There is an electrical line in Ivan Petrovich's workshop. Kulibin Ivan Petrovich

10.07.2020

Born on April 21, 1735 in the village of Podnovye, Nizhny Novgorod district, in the family of Nizhny Novgorod small merchant Pyotr Kulibin, he early began to become interested in “how everything works inside.” In his room, he set up a small workshop, where he collected all the equipment available at that time for metalworking, turning and other work.

In addition, the father, who encouraged his son’s hobby, tried to bring him all the books on physics, chemistry and other natural sciences that he could find. And gradually Vanya understood where this or that household item “grows” from. But there was one more circumstance that forced the father to “indulge” his son’s hobby: the boy could repair mechanisms of any complexity (most often watches) in a matter of minutes, but when it came to millstones or some kind of factory machines, he also did not disappoint. And Kulibin Sr. shared the glory with his son: “What kind of son you have, Peter, a jack of all trades...” Soon the fame of the young miracle mechanic spread throughout Nizhny Novgorod. And if you consider that Nizhny Novgorod merchants traveled all over Russia, and sometimes looked into Europe and even Asia, very soon they heard about the talented nugget in other cities and towns. The only thing Vanya lacked was sensible textbooks, but we remember that the first Russian university opened in St. Petersburg only 11 years before Kulibin was born.

“Training from a sexton” is his only education. The father hoped to make his son a flour merchant, but the inquisitive young man strove to study mechanics, where his exceptional abilities manifested themselves very early and varied. The ardent nature of the inventor was revealed everywhere. There was a rotten pond in the garden of my father's house. Young Kulibin came up with a hydraulic device in which water from a neighboring mountain was collected into a pool, from there it went into a pond, and excess water from the pond was discharged outside, turning the pond into a flowing one in which fish could be found.

I.P. Kulibin paid especially much attention to working on the clock. They brought him fame. Kulibin’s talent was noticed by an acquaintance of his father, also an Old Believer merchant Kostromin. He gave Kulibin money to make an extraordinary watch to present to Empress Catherine II. Along with making watches for the Empress, Kulibin made an electric machine and a microscope. Finally, on April 1, 1769, Kulibin and Kostromin appeared before Catherine II with a miracle watch. The clock was shaped like an egg, with small doors opening every hour. Behind them the Holy Sepulcher was visible; on the sides of the Sepulcher stood two guards with spears. An angel rolled away the stone from the Tomb, the guards fell on their faces, and two myrrh-bearing women appeared; The chimes played three times “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those in the tombs” and the doors were closed. From five in the evening until eight in the morning, another verse was played: “Jesus has risen from the grave, as he prophesied, to give us eternal life and great mercy.” The clock mechanism consisted of more than 1,000 tiny wheels and other mechanical parts, while the clock was only the size of a duck or goose egg.

It was decided to show the mechanism to the empress. Catherine II highly appreciated the work and invited Kulibin to the capital to lead the mechanical workshops of the Academy of Sciences. Ivan Petrovich will work in this position for 32 years, inventing and complementing the mechanisms known to him.

The first invention that made Kulibin's name in the capital was a searchlight. Using a small fire source and a reflector, the self-taught engineer created a “fireball.” This ball so alarmed the residents of Vasilyevsky Island in St. Petersburg that most of them began to hastily pray. As you can see, this was the first presentation of the spotlight by a resident of northern Palmyra.

Another significant invention of the master was a self-propelled barge that could sail against the current. It was equipped with paddle wheels, which were driven by the river current. A rope was wound around the barge's propeller shaft, which helped the ship move against the current.

Petersburg, at that time the capital of Russia, was a port city. Kulibin, to facilitate communication between ship captains, invented a semaphore telegraph. Before him, sailors, to transmit signals, resorted to multi-colored flags, which were not visible at night.

In 1766, Ivan Petrovich Kulibin designed a model (1/10) of a single-arch wooden bridge. At that time, bridges were built with supports at least 50 meters apart. In the original, the Kulibinsky bridge should be 298 meters long. A specially created commission highly appreciated the bridge construction technology developed by Kulibin, and the mathematician Euler, using this model, proved several of his theoretical formulas.

Kulibin would not have been a brilliant inventor if he had not turned his attention to “self-running strollers.” He designed the prototype of a modern car, which included such parts as: cardan mechanism, gearbox, elastic coupling, brake, steering wheel and rolling bearings. Using the pedals, the driver spun the flywheel, which transmitted force to the wheels. Kulibin’s “self-running stroller” could develop quite a decent speed and carry several tens of kilograms of cargo on board.

Kulibin, from his generosity, gave inventions to people, and cunning foreigners would then organize a real hunt for the master’s drawings and appropriate his most famous inventions.

Want examples? Please! The optical telegraph invented by Kulibin would be purchased by the tsarist government from the French 35 years after the event described. Kulibin's three-wheeled scooter carriage with a flywheel, brake, and gearbox will form the basis of the chassis of Karl Benz's car in a hundred years. The “mechanical leg” he created for an officer who lost a limb during the Ochakovo assault will form the basis of current prosthetics. The same applies to the rope polygon method he invented, without which there would not have been such openwork and very strong modern bridges. And even more - the construction of the famous Beijing Bird's Nest stadium, where Olympians compete today, is based on ideas expressed in the 19th century by Kulibin. But also construction equipment, transport, communications, Agriculture and other industries preserve remarkable evidence of his work. I.P. Kulibin’s remarkable projects in the field of bridge construction became widely known, far ahead of everything that was known in world practice in his day.

The Peacock clock was created in the 18th century by the English master James Cox and purchased by Prince Potemkin in disassembled form. The only person in Russia who managed to assemble this watch was Ivan Kulibin. The Peacock clock still works to this day and is one of the most interesting exhibits in the Hermitage.

A tireless innovator, Kulibin was conservative in his home life and habits. He never smoked tobacco or played cards. Wrote poetry. He loved parties, although he only joked and joked at them, since he was an absolute teetotaler. At court, among the embroidered uniforms of Western cut, Kulibin in a long caftan, high boots and a thick beard seemed to be a representative of another world. But at balls he responded to ridicule with inexhaustible wit, endearing him with his good-natured loquacity and innate dignity in appearance.

