America drive steam and fuel vehicles. Around 1868, Louis-Guillaume Perreaux (steam engine) and Pierre Michaux (metal bicycle) invent what was probably the first motorcycle. In 1869 Robert William Thomson's 'road steamer' of Edinburgh had wheels with solid rubber. Builds in 1871  dr. Carhart, a physics professor at Wisconsin State University, teams up with the JI Case Company on a steam car that wins a 200-mile race. In 1872 Charles Randolph of Glasgow built a 5 meter long vehicle, 1500 kg and a top speed of 10 km/h. Two vertical twin cylinder engines worked independently of each other and drove the rear wheels. The whole vehicle was covered and equipped with windows, seats 6 people and even had two rear-view mirrors.

 

1873-1883

 

The Franco-Prussian War had just ended and there was a need to move. Amédéé Bollée from Le Mans built a series of steam-powered passenger cars for 6 to 12 people.  One of these vehicles was called the L'Obeissante (the obedient one, to keep the police calm).  this must be reported in advance to the municipality, after which a permit for the trip was obtained.  With a weight of 4 tons and a top speed of around  At 40 km/h, these vehicles had the front engine, a steering wheel, a drive shaft to the rear differential with chain drive, independent suspension at the front and two gears. This vehicle is therefore seen as the first vehicle that could pass as a car. The era of the modern car had begun.

 

1884-1900

 

These years many small three- and four-wheelers appeared, especially from Dion & Bouton. These successfully competed in long distance races but soon found themselves in competition  of vehicles with combustion engines, in particular Peugeot. Steam cars were not made in America until 1894  and sold in such numbers  that it was only then that one could speak of a 'company'. Ransom E. Olds built his first steam buggy in 1887 and his second in 1893 which he sold to a company in India. Electric cars were not sold until 1897 . The first fuel car in America belonged to Alexander Winton in 1898. However, in France already  sold cars from 1892. For every 100 in France, 12 were sold in America. The proponents of the steam car fought their battle at the rear that would continue into the new century. But the race is not always won by the fastest. France might have the best roads and the most interested buyers of any nation, yet there were circumstances that would make America the largest automobile producing and selling country. According to the Americans, the Europeans limited themselves by making their products as traditional and precise as possible. This made the product too expensive, especially compared to an American product. The Europeans want to work out everything down to the last detail, the Americans want a product that is simple, does what it is supposed to do and is durable enough.  

 

Stanley Steamers

 

Around 1898, the Electric Vehicle Company was started with money from Wall Street. Electric cars were thought to be the future. Why drive a smelly, fat, loud buggy when you can also drive a quiet one?  and could drive a clean buggy. Then came the Stanley brothers (Francis and Freelan) and built a steam car called the Stanley Motor Carriage Company. There was a lot of interest in this when 200 orders were immediately placed. They had the patents in order and built their cars in an old bicycle factory until a syndicate bought them out for  $250,000.

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The Stanley brothers first saw a horseless carriage at a trade show in Brockton, Massachusetts, in 1896. This steamer was so inefficient that it had to stop continuously to regain power. After this fair, they decided to build a steamer themselves. The brothers had already amassed a small fortune producing dry plates for photography, so they could easily start a new business. By the end of 1896 they had the blueprints ready. They bought a separate engine and boiler but these turned out to be too heavy for their light buggy. Because it had already cost money, she built everything up anyway. Both had never ridden before, but this didn't stop them from their first ride in September 1897. During their test rides, the horses in the village were so startled that they ran. They did find out that the car was too slow because of the high weight. Their suppliers couldn't help them, so they hired an engineer themselves. Together they design  a light engine and boiler that did not have to power a ship but only a light buggy. After the engine and boiler were made and also kept very light they were told that the engine would vibrate apart, burn down, melt or  would simply say pffffft. The opposite turned out to be true, it ran perfectly. So good that they built a second one and rode it together through the village, frightening horses and residents alike. They didn't want to build cars at all, it was a hobby. Until one of the brothers thought he could build a better car and he sold his car to one of the many interested parties. This was in 1898. A month later there was an auto show in New England. There were 4 cars present, a De Dion, a sleek race car, and three American buggy-like cars: a Haynes Apperson petrol car, a Whitney steamer and a Riker electric car.  

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After the show there was a race and a hill climb competition. The Stanley brothers were persuaded to join. De De Dion won with ease  of the three American participants present. Then it was the Stanley's turn. With a lot of hiss the car sped away and completed the 1 mile lap or in 2:11 versus the 2:58  of the De Dion. Then it was the turn of the hill climb. There were 5 hills with a gradient of up to 30%. The Stanley won with ease. After the game, they had to stay for another hour to answer all kinds of questions. In the two weeks following the race, they secured 200 orders and decided to become a car manufacturer. They bought the bicycle factory next to the dry plate factory for next to nothing and started building. When the first car was built, an investor and co-owner of Cosmopolitan, Mr. John B Walker, learned of the waiting list at the Stanley's. He knew nothing about cars, but everything about waiting lists. He wanted the brothers to advertise in exchange for a share in the factory. However, the brothers did not want this. During their entire existence, not a dollar has been spent on advertising. A few months later, Walker was back, this time buying the entire factory. They had only invested $20,000 but thought they could make a hefty profit and asked $250,000 for the factory. Walker didn't know how quickly to say yes and immediately arranged the money. The brothers had to come to New York by car. No sooner said than done, until they got there. Horses and chariots were everywhere and they were looked at with anger everywhere. There was a hostile atmosphere. on  Broadway even a girl on a bicycle ran into them. One of the brothers drove around with interested investors including two sons of Jay Gould and a Rockefeller. In the end, the money was raised and the brothers handed over the factory, patents, and their waiting list to Walker and his partners. Following this, the Locomobile Company of American was established which would be the market leader for years to come. The Mobile Company was also founded, which would also make use of the Stanley patents, but this came to nothing.  

