1. Zachary Job JOB 1
Mr. Brunner
Period8
3/19/2012
Automobile History
(Note: Had an issue with adobe, could not view prompt online, wrote about car history alone)
From motorizedhorse carriagestoFormulaOne monsters,the automobilehashad an extensive
and interestinghistory.Withoutquestion,the automobile isone of the oldestandmostmassproduced
machinesinthe historyof mankind.
Originatingfromasteammachine dreamtupby Nicolas-JosephCugnot,the automobile made a
stunningappearance whenM.Brezinconstructedthe revolutionarydevice.Althoughone of the
improvedversionsmade itsfirstdebutbysmashingintoawall,the incredible deviceshowedpromiseto
manyinventorsworldwide (GoCurrency). Lateron,a Frenchmanbythe name of JeanJosephEtienne
Lenoirmodified Rivaz’shydrogenengine tocombustgas.Due that thiscombustible liquidwasfairly
stable,the groundsforinternal combustionvehicles were laid(GoCurrency).Uponlearningof thisnew
combustionengine,Nicolaus Ottotookholdandvastlyimprovedthe design.Inventingthe firstfour
cylindergasolineengine,Nicolaushadthenmade the abilitytocreate andactual vehicle possible
(angelfire).Once thisinventionhadproveditself,GermaninventorsGottliebDiamler whowaspartnered
withWilhelmMaybach,andKarl Benzbeganalmostsimultaneouslybuildingthe firstmodernengines
and cars (angelfire).Althoughseparated,bothformedtheirowncompaniesandrapidlyadvanced
automobile technologies.Duringthesetimes, brakingandtire technologiesemergedwhichallowedfor
crucial changesto future automobile designs.Withoutinflatabletires,brakesoriginallywere asimple
leverdevice whichdepressedawoodenblockontoawoodenwheel.Fromthisfrictiondidthe rest of
the work (Bernhardt).WhenGoodyear’svulcanizationprocesswasappliedtorubberwheels,
automobilesswitchedtothisnewtechnology,butfacedanew problem(sts).Now thatcircularwood
2. JOB 2
wheelswere notavailable forbraking,anew device had tobe formed(Bernhardt).Knownasthe first
drum brake,a stainlesssteel bandwaswrappedaroundadrum.Whenclamped,the frictionwouldslow
and stopthe vehicle.The onlyissue withthisdevicewasthatitwas prone to the elementsandoverall
failure.Tofix this,brake shoeswere placedinsideadrumwhichinturn fixedthe problem(Bernhardt).
Finally,withLevassor’sdrivetrainsetup consistingof suspension,atransmission,andall other
components,the modernlayoutforanautomobile wasborn.Combinedwiththe introductionof these
necessarytechnologies,Fordproceededtocreate the firstgenuine assemblyline.Thisallowed General
Motors, MercedesBenz,Maybach,and more to rocketthe auto industryintothe future (angelfire).
Withthe basisforvehicle technologyformed,new innovationswereneededtofurthermore
elaborate automobiles. Some of the largestchangesmade tovehicles dealtwithbrakes,tires,
transmissions, drive trains, fuel systems, andsuspensions.Forbrakes, twomajorinnovationswere quick
to evolve.The diskbrake wasaunique device asitwasa simple device where apadis squeezedbya
caliperinturn causingfriction.Atopthis,bothdiscanddrumbrakeswere improvedbythe introduction
of hydraulicsystems.Insteadof requiringmanual force,userscouldapplyartificial force viathe pressof
a pedal (Bernhardt).Withtires,manychangescame about. Unlike theirsolidpredecessors,pneumatic
tireswere introducedimprovingtractionandride comfort.The firstversionknownasBiasPlyTireswas
an innertube tire witha rubbertreadprotectingit.Sucha tire consistedof cordscoatedinrubberwhich
createda sturdyoutside tire (sts).A lotlaterinhistory,radial tireswere inventedwhichchangedhow
plycords were made andaligned,andaddedmore structural elementstothem.Thisallowed foramuch
betterandefficienttire overall (sts). Withtransmissions, Levassor’soriginal designdidnotcutit.Seeing
a needto handle the growingabilityof vehicles, inventorLouis-Rene PanhardjoinedLevassortocreate
the slidinggearmanual transmissionknowntomodernsocietyasthe manual transmissionandthe rear
3. JOB 3
differential.Thiswasamajor leapfromoldertechnologies.Unlike before,one thencouldadjustspeed
by meansof a gear settingandthrottle,andthentiresat the rear wouldwearlessasone thencouldbe