The best people At that time, the talent of I.P. Kulibin was highly valued. The famous scientist Leonhard Euler considered him a genius. A story has been preserved about the meeting of Suvorov and Kulibin at Potemkin’s big celebration:

“As soon as Suvorov saw Kulibin at the other end of the hall, he quickly approached him, stopped a few steps away, made a low bow and said:

Your Grace!

Then, taking another step closer to Kulibin, he bowed even lower and said:

Your honor!

Finally, approaching Kulibin completely, he bowed from the waist and added:

My respect to your wisdom!

Then he took Kulibin by the hand, asked him about his health and, turning to the whole meeting, said:

God have mercy, a lot of intelligence! He'll invent a flying carpet for us!"

Thus, the immortal Suvorov honored the great creative power of the Russian people in the person of Ivan Petrovich Kulibin. ***

Kulibin lived to be 83 years old, and continued to work until the very end.

Kulibin was married three times, the third time he married as a 70-year-old man, and his third wife brought him three daughters. In total he had 12 children of both sexes. He educated all his sons.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia:

The remarkable self-taught mechanic Ivan Petrovich Kulibin was born on April 10 (April 21, new style) 1735 in the family of a small merchant in the village of Podnovye, Nizhny Novgorod district.

In his youth, Kulibin was interested in studying clock mechanisms. In 1764-1767 with the financial support of merchant M.A. Kostromin, he created an egg-shaped clock, which was a complex mechanical device, and in 1769 he presented it to Empress Catherine II, who appointed Kulibin as head of the mechanical workshops of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

Kulibin’s duties included “to have primary supervision over the mechanical and optical workshops, so that all work is successfully and decently produced, and to make an open demonstration to academic artists in everything in which he himself is skilled.” The workshops produced astronomical optical tubes, electrostatic devices, and navigation instruments, in the design of which scientists from the Academy of Sciences participated. While working at the Academy of Sciences, Kulibin designed a “planetary” pocket watch, in which he used a compensation device of the new system; in addition to hours, minutes and seconds, they showed months, days of the week, seasons, and phases of the moon. He also created designs for tower clocks, miniature “ring clocks”, etc.

Kulibin developed new methods of grinding glass for the manufacture of microscopes, telescopes and other optical instruments. In the 1770s. he designed a wooden single-arch bridge across the Neva with a span length of 298 meters (instead of the previously used 50-60-meter spans), proposing the use of original trusses with a cross lattice. In 1776, a 1/10 life-size model of this bridge built by Kulibin was tested by a special academic commission; the project was approved but not implemented.

In 1779, Kulibin designed a lantern (searchlight), which gave powerful light from a weak source. This invention was used for industrial purposes - for lighting workshops, ships, lighthouses, etc. In 1791, Kulibin made a pedal cart-scooter, in which he used a flywheel, brake, gearbox, rolling bearings, and also developed the design of “mechanical legs” (prostheses).

In 1792, Kulibin was accepted as a member of the Free Economic Society. In 1793, he built an elevator that raised the cabin using screw mechanisms, and in 1794 he created an optical telegraph for transmitting conditioned signals at a distance. In 1801, Kulibin was dismissed from the Academy of Sciences and returned to Nizhny Novgorod. In 1804, he built a “water boat”, work on which he began back in 1782 (“the ship sailed against the water, with the help of the same water, without any outside force”). Kulibin’s work on the use of a steam engine for ship propulsion dates back to the same time. He also developed a device for boring and processing the internal surfaces of cylinders, salt mining machines, seeders, various mill machines, a water wheel of an original design, etc.

Story:

Nizhny Novgorod “posadsky” Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, after several years of hard work and many sleepless nights, built an amazing clock in 1767. “The appearance and size between a goose and a duck egg,” they were enclosed in an intricate gold frame.

The watch was so remarkable that it was accepted as a gift by Empress Catherine II. They not only showed the time, but also struck the hours, half and quarter hours. In addition, they contained a tiny automatic theater. At the end of each hour, the doors opened, revealing a golden palace in which the performance was automatically played out. At the “Holy Sepulcher” stood soldiers with spears. The front door was blocked with stones. Half a minute after the palace was opened, an angel appeared, the stone was moved away, the doors opened, and the warriors, struck by fear, fell on their faces. After another half a minute, the “myrrh-bearing women” appeared, the bells rang, and the verse “Christ is risen” was sung three times. Everything calmed down, and the doors closed the palace so that in an hour the whole action would be repeated again. At noon the clock played a hymn composed by I.P. Kulibin in honor of the Empress. After that, during the second half of the day, the clock sang a new verse: “Jesus has risen from the grave.” With the help of special arrows, it was possible to trigger the action of the automatic theater at any time.

In the precisely coordinated movement of the mass of the smallest details, in the action of time indicators, figurines, musical devices, the sleepless nights of the remarkable Russian mechanic, who worked for years to create one of the most amazing automata known in history, were embodied.

Creating the most complex mechanism of the first of his creations, I.P. Kulibin began to work precisely in the field that was dealt with by the best technicians and scientists of that time, right up to the great Lomonosov, who paid a lot of attention to the work of creating the most accurate watches. I. P. Kulibin’s work on the clock had great importance. As K. Marx pointed out, the clock, together with the mill, were “two material foundations on which preparatory work for the machine industry was built within the manufacture... The clock is the first automatic machine created for practical purposes; the whole theory of the production of uniform movements was developed on them. By their nature, they themselves are built on a combination of semi-artistic craft with direct theory” (K. Marx and F. Engels, Works, vol. XXIII, p. 131).

I.P. Kulibin, having begun his work with the invention of an unprecedented clock, followed one of the great roads of technical thought of that time and took a place among the pioneers who developed precision mechanics in practice.

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, an outstanding inventor and self-taught mechanic, was born on April 21, 1735 in Nizhny Novgorod, in the family of a small merchant. “Training from a sexton” is his only education. The father hoped to make his son a flour merchant, but the inquisitive young man strove to study mechanics, where his exceptional abilities manifested themselves very early and varied. The ardent nature of the inventor was revealed everywhere. There was a rotten pond in the garden of my father's house. Young Kulibin came up with a hydraulic device in which water from a neighboring mountain was collected into a pool, from there it went into a pond, and excess water from the pond was discharged outside, turning the pond into a flowing one in which fish could be found.