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Just shortly after it was founded, the factory moved to Bridgeport Connecticut and started making gasoline cars. The brothers saw their chance and bought back their patents and small factory. Not for $250,000 but for $20,000! Several months later, the White Sewing Machine Company wanted to start using the Stanley patents and bought a license for $15,000. The brothers had everything back for a net amount of $5,000.

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The electric car had no chance of success. The range was too limited, they were too heavy and expensive equipment was needed to charge the batteries. The layman then believed that there was nothing better than a steam car. You didn't have to crank them, they were quiet, fast and powerful, didn't use kerosene and were safer. All you had to do was keep an eye on the pressure gauge and before you knew it the boiler could blow up. However, the Stanley's had pressure relief valves. Yet people were afraid and that always haunted the Stanleys. For a few more years the steam vehicles had  the advantage over fuel  cars. For example, in 1902 there were 909 cars registered in New York State, of which 485 were steamers.   

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The Stanley engine consisted of 2 cylinders and had only 13 moving parts. No gearbox was needed, the engine turned at the same speed as the wheels. There was no ignition and no carburetor, just a boiler and a kerosene burner. There were no explosions and no vibrations. For years they sold 600 to 1,000 cars a year without spending a dollar on advertising. On the other hand, their great rival White did and they sold considerably more. The Stanley prices were average. They started under $1,000, in 1909 the 12 seater Mountain Wagon cost $2,300, the Family Touring was $1,300. The money they didn't spend on advertising they did spend on races, hill climb races and endurance tests. In 1903 they entered a Memorial Day race at the Readville Track near Boston which they again won with a time of 1:02:45. The record was only short lived. A reporter told them that a man in New York had set a time of 1:01:35 on the Empire City Track. This was with an 80 HP petrol car that was built in Detrot by one Henry Ford.....

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In 1902, Freelan was told he had TB and had only one year to live. In 1903 FO Stanley therefore left for Estes Park, Colorado for his health. Into the mountains. There was no real way up and he insisted on going with his steamer. Someone actually had to come along, but nobody dared to take on the adventure. Stanley set out on his own, completing the journey from Denver in 2 hours, still a challenge today. He liked it there so much that in 1909 he started building a hotel for tourists from the east coast. He designed the hotel himself, which includes a casino, tennis courts, a 9-hole golf course and a landing strip for small aircraft. The hotel cost half a million. Stanley paid this in cash. After all, their dry record factory had just been sold. The brothers did not like credit, their cars always had to be paid in full. The hotel ran excellently and was a real first class place. In 1911, 2,300 people arrived in 2 months and were brought up with a fleet of 13 steamers. Among them JC Penny, JP Sousa, H. Firestone and others well known. Finally died  Freelan only in 1940. Thanks to the clean mountain air! The hotel still exists and is associated with the hotel from the movie The Shining! There is a Stanley steamer in the lobby and a steamer is used as a tour bus. 

locomobile

The Stanley brothers

Stanley racer 1903

The 999 Ford record car in 1903

The Stanley Steamer record car in 1905

the races

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The Ford That It  Stanley's record was controlled by Barney Oldfield. In 1904, Ford set a new record himself  the 1 mile with a top of 93 miles per hour. The Stanleys knew they could build something faster. Before they could start building this car, they were approached by Eastman Kodak to sell their dry plate factory. Due to car production and Freelan's illness, it was decided to sell the factory in 1904. This again resulted in a small fortune for the brothers. The  record car was finally finished in 1905 and was taken to Florida to set a world record on the beach at Daytona. This annual "Speed Week" was the forerunner of today's Daytona 500. Fred H, Mariott, a young Stanley employee said he  would break the record or wreck the car. The record was  at the time owned by a Ross steamer who had used Stanley boilers and two Stanley engines, so the Stanleys were already part of the record but preferred to own it themselves. The record was broken with 7 seconds and a speed of 127.66 miles per hour. Mariott became the first man to drive faster than two miles per minute. The following year, she wanted to set the record even sharper. Unfortunately the beach was in bad condition and the car crashed after a promising start. Mariott survived the accident. Until then they had their successes  always mentioned in the folders but no longer from that moment on. There was also no racing for the next ten years. They were the market leaders and the cars sold anyway. In 1917 the brothers retired. Soon after  Francis died in a car accident involving a Stanley steamer. Freelan  lost his interest in cars. The company was sold to Prescott Warren. who advertised for the first time. Although the cars were fitted with aluminum bodies and very similar to the fuel vehicles of the time, they rarely exceeded 20 horsepower and had become very expensive. In 1924, a 740D costs 3,950 while a Model T was just under $500. One of the last advantages of a steam car, not having to crank it, was also lost due to the electric starter. The company therefore went  bankrupt around  1926.