spundifferentlythanthe other(motorera).Lateronbut nottoo longafter,it wasdiscoveredthatfluid
couldbe usedalongwithgearsto create transmissionswhichwere previouslyimpossible.Fromthis,the
hydraulictorque converterwascreatedwhichwe now know asthe planetarygeartrainor automatic
transmission (motorera).Necessarytowardsroughterrainvehiclecreation,fourwheeldrive systems
were inventedbyOttoZachowand WilliamBesserdich.Theircontributionwasnecessarytowardsoff
road vehiclesandtowingunits.Thiskindof systemallowsforextratractionovera surface overall
improvingavehicleshandling (motorera).Fuel injectionwasdevelopedlateron,andthiswascrucial
towardsallowingvehiclestoperformatmultiple anglesof operation.Suchasystemfeedanengine
withinitoperatingconditionssothatfuel wouldnotstopfeedingitatany angle etcetera. With
suspension,manysubtle changesleadtomakingcarsofferamuch betterride.Knowntous as “shocks,”
the telescope shockabsorberwasacrucial inventiontowardsassistingsuspensionspringsinlightening
the effectsof bounce backon passengers. Atopthis,independentsuspensionwasdevelopedwhich
allowedforanimmense leapinvehicularabilities.Thisformof suspensionwouldprovevital inthe quest
for off-roadorroughterrainvehicles. Combinedwith the introductionof leaf springs,automobile
comfortwas immenselyimprovedallowingforamuch more pleasantride forboththe vehicle and
passengers(National Academyof Engineering).
While some innovationswereimmenselyimportanttowardsbasicvehicle function,manyother
improvementsallowedforoverall operationof the vehicle tobecome easierandmore fluent. Of the
firstmajorchangesto occur, the electricstarterwas a majorchange thatallowedforswitchignition.
Thisremovedthe difficultyof crankinganengine tolife especiallyinharshconditions.Soonafter,power
4. JOB 4
steeringcame about,butwas notpopularuntil manydecadespassed.Thisallowsdriverstohave a
heightenedabilityof control overavehicle atanyspeed,orin anysituation. Signal lightswere too
developedearlyonforuse inautomobiles.Thisimprovedsafetygreatlyviaallowingotherstoknow
whataction anothervehicle mighttake.Finally, airconditioningandcruise control were invented.With
cruise control,a use thencouldsettheirvehicle’sspeedandconcentrate onfewertaskswhichcanbe
beneficial.Forairconditioning,the improvementallowedavehicle tokeepitswindowsupthus
achievingbetterfuelefficiencyandpassengercomfort(National Academyof Engineering).
Afterthese andotherimprovementscreatedthe basisforthe moderncar,safetybecame a
majorconcern in vehicle engineeringtoday. The firsttwomajorchangesmade to vehiclesbeganwith
the introductionof airbags (National Academyof Engineering),paddedsurfaces,shockabsorbing
steeringwheels,andseatbelts.Mostlypromptedbythe SafetyActof 1966, it was seenthatfaster,more
dangerousvehiclesneededprovisionstobetterthe roads. Evenaboutthistime,anew ideacalleda
crumple zone begantoemerge.Throughtesting,thisideaprovedsuccessful andeventuallymovedits
wayinto vehiclesall overthe board(Hoffman). Anothersmall butmajorleapincartechnologywasas
simple asimplementingsafetyglass.Unlikeregularglass,suchglass istreatedandconnectedviaa
plasticfilm.Unlike normal glass,thisglassdoesnotfall apartso easyas the filmservesasa base to
whichitcan holdonto. Thisremovedmanyissueswithglasscausinginjuriesincase of it damaging
(Lindsay).Withimprovementsintechnology,more systemswereaddedtoactivelyassistdrivers.For
largercars, stabilitymanagementsystemswere formed.Thiswouldallow forthemtohandle much
betterwithoutthe concernsof flippingormishandlingaseasily.Anothersystemintroducedwasactive
braking.Thissystemusesfeedbackasto whetherbrakingawheel couldcause alossof vehicle control.If
so,the systemactsappropriatelytocompensate orhinderusermal-useof the vehicle(Hoffman).
5. JOB 5
Anotherconvenientsysteminventedistractioncontrol.Usedtoinhibituseroveracceleration,TCS
controlsuseraccelerationtopreventalossof traction (Ijustknew that because racecar). While many
more systemswere implemented,thesethree sample the potential suchcontrolsofferverywell.