I.P. Kulibin paid especially much attention to working on the clock. They brought him fame. The Nizhny Novgorod watchmaker-inventor and designer became known far beyond the borders of his city. In 1767 he was introduced to Catherine II in Nizhny Novgorod, in 1769 he was summoned to St. Petersburg, again introduced to the empress and was appointed to head the workshops of the Academy of Sciences. In addition to the watch, he brought an electric machine, a microscope and a telescope from Nizhny Novgorod to St. Petersburg. All these creations of the “Nizhny Novgorod tradesman” were handed over to the Kunstkamera for storage.

With the move to St. Petersburg came the best years in the life of I.P. Kulibin. Left behind were many years of life, full of hard, inconspicuous work. The road to a new, more interesting business opened up ahead. We had to work in conditions of constant communication with academicians and other outstanding people. However, the long clerical red tape for the registration of the “Nizhny Novgorod Posad” in the position ended only on January 2, 1770, when I. P. Kulibin signed the “condition” - an agreement on his duties in the academic service.

He was supposed to: “have main supervision over the instrumental, metalworking, turning and over the chamber where optical instruments, thermometers and barometers are made.” He was also obliged to: “clean and repair astronomical and other clocks located at the Academy, telescopes, spotting scopes and other, especially physical instruments from the Commission [i.e. from the governing body of the Academy], sent to him.” “Condition” also contained a special clause about the indispensable training of I.P. Kulibin for employees of academic workshops: “To make an open demonstration to academic artists in everything in which he himself is skilled.” It was also provided for the preparation of boys assigned to I.P. Kulibin for training at one hundred rubles for each of the students, who “themselves, without the help and testimony of a master, will be able to make some large instrument, for example, a telescope or a large astronomical tube from 15 to 20 feet, mediocre kindness." For managing the workshops and working in them, they paid 350 rubles a year, giving I.P. Kulibin the right to work on his personal inventions in the afternoon.

So Ivan Petrovich Kulibin became the “Mechanic of the St. Petersburg Academy”.

I.P. Kulibin became the direct successor of the remarkable works of Lomonosov, who did a lot for the development of academic workshops and paid special attention to them until his death in 1765.

I.P. Kulibin worked at the Academy for thirty years. His works have always been highly appreciated by scientists. A few months after the start of I.P. Kulibin’s academic work, Academician Rumovsky examined the “Gregorian telescope” made by the new mechanic. According to Rumovsky’s report on August 13, 1770, in the minutes of the academic conference they wrote: “... in considering the many great difficulties that occur when making such telescopes, it was our pleasure to encourage the artist Kulibin to continue making such instruments, for there is no doubt about it, that he will soon bring them to the perfection to which they are brought in England.”

A written review of Kulibin’s work, presented by Rumovsky, read: “Ivan Kulibin, a townsman of Nizhny Novgorod, in the discussion of various machines made, in December 1769, on December 23, was accepted into the Academy under a contract and entrusted with overseeing the mechanical laboratory, from that time he is in this position and not only for its correction, but also for the instructions taught by the artist, he deserves special praise from the Academy.”

I.P. Kulibin personally completed and supervised the execution of a very large number of instruments for scientific observations and experiments. Many instruments passed through his hands: “hydrodynamic instruments”, “instruments used for performing mechanical experiments”, optical and acoustic instruments, preparation tables, astrolabes, telescopes, telescopes, microscopes, “electric jars”, sundials and other dials, spirit levels, precision scales and many others, “Instrumental turning, metalworking, barometric chambers”, working under the leadership of I.P. Kulibin, supplied scientists and the whole of Russia with a wide variety of instruments. “Made by Kulibin” - this mark can be placed on a significant number of scientific instruments that were in circulation in Russia at that time.

The numerous instructions he compiled taught how to handle the most complex instruments and how to obtain the most accurate readings from them.

“Description of how to maintain a decent electric machine”, written by I.P. Kulibin, is just one example of how he taught how to conduct scientific experiments. The “Description” was compiled for academicians carrying out experimental work on the study of electrical phenomena. The “Description” is compiled simply, clearly and strictly scientifically. I.P. Kulibin indicated here all the basic rules for handling the device, troubleshooting methods, and techniques that ensure the most effective operation of the device.

In addition to the instructions, I.P. Kulibin also compiled scientific descriptions of the instruments, such as, for example: “A description of the astronomical perspective of 6 inches, which increases thirty times, and, therefore, will clearly show Jupiter’s satellites.”

While performing various works, I.P. Kulibin constantly took care of the education of his students and assistants, among whom should be named his Nizhny Novgorod assistant Sherstnevsky, the opticians Belyaevs, the mechanic Egorov, the closest associate of Caesarev.

I.P. Kulibin created at the Academy an exemplary production of physical and other scientific instruments for that time; the modest Nizhny Novgorod mechanic became one of the first places in the development of Russian instrument-making technology.

But construction equipment, transport, communications, agriculture and other industries also keep remarkable evidence of his creativity. I.P. Kulibin’s remarkable projects in the field of bridge construction became widely known, far ahead of everything that was known in world practice in his day.

I.P. Kulibin drew attention to the inconvenience caused by the absence in his time of permanent bridges across the river. Neva. After several preliminary proposals, in 1776 he developed a project for an arched single-span bridge across the Neva. The length of the arch is 298 meters. The arch was designed from 12,908 wooden elements, fastened with 49,650 iron bolts and 5,500 iron quadrangular cages.

In 1813, I.P. Kulibin completed the design of an iron bridge across the Neva. Addressing a petition addressed to Emperor Alexander I, he wrote about the beauty and grandeur of St. Petersburg and pointed out: “The only thing missing is the fundamental bridge on the Neva River, without which the residents endure great inconveniences and difficulties in the spring and autumn, and often even death.”

The construction of a bridge of three lattice arches resting on four bulls required up to a million pounds of iron. To allow passage of ships, special openings were provided. Everything was provided for in the project, including lighting the bridge and protecting it during ice drift.

The construction of the Kulibin Bridge, the design of which amazes even modern engineers with its boldness, turned out to be beyond the capabilities of his time.

The famous Russian bridge builder D.I. Zhuravsky, according to prof. A. Ershova (“On the importance of mechanical art in Russia”, “Bulletin of Industry”, 1859, No. 3), evaluates the model of the Kulibin bridge: “It bears the stamp of genius; it is built on a system recognized by the latest science as the most rational; the bridge is supported by an arch, its bending is prevented by a bracing system, which, due to the unknown of what is being done in Russia, is called American.”

