Leonardo Da Vinci's Impact On Engineering Designs

Leonardo da Vinci’s Impact on Engineering Designs
Daniel Singh
Engineering and the Profession
Dr. Leo Oriet
Friday, October 3, 2014

Singh 2 The many ideas developed to this day had to have been documented in one way or another. These ideas usually appear on accident; they are not thought of immediately. Because of this, a quick drawing can prove to be quite helpful. For the ideas that individuals spend many hours developing, more refined designs and drawings can be made by hand or by using special computer software. One can imagine what designs from earlier inventions looked like; all hand drawn with plenty of detail to describe important aspects and operations of the design in question. Today there are software’s such as CAD to

Leonardo was unable to see all his designs built before him as he passed in 1519 before completing any of them except one. His notebooks, however, were found long after he passed and certain individuals were able to complete his designs. Da Vinci’s great fascination on birds and flight were the basis for many of his designs. The parachute was one of these designs in which allowed a person to fall from any height and drift gracefully toward the ground without getting hurt. Parachutes are meant to drastically reduce a person’s constant speed occurred during free fall, otherwise known as terminal velocity. The lower terminal velocity allows a person to survive a fall from a high elevation. Da Vinci’s parachute was formed using cloth draped over a frame shaped as a pyramid. Many individuals did not believe the design would work, however, it was proven after a test where an individual safely landed. Another design as a result of da Vinci’s fascination for birds is the ornithopter, a device that was constructed to allow humans to theoretically soar like birds. The ornithopter resembles the shape of a bird, with wings that flap by turning a crank. The ornithopter would be able to glide if it was already in the air; human propulsion would not provide enough lift to get it off the ground. This design showed da Vinci’s

The cart is thought to use spring-driven components which are similar to clocks. The springs are wound up and as they uncoil, the cart moves forward. Steering is set by blocks; however, it could only turn right. Not only did he design a working cart, da Vinci also completed a working robotic knight which was used to entertain at his patron’s parties. The hours spent dissecting corpses and learning how muscles worked allowed da Vinci to transfer this to a machine. The robot was driven by pulleys and gears and was capable of walking, sitting and moving its jaw. Da Vinci was mainly interested in warfare his entire life and designed many interesting weapons. Da Vinci was very consistent with ideas for warfare; he designed a makeshift machine gun to fire 11 shots at a time, rotate barrels for another 22 shots, all while reloading spent barrels. His diving suit revolutionized marine warfare as well as exploration. A person wearing the suit may stealthily approach enemy ships for sabotage. Da Vinci also designed an armoured war tank which was seen as the ultimate machine for warfare. Eight men inside would move the tank with 36 guns pointing in all directions. The gearing of the front wheels would only allow them to move in opposite directions, not moving the tank at all. Da Vinci’s designs have greatly influenced many economies