Lately,manyrevisionshave beenmade tocars whichhave yieldedimmensechangesin
performance andefficiency.Unlike earliercars,new buildmethodsprovedthataluminumcouldbe used
to replace heavysteel engines.Throughthis, lighterenginesallowedformassiveweightreduction.Such
a change gave wayto fasterand more nimble cars.Atopthis,improvementsincarframesallowedfor
lessmetal whichtooloweredweightimprovingefficiencygreatly. Animmense change thatcame fairly
recentlytocars was a modificationof transmissions.Otherthanreductionsinweights,automatic
transmissionshave beenfittedwithmore gearsthanusual.Indoingso,the car tendstostay ina low
rpm bandwhile atcommonspeeds.Thisgreatlyreducesengine strainandconsumption. Otherthen
weightreduction,enginesbecame hyperefficientwiththe introductionof electroniccontrols.Withthe
abilitytobetterfuel usage andoptimizeenginestorunwithinpeakrpmbands,cars became drastically
more efficient(I’mthe source).Finally,one lastmodernrevisiontocarsisunderdevelopment.Literallya
move to reinventthe wheel,the Tweel orNPTforshortis an airlesswheelaimedatnotonlylowering
the overall costof wheels,butremovingall the flawsthatcome withairfilledtires.Aimedatbettering
suspensionandoverallfuel economy,these tireshopetolowerweightandbetteracar’sride so that
fuel economyisdrasticallyimproved.Whilestillinthe testingstages,thistechnologyseems promising,
and maydrasticallyimprove efficiency (Grabianowski).
At the precipice of automotivetechnology,hybridsandalternative fuel vehicleshave takenthe
spotlight. Althoughmanymoderntype hybridsdate backsofar as 1839, internal combustionpowered
vehiclesstolethe spotlight(hybridcars). Beginningaspure electriccars,manydifferentideassprungup.
6. JOB 6
One decentideawasto use gasoline toruna generatorso that motorsran each wheel.Suchadevice
eliminatedthe weightandissuesaccompanyingadrive train,yetitnevertookoff.Withthe 1973 oil
embargo,manycompaniescaughton.Withthisrevelation,manycame toor didlateron that fuel
efficientvehicleswouldbe popularandnecessary.Eventually,Toyotadevelopedthe model hybridwhich
manyfollowed.Massproducedasthe Prius,thishybridshowcasedmodernhybridtechnologyassoon
as newtechnologywasdeveloped.Althoughattemptsatelectriccarsstill followed,the Priusremained
as one of the mostviable vehiclesavailable(hybridcars).Althoughhydrogencarsand compressedair
vehiclestooseempromising,currentaffiliationsbetweenautoandoil industrieshave preventedtheir
accelerationatthe giventime.Forhydrogen fuel cellcars,theircapabilityseemstobe endless.Witha
small supplyof hydrogenfuel cells,anelectricchassiswould allow forthe vehicletotravel furtherthana
conventional vehicle,andittoowouldperformexceptionallybetter.Thisisdue thata minimal drive
trainis requireddrasticallyreducingvehicle weight.Atopthis,electricmotorshave the abilityto
accelerate veryfast.While theirtopspeedmaynotmatchhighendmoderncombustionengines,their
practicalityinnormal drivingconditionsisimmense.Forairpoweredvehicles,the ideaseemspromising,
but the vehicleslackperformance thatmostplatformsoffer,andmanydonotwishto sacrifice the
powerbehindotherplatforms.Otherthanthese twoplatforms,runnerupsdon’ttrulycompete yet.
Since all electricvehiclesare still runningspace age batteries,theysimplydon’thave the capacitytogo
far. Until hydrogenfuel cellscanbe massproduced,electricvehiclesare deadinthe water.Forbiofuel
vehicles,the technologysimplycannotbe usedona massive scale.Since amassive cropyieldisrequired
to produce a verysmall volume of ethanol,the resourcesrequiredtoproduce large volumesof thisfuel
isliterallyimpractical.Althoughthe ideaisnice,the onlytechnologyworthrunningisbiodiesel ona
small scale (Iam the source).
7. JOB 7
From wagonsto computergeneratedracingmachines,the automotive industryhasevolved
immensely.Asdemandschanged,the automobileindustryhasconformed andimprovedyieldingbetter
and bettermachines.Inall,the automobile hashadone of the most fascinatinghistoriesof manyof the
machinesof mankind’sdevising.