The Kulibin wooden bridge remains unsurpassed in the field of wooden bridge construction to this day.

Understanding the exceptional importance of fast communication for a country like Russia, with its vast expanses, I. P. Kulibin began in 1794 the development of a semaphore telegraph project. He solved the problem perfectly and, in addition, developed the original code for the transmissions. But only forty years after the invention of I.P. Kulibin, the first optical telegraph lines were installed in Russia. By that time, I.P. Kulibin’s project was forgotten, and the government paid Chateau, who installed the less advanced telegraph, one hundred and twenty thousand rubles for the “secret” brought from France.

The fate of another of the great darings of a remarkable innovator, who developed a method for moving ships upstream using the very flow of the river, is just as sad. “Vodokhod” was the name of Kulibin’s ship, successfully tested in 1782. In 1804, as a result of testing another “vodokhod” Kulibin, his ship was officially recognized as “promising great benefits to the state.” But the matter did not go further than official recognition; it all ended with the ship created by I.P. Kulibin being sold at auction for scrapping. But the projects and the ships themselves were developed both in an original and profitable way, which was proven first of all by the inventor himself in the works he wrote: “Description of the benefits that can come from engine-powered ships on the Volga River, invented by Kulibin”, “Description of what benefits the treasury and society may be from machine-powered ships on the river. Volga according to approximate calculations and especially in terms of rising prices for hiring working people compared to previous years.”

Thorough, sober calculations made by I.P. Kulibin characterize him as an outstanding economist, on the other hand, they show him as a person who devoted all his strength and thoughts to the benefit of his homeland.

A wonderful patriot who worked with all his passion for his people, he accomplished so many wonderful things that even a simple list of them requires a lot of time and space. In this list, one of the first places should be occupied, in addition to those mentioned, by the following inventions: searchlights, a “scooter”, i.e. a mechanically moving carriage, prosthetics for the disabled, a seeder, a floating mill, a lifting chair (elevator), etc.

In 1779, the St. Petersburg Gazette wrote about the Kulibin lantern-spotlight, which, using a special system of mirrors, creates a very strong light effect, despite a weak light source (candle). It was reported that Kulibin: “invented the art of making a mirror composed of many parts using a certain special curved line, which, when only a candle is placed in front of it, produces an amazing effect, multiplying the light five hundred times, against ordinary candle light, and more, depending on the measure of the number of mirror particles contained in it.”

The singer of Russian fame G.R. Derzhavin, who called I.P. Kulibin “Archimedes of our days,” wrote about the wonderful lantern:

In the list of remarkable works of I.P. Kulibin, such inventions as, for example, smokeless fireworks (optical), various machines for entertainment, devices for opening palace windows and other inventions made to satisfy the requirements of the empress, the court and nobles should take their place. persons Catherine II, Potemkin, Princess Dashkova, Naryshkin and many nobles were his customers.

Fulfilling orders for inventions of this kind, I.P. Kulibin acted as a researcher here too. He had to arrange fireworks for the empress and dignitaries many times. The result was a whole treatise by Kulibin “On Fireworks”. He wrote his work thoroughly and accurately, containing sections: “On white fire”, “On green fire”, “On the explosion of rockets”, “On flowers”, “On the rays of the sun”, “On the stars” and others. I.P. Kulibin showed inexhaustible creativity. An original recipe for many funny fires was given, based on studying the influence of various substances on the color of fire. Many new technical techniques were proposed, the most ingenious types of rockets and combinations of amusing lights were put into practice. A remarkable innovator remained true to himself, even while making inventions for the entertainment of the court and nobility.

Inventions of this kind, made by I.P. Kulibin, received the greatest publicity in Tsarist Russia and, moreover, were so significant that they to some extent obscured the main works of I.P. Kulibin, which determined the true face of the great innovator. The lights of the palace fireworks seemed to push into the shadows the enormous work of I.P. Kulibin, which benefited the homeland.

Not everything written by I.P. Kulibin has been preserved, but what has come down to us is very diverse and rich. There are about two thousand drawings left after I.I. Kulibin. Sketches, descriptions of machines, notes, texts, detailed calculations, carefully executed drawings, sketches hastily made on scraps of paper, notes made in black or colored pencil, drawings on scraps of a diary, on the corner of a money account, on playing card- thousands of other records and graphic materials of Ivan Petrovich Kulibin show how his creative thought was always in full swing. This was a true genius of work, indomitable, passionate, creative.

The best people of that time highly valued the talent of I.P. Kulibin.

The famous scientist Leonhard Euler considered him a genius. A story has been preserved about the meeting of Suvorov and Kulibin at Potemkin’s big celebration:

Thus, the immortal Suvorov honored the great creative power of the Russian people in the person of Ivan Petrovich Kulibin.

However, the personal life of the remarkable innovator was filled with many sorrows. He was deprived of the joy of seeing the proper use of his labors and was forced to spend a considerable part of his talent on the work of a court porthole and decorator. Particularly bitter days came for I. Ts. Kulibin when he retired in 1801 and settled in his native Nizhny Novgorod. In fact, he had to live in exile, experiencing need that grew more and more, until his death on July 12, 1818.

For the funeral of the great figure, his wife had to sell the wall clock and also borrow money.

About I.P. Kulibino:

Svinin P., Life of the Russian mechanic Kulibin and his inventions, St. Petersburg, 1819;
Melnikov P.I., Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, “Nizhny Novgorod Provincial Gazette”, 1845, No. 11-26;
Kulibin S., Necrology of the glorious Russian mechanic Kulibin, Inventions and some anecdotes collected by State Councilor Kulibin, “Moskovityanin”, 1854, vol. VI, no. 22;
Korolenko V.G., Materials for the biography of Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, “Actions of the Nizhny Novgorod Provincial Scientific Archival Commission”, Nizhny-Novgorod, 1895, vol. II, no. 15;
Kochin N.I., Kulibin, ed. “Young Guard”, 1940 (the best of the Soviet works about Kulibin. A bibliography and a list of Kulibin’s works are given).

Source: “People of Russian Science: Essays on Outstanding Figures of Natural Science and Technology” / Ed. S.I. Vavilova. - M., L.: State. publishing house of technical and theoretical literature. - 1948.