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double steamers

 

The Doble brothers wanted to build a better, easier steamer. Between 1906 and 1909, while still at school, the brothers built a crashed White steamer  and a self-designed engine and its own steamer. It was not a success, but it did encourage them to make a better design. Their third prototype led to several patents, including a steam condenser that made the water last more than 2,400 km instead of the usual 80 km. Although the convenience of a petrol car was not achieved, it appealed to the motoring journalists because of the many improvements compared to the conventional steamers. It was virtually silent, had no clutch and no transmission. The acceleration from 0 to 96 was 15 seconds. A Model T took 40 seconds to hit 80, luckily.

 

The Model B named Doble was driven from Massachusetts to Detroit by Abner Doble in search of investors. This succeeds and $ 200,000 is raised.  This establishes the General Engineering Company. The development of the Model C "Doble Detroit" was started. It had an ignition switch and a flash boiler in which atomized kerosene was ignited with a spark plug. This accelerated the heating process of the boiler allowing the car to be started in 90 seconds. The boiler had the combustion chamber at the top and had a monotube steam generator. The boiler was fully electromechanical. At the bottom of the boiler was a shell with a row of quartz rods. As the temperature increased, the shell expanded, pushing the rods forward, causing the burner turned off. As the temperature dropped, the bars withdrew again so that the burner was turned back on. The car was also equipped with a two cylinder engine that drove the rear wheels. Operation was simple with a steering wheel, a brake, a trip pedal for switching off and reverse and an accelerator pedal.The distribution of the boiler and engine over the chassis was ideal for or driving behaviour. This resulted in a smooth running car that was easy to operate and drove almost silently. Due to the lack of things that could break, the later Doble cars were very reliable, some drove hundreds of thousands of miles for it  maintenance was required.  

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The Doble Detroit was a hit at the 1917 New York Motor Show and immediately attracted 5,000 deposits. The episodes were scheduled for early 1918.  However, fewer than 80 were delivered. They blamed the shortage of steel caused by the 1st World War. The few customers who did get one complained that the cars were slow, sometimes going backwards instead of forwards. Meanwhile, the brothers argued because Abner felt he should have credit for all the technological advancements. Brother John even sued him for patent breach after which Abner left Detroit for California. When John died of cancer in 1921, the other brothers also went to California and continued under the name Doble Steam Motors. They managed to solve most problems, improve acceleration and increase reliability. After the Model C, the D was developed in 1922, only 5 or fewer copies are said to have been built. Immediately after that came the Model E in 1924. This model had 2 2 cylinder engines and the Joy's Valve gear was replaced by the Stephenson's valve gear. Prices ran po from $8,800 to $11,200 in 1923. ($117,000 to $149,000 in 2017). 24 were made. 5 have been demolished and the whereabouts of 12 are known. For example, Jay Leno has No. 20. This one previously belonged to Howard Hughes.  No. 24 was purchased by McCulloch for the development of the Paxton Phoenix steam car. It had a power of 120 hp. Abner was still working on this project as a consultant. This project was discontinued in 1954.

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Only 7 of the last Model F were made. There are two left. No. 35 was a chassis that went to Hermann Göring and was probably destroyed in the war.  

 

The Model E could drive away in 30 seconds, even if it was freezing. The top speed was 140 km/h. Nowadays, a Doble has also sometimes reached 190 km/h. This without a streamline. A stripped E accelerated to 121 km/h in 10 seconds. At around 110 km/h, the engine ran at 900 rpm and no vibration was felt. The only sound was the wind. Weight of a model E was around 2,500 kg.  

 

In 1924, Abner was sued for illegally selling stock. Despite  that he was acquitted due to a formal error, the company still went a few years later in April 1931  bankrupt. The company had two problems, the cars were too expensive, the development of a $2,000 Simplex failed to get off the ground, and Abner himself. He was a perfectionist that prevented a car from reaching the sales stage. Two more engines, model G and H, were made during these years. These have been tested and even used in some buses.

 

The brothers remained involved in their steam engines for years to come. They have been tested and applied all over the world in cars, buses, airplanes and boats. Even GM makes two cars in 1969 based on the Doble patent. A Chevrolet Chevelle and a Pontiac Grand Prix.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

2009

 

On August 25, in the Mohave desert, a British team of engineers from Hampshire broke the steam speed record with an average 225.05 km/h. The car was driven by Charles Burnett III. The car was 7.62 m long, weighed 3,000 kg, had 12 boilers and 3.2 km of steam pipes.

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Steam cars became less popular with the development of the electric starter motor and the mass production that Ford introduced with the Model T. This lowered the cost of producing and owning a conventional car that was also a lot more reliable.

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Cut away from  a  double boiler

double chassis

Doble by Jay Leno

Charles Burnet III and his steamer

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