Technique:

Nadezhda Maksimova

“Perpetual motion machine” by Ivan Kulibin

Describing Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, the Cyril and Methodius Encyclopedia (KM) modestly reports: “Russian self-taught mechanic (1735-1818). Invented many different mechanisms. Improved the grinding of glasses for optical instruments. Developed a project and built a model of a single-arch bridge across the river. Neva with a span of 298 m. Created a “mirror lantern” (a prototype of a searchlight), a semaphore telegraph and many others.”

When reading this paragraph, an unprepared person gets the feeling that Kulibin was a pretty decent inventor (he is credited with a lantern, a semaphore, and even “many others”). But on the other hand, he’s just a mechanic (like a mechanic) and even self-taught.

You can’t put him next to a highly learned European of the Renaissance.

Therefore, breaking the tradition of writing abstracts and scientific articles devoted to any personalities, I will start not with biographical data, but with a riddle.

So, it is known that Ivan Kulibin, who was born on the Volga and saw the hard work of barge haulers since childhood, invented a self-propelled barge. Which (attention!) itself went against the flow of the river, using the river flow itself (you won’t believe it!) as a driving force.

Yes, yes, this is not a mistake or a typo. Kulibin actually created a barge that, using only the power of the current, went... against the current.

It seems incredible. Impossible. Contradicts the basic laws of physics.

Judge for yourself: even if you ensure that a heavy barge has a zero coefficient of friction with the water (which is impossible!), then the ship, at best, would remain in place. It would not drift downstream into the lower reaches of the river.

And then the barge moved under its own power UP.

It's just some kind of perpetual motion machine!

The Paris Academy of Sciences would refuse to consider such a project, since it is impossible, because it will never be possible!

But Kulibin did not provide a project, but a real barge. Which, in front of a large crowd of people, was actually launched into the water and REALLY, in full view of everyone, went against the tide, without using any external forces.

Miracle? No, reality.

And now that you know this, try for yourself (after all, we are residents of the 21st century, armed with knowledge and caressed by technical progress) to figure out how a self-taught mechanic (!) of the 18th century achieved such an amazing effect, using the simplest materials available to everyone.

While you're thinking, to sharpen your thought processes, here are a few fundamental principles of invention. Developed, naturally, in the 21st century.

So,
A technical solution is considered ideal if the desired effect is achieved “for free”, without the use of any means.

A technical device is considered ideal when the device does not exist, but the action it is supposed to do is performed.

The method by which the technical solution is implemented is ideal when there is no energy or time consumption, but the required action is performed, and in a regulated manner. That is, as much as needed and only when needed.

Well, in conclusion: A substance used in a technical solution is considered ideal when the substance itself does not exist, but its function is performed in full.

Don’t you think that the rustic-bearded bast worker, or rather the self-taught mechanic Ivan Kulibin, knew how to find IDEAL solutions? Impossible from the point of view of the Paris Academy of Sciences?

Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo vividly depicts how the titular hero intercepted and distorted information transmitted via semaphore telegraph from the Spanish theater of war to Paris. The result was the collapse of the stock exchange and the enormous ruin of one of the most powerful bankers - the count's enemies.

Nothing surprising. Whoever owns the information owns the world.

I would just like to emphasize that this very semaphore telegraph was invented by Ivan Petrovich Kulibin.

Now about the spotlight.

Let us not forget that by the grace of Her Imperial Majesty Catherine II, the son of the Nizhny Novgorod Old Believer merchant Ivan Kulibin was called to the capital and there, for 32 years (from 1769 to 1801), he was in charge of the mechanical workshops of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

St. Petersburg is a seafaring city. This means that the supply of light signals in it is extremely important. There are beacons that orient ships and protect them from running aground, and the transfer of information from ship to ship...

Before Kulibin’s era, ships used multi-colored pennants raised on masts and a manual semaphore (a dashing sailor with flags) to transmit signals. It is clear that this beauty could only be seen during the day. Bonfires were lit at lighthouses at night.

But on a wooden ship, an open fire is too dangerous, so at sea, only a candle or a wick floating in a bowl of oil could be used for lighting. It is clear that the light power from such sources is low and is not suitable for transmitting signals over any significant distance. So at night the ships were plunged into darkness and information silence.

Having studied the problem, the self-taught mechanic Kulibin in 1779 designed his famous lantern with a reflector, which gave powerful light from a weak source. The importance of such a spotlight in a port city cannot be overestimated.

Victor Karpenko in his book “Mechanic Kulibin” (N. Novgorod, publishing house “BIKAR”, 2007) describes the event as follows:

“Once on a dark autumn night a fireball appeared on Vasilyevsky Island. It illuminated not only the street, but also the Promenade des Anglais. Crowds of people rushed to the light, saying prayers.

It soon became clear that it was shining from a lantern hung by the famous mechanic Kulibin from the window of his apartment, which was located on the fourth floor of the Academy.”

The lanterns were in great demand, but Kulibin was a bad entrepreneur and orders went to other craftsmen who made more than a fortune from this.

Automobile

Leonardo da Vinci is considered the first inventor of the self-running stroller in history. True, the Florentine intended it for military purposes and, as they now claim, was the prototype of the modern tank.

The device, protected on all sides by “armor” made of wood (modern bullets and shells were unknown in the Middle Ages), moved due to the muscular power of several people who sat inside and rotated the levers. (Like a “crooked starter”).

Alas, having studied Leonardo’s drawings, modern experts assessed the invention as follows:

David Fletcher, British tank historian:

Yes, at first it seems like nothing will come of it. There must be people inside turning the handles so that the wheels turn and the colossus of God knows how heavy moves from its place. I would say that it is physically almost impossible.

In order for this to move, the battlefield needs to be as flat as a table. Stone - and it will stop. A mole hole - and again a stop. The enemy will die of laughter before this thing reaches him.

But this is only at first glance. From the second, soldiers (!) of the British army noticed that there was a fundamental error in the drawing.

The gears on the wheels are not positioned correctly, said one of those who were put inside Leonard's tank and forced to turn the handles. - With this device, the front wheel rotates backward, and the rear wheel rotates forward. So what needs to be fixed is to rearrange the gears. Then both wheels will simultaneously move in the same direction.

As you can see, Leonardo's invention contained fundamental design flaws. Moreover, even after their elimination, the mechanism could only be used in laboratory conditions on a perfectly flat surface, which cannot be found in real life.

Now let's take a look at the inventions of Ivan Kulibin.

The Moscow Polytechnic Museum houses several small copies of a self-propelled stroller. These (not copies, but real products) were made in the mechanical workshops of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, headed by Kulibin, and were quite widely used for aristocrats’ walks.

Museum staff emphasize that the Kulibin self-running carriage had all the parts of a modern car: a gearbox, a brake, a cardan mechanism, a steering wheel, rolling bearings... The only similarity with Leonard’s invention was that this design was also driven by human muscles. The driver pedaled with his feet, his efforts spun the heavy flywheel... and after a short period of time, the bicycle stroller, which had an enviable carrying capacity, could develop a decent speed. The driver was only required to hold the steering wheel firmly and keep the flywheel in constant rotation.

Bridges

Da Vinci, settling under the patronage of the Duke of Milan Ludovico Sforza, Leonardo positioned himself as a military engineer.

“I can create lightweight, strong bridges,” he said, “that will be easy to transport during pursuit. Or, God forbid, escape from the enemy. I also came up with a method for besieging castles, in which the first step is to drain the moat with water.”

And the Duke accepted him into the service. However, as a sensible person (encyclopedias report that under him “Milan became one of the strongest states in Italy, a center of sciences and arts”), he entrusted the new employee not with the construction of new bridges, but with something much more modest. He entrusted Leonardo (Can you drain? - Drain!) to carry out drainage for the duchess's bathroom.

The KM Encyclopedia reports:

“In the 1770s. Kulibin designed a wooden single-arch bridge across the Neva with a span length of 298 m (instead of 50-60 m, as was built at that time). In 1766 he built a 1/10 life-size model of this bridge. It was tested by a special academic commission. The project was highly appreciated by the mathematician L. Euler, who used Kulibin’s model to check the correctness of his theoretical formulas.”

It is very interesting to mention that the famous Euler did not carry out calculations for the Russian self-taught, but used his model to check HIS calculations. He was a smart man, he understood that “practice is the criterion of truth.”

Question: why, exactly, did Kulibin need to invent a bridge of such an unusual shape? Thank God, there have been many bridge designs since ancient times...

The fact is that St. Petersburg is a large port. And to this day it accepts ships of large tonnage and displacement. In order for these huge ships to enter the city, the main bridges of St. Petersburg are made as drawbridges.

And the single-arch bridge that Kulibin proposed seemed to float over the Neva, touching the ground only at two points - on the right and left banks.

HE WOULD NOT NEED TO BE BREEDED!

The Kulibin bridges, if their project had been accepted, would have allowed ocean-going ships to enter the port not only at night, but at any time of the day! And no costs for maintenance and repair of adjustable mechanisms.

Ideal solution (see above).

Watch

It is well known that Ivan Kulibin’s metropolitan career began with the fact that during the visit of Empress Catherine II to Nizhny Novgorod, she was presented with a watch made by the master. They were the size of a goose egg and contained (in addition to the clock itself) nothing less than an automatic theater, a music box and the mechanism that controlled it all. In total, the “egg figure,” which is now a pearl in the Hermitage collection, contains 427 parts.

This is how this amazing watch is described in the book by Victor Karpenko:

“They struck every hour, half and even quarter hour. At the end of the hour, the doors in the egg opened, revealing a gilded chamber. Opposite the door stood an image of the Holy Sepulcher, into which a closed door led.

On the sides of the coffin stood two warriors with spears. Half a minute after the doors of the palace opened, an angel appeared. The door leading to the coffin opened, and the standing warriors fell to their knees. Myrrh-bearing women appeared and the church verse “Christ is Risen!”, accompanied by ringing, was heard, sung three times.

In the afternoon, another verse was sung hourly: “Jesus has risen from the grave.” At noon the clock played a hymn composed by Kulibin himself. The figures of angels, warriors and myrrh-bearing women were cast from gold and silver.”

The clocks created by Kulibin are stored in the storerooms of the Hermitage and in order to see them, you need to make special efforts (negotiate, issue a pass, etc.). Much more accessible is the famous “Peacock Clock”, made in Europe and exhibited in one of the halls of the Hermitage.

This is a truly grandiose structure, which even in the spacious Hermitage occupies a significant part of the space allocated to it.

Of course, like everything produced in Europe, the Peacock watch is a fashionable, entertaining toy and, at the same time, a work of art. In the “wonderful garden”, made in life size, a peacock, a rooster, an owl in a cage and squirrels are located on gilded oak branches. When special mechanisms are wound up, the bird figures begin to move. The owl turns its head, the peacock spreads its tail and turns its most beautiful part (that is, its rear) to the audience, the rooster crows.

Plus, in addition to all the bells and whistles, there is also a dial (in a mushroom cap), by looking at which you can, without any frills, find out in a purely human way what time it is.

The watch was purchased by Prince Potemkin from the English Duchess of Kingston, who in 1777 sailed to St. Petersburg on her own ship with a cargo of art treasures exported from England.

The watch had only one drawback: the Duchess took it out of London disassembled and it lay in the storeroom for more than ten years, losing its parts and components. For example, of the 55 cut crystals lying on the base of the clock, by 1791 only one had survived.

His Serene Highness Prince Potemkin-Tavrichesky, who spent a lot of money on the curiosity, called Kulibin and asked him to “revive the poor birds.”

The clock is still in effect.

Kulibin created a variety of watches of various designs: pocket watches, daily allowance watches, ring watches, watches with a harp...

But I would like to tell you only about one more. In 1853, a note appeared in the magazine “Moskvityanin”, signed by a certain P.N. Obninsky. He reported that he had a clock created by Kulibin in his house and asked to send a commission for examination.

What was so interesting about this device?

Firstly, the clock was astronomical. That is, they showed the course of the planets, eclipses of the Moon and the Sun. In addition, the clock indicated the date (day, month), and a special hand marked leap years.

Secondly, on the minute hand there was a small clock, about the size of a dime, which, having no connection with the general clock mechanism and not having a winding, nevertheless shows the time very accurately.

In fact, here we are again faced with the “perpetual motion machine” invented by Kulibin.

In fact, there are no springs, no weights, no visible source of energy... But the hand moves and shows the time very accurately. Miracle!

The secret is that Kulibin knew physics, perhaps better than the French Academy of Sciences.

Indeed, according to the law of conservation of energy, a “perpetual motion machine” is impossible. Because in a closed system, energy does not arise from nothing, and does not disappear into nowhere. But who forces us to remain in a CLOSED SYSTEM?

Hence the solution. The small (kopeck) clock, located on the minute hand of the astronomical clock, had a system of counterweights. The minute hand moves under the influence of the clock mechanism. At the same time, its position in the gravity field changes. Accordingly, the position of the center of gravity in the “small” watch changes, and due to this it moves. Gravity drive!

The problem with a barge moving against the current due to the force of the current is solved in approximately the same way.

In a closed system such movement would be impossible. But why isolate yourself?!

The secret is so simple that it’s even funny:

An anchor is taken and carried forward on the boat, where it hooks securely. The other end of the anchor chain (rope) is wrapped around the propeller shaft on the ship. Two paddle wheels are attached to the propeller shaft (just like on a paddle steamer).

The current puts pressure on the wheel blades, they begin to rotate, and the rope is wound around the propeller shaft. The ship begins to move against the current.

The ship was tested for several days in a row. The cargo amounted to 8,500 pounds of sand.

It is interesting to note that Kulibin’s “navigable engine vessel” was the prototype of the tuyer system introduced in the 60s of the 19th century in Russia. A steam ship was called a tuer. It had an iron body and moved forward, picking up a chain laid on the bottom of the river.

Kulibin lived to be 83 years old, and continued to work until the very end.

“For more than forty years I was engaged in the search for a self-propelled machine, I practiced doing experiments on it in secret, because many scientists consider this invention to be impossible, they even laugh and curse at those who practice in that research,” wrote Ivan Petrovich to Arshenevsky in 1817 year.

Or maybe he would? It wasn't enough. Attention, money, effort, time...

No, by inventing a “perpetual motion machine,” the impossibility of which was proven by Leonardo da Vinci, Ivan Petrovich Kulibin did not refute the laws of physics. He just knew them a little better...

Literature:

Stanislav Rapnitsky

Kulibin and the dark time

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, as you know, was a folk craftsman. And he made it without getting it. Either a clock indicating the phases of the moon, or a scooter-cart, or a steam locomotive, or even just a lantern. Dark people, and academics too, were afraid of his inventions and did not like the craftsman himself. But Kulibin could not be stopped. He really wanted the mechanisms to work for people, and people to work to buy these mechanisms! He was a golden man! Head!

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin was also an academician. But not for long. Neither extensive knowledge nor simple bribes could resolve the issue of his expulsion from the academy. Either people were evil, or Kulibin was not very inventive, but he could not get settled in life! So they chased him from everywhere. But they could simply sell it abroad for the collapse of foreign technology and economic life! I can’t imagine what people were thinking about then!

When Ivan Petrovich Kulibin was still an academician, he did not miss a single academic meeting. He’ll come like this, sit in a chair, put his feet on the table and crunch his bagels, and wash it down with sweet tea. And he puffs so loudly: pff-ffff! This, understandably, bothered other academicians. And often the academicians would give him a “dark”: they would cover him with a jacket and beat him - some with a ruler, some with a small scope, and some with an astrolabe. Soon everyone got so used to it that sometimes meetings were called specifically for this ceremony. These academicians are fascinating people! Easy to taste!

This tradition, by the way, was later adopted by leading companies. And today you can see how cheerfully and carefree everyone attacks a colleague at meetings. And with whom did it all start? - From Kulibin, of course!

Kulibin did not like students and graduate students. And if he meets someone like that in the corridor, he’ll grab you by the ear and twist and twist! And he himself says: Gotcha, scoundrel! One time I tore off one of the professor’s ears. Wrong. Or he wanted them to think that he was mistaken. He was the smartest man! And inventive!

By the way, when Kulibin was fired from the academy for systematic violation of discipline, students and graduate students came to his defense. Well, the academy lacked a strong hand!

When Kulibin invented a steam-powered carriage, everyone was happy at first. Encouraged, Ivan Petrovich immediately began to drive influential people around St. Petersburg and even encroached on the imperial family. It’s a good thing the cart exploded before that! Otherwise, Kulibin would have been accused of treason and shot as a dissident! By the way, Ivan Petrovich himself was not injured in the explosion: the catapult went off. The rest escaped with minor injuries: Kutuzov was left without an eye, and Dostoevsky became an idiot. Although, regarding Dostoevsky, they say that he had previously contracted idiocy in a cheap cafe from a German guest worker. But I think this version still belongs to Kulibin himself.

Kulibin invented a lantern and placed it on the street to illuminate St. Petersburg at night. But either the residents did not like the lantern, or it was such a dark time, and the lantern was constantly being broken. Kulibin is already tired of repairing it! I even kept watch at the lamppost at night! But as soon as he turns away - bang! - the lantern is broken, and Ivan Petrovich himself is already being robbed! Kulibin spent half his fortune on this venture. And nothing! There was still a lot of resistance to progress in Russia! Our compatriots love to resist innovations this way! But it’s understandable: change is change, but people need to live somehow!

Once Ivan Petrovich invented a special wallet in which money never runs out. And went to the store. And there is noise, a crush at the cash register. So they pulled the invention out of his pocket! And the offender went to Siberia and privatized it all! Name was Demidov. This is how it goes: one invents, another uses it. This principle, by the way, was later mastered well by the owner of Microsoft.

If it seems to someone that Kulibin’s life was full of various fiascoes, then I will object. Ivan Petrovich was born in a vast and rich country, received an excellent education and an understanding of manners. It’s really not easy for the current talent: none of the above is present in his life. There are, of course, exceptions. But rarely. Mainly in show business. On the other hand, what the hell are inventions now! Everything has already been invented, just use it if you have the money. But there is no money!

Once Ivan Petrovich gave a lecture on the electric field and steam traction. And one graduate student ask: Mr. Kulibin, what is the charge of the electron? Ivan Petrovich then became very nervous and unscrewed both the graduate student’s ears at once! His hearing became rather poor and he gave up science. But he took up music and composed so much of it that the conservatory still cannot cope with it! The graduate student's last name is Beethoven. He came to Russia on a cultural exchange from Vienna. See, it's show business again! Well, an inventor has no future, but a pop musician does. So quit academies! What's the use of them? - there's only one! Another thing is real popularity: money, fame... Well, unless they unscrew their ears!

Kulibin loved to listen to the work of various mechanisms. He stands by the steam boiler and listens, listens. Even rolls his eyes! And sometimes he puts several different units in a row - and conducts. This is how a fashionable direction in music appeared - house and techno. Ivan Petrovich gathered large audiences! All young people are students and graduate students. Without fail. Truants were excluded.

Ivan Petrovich loved colloquial expressions. Especially "figli". They give him another topic for research, and he replies: “Oh, bullshit!” - Oops! In two days the entire dissertation is ready. Well, it’s true that various words also pop up in the dissertation. So it’s unpleasant to read it. Judge for yourself: “It’s stupid to write here: a steam engine runs on steam. Why are you loading a genius with all sorts of crap! You take a barrel, pour water, damn it, light a fire - here’s a steam engine for you! It’s stupid to explore!” And so on in the same way.

As a big music lover, Kulibin once made such a mini-theater: music plays inside, and mechanical figures dance outside. Well, he was too lazy to go to theaters! At the academy, he even created a drama club, where students and graduate students acted in plays. For this, Ivan Petrovich fell in love again and changed their mind about dismissing him from the academy. So far he hasn’t staged the rock opera “At the Lower Depths” in this circle. Gorky, of course, is a classic, but no one could allow frivolous treatment of classics! Well, they gave Kulibin a severe reprimand! "Ah, bullshit!" - said the inventor and went to build a hyperboloid. A big fire happened in St. Petersburg then! Don't tie your talent's hands!

Kulibin once read a lot of science fiction and built a steam-powered robot. This robot made coffee in the morning, cut bushes, and solved arithmetic problems. Only the amount of firewood I consumed was simply unimaginable. An entire forest could be consumed in one day! He even chopped wood himself or stole it from his neighbors at night. Not a robot, but some kind of monster! This story ended as usual: the robot’s neighbors were so full of logs that he barely crawled home. And after the incident it was only good for cracking nuts. And even then, it was possible to get by with just one robotic head. But the neighbors did not touch Ivan Petrovich himself. They wrote an anonymous letter at their place of work - and it didn’t last long! It was then that Kulibin was finally fired from the academy. Otherwise they just made threats!

By the way, the first coffee maker was invented by the same Kulibin. Ivan Petrovich in person. Only at first it was not a coffee maker, but a concrete mixer. For road works. This means that this experimental concrete mixer is working, crackling and rumbling. The noise is, in general, unimaginable! Well, the merchants, of course, jumped out of their shops - and let’s throw the car and the inventor with whatever came to hand! One of the merchants was so overzealous that a whole pound of coffee landed right in the mouth. And not a second passed - and the coffee was ground and brewed. And most importantly, the powder is so fine and of such high quality! Orders immediately poured in for the car; the merchants were smart, unlike the academicians! One thing is bad: Ivan Petrovich suffered a lot with his head after this incident. The merchants were not only smart, but also accurate!

When Ivan Petrovich started having migraines, he turned to leading specialists. Experts took tests from the genius, conducted research and - nothing! The cause of illness is the illness itself. They prescribed him patches and harmless pills and sent him home. Kulibin covered himself with bandages at home, took all the pills at once and is waiting for improvement. I waited like that for a month. Then he realized that they laughed at him, and in revenge he invented a dental drill. Since then, the public does not like doctors and does not trust medicine. Especially in the field of dentistry.

Kulibin became famous for many more inventions. You can't list everything. For example, he once made a string bag that could easily fit in a pocket and folds out into a huge suitcase. The size of a carriage. Ivan Petrovich went to the market. Well, of course, I bought everything there. And puts it in a new string bag. But everything fit in it, and there was still room left. Kulibin then began to buy more food, and at the end he even stuffed the seller into the string bag. And there’s still room left in the string bag! So he bought everything at the market until the evening, until the money ran out. But there is still room! No one understood anything then, but modern science calls such phenomena a black hole. These are the kinds of inventions a creative genius is capable of! Although the string bag was not black, but on the contrary, green.

Kulibin began to study his miracle string bag and discovered that food was placed in it, but did not return back. He was already shaking her and turning her inside out: they don’t come back, even if you crack! Then he went to the academy and caught a dozen or two graduate students and even a couple of professors. Then Ivan Petrovich repeated his experience more than once. There was no point in dismissing a genius from the academy! The time of troubles has begun! - There are fewer inquisitive minds, Russia has begun to lag far behind. And by the way, he finally shook something out of the string bag! Lenin! Yes, yes, the same one! From here a new story began.

You can’t put him next to a highly learned European of the Renaissance.

Therefore, breaking the tradition of writing abstracts and scientific articles devoted to any personalities, I will start not with biographical data, but with a riddle.

Yes, yes, this is not a mistake or a typo. Kulibin actually created a barge that, using only the power of the current, went... against the current.

It seems incredible. Impossible. Contradicts the basic laws of physics.

And then the barge moved UP under its own power.

It's just some kind of perpetual motion machine!

The Paris Academy of Sciences would refuse to consider such a project, since it is impossible, because it will never be possible!

Miracle? No, reality.

And now that you know this, try for yourself (after all, we are residents of the 21st century, armed with knowledge and caressed by technical progress) to figure out how a self-taught mechanic (!) of the 18th century achieved such an amazing effect, using the simplest materials available to everyone.

While you're thinking, to sharpen your thought processes, here are a few fundamental principles of invention. Developed, naturally, in the 21st century.

So,
A technical solution is considered ideal if the desired effect is achieved “for free”, without the use of any means.

A technical device is considered ideal when the device does not exist, but the action it is supposed to do is performed.

Well, in conclusion: A substance used in a technical solution is considered ideal when the substance itself does not exist, but its function is performed in full.

Nothing surprising. Whoever owns the information owns the world.

I would just like to emphasize that this very semaphore telegraph was invented by Ivan Petrovich Kulibin.

Now about the spotlight.

Victor Karpenko in his book “Mechanic Kulibin” (N. Novgorod, publishing house “BIKAR”, 2007) describes the event as follows:

“Once on a dark autumn night a fireball appeared on Vasilyevsky Island. It illuminated not only the street, but also the Promenade des Anglais. Crowds of people rushed to the light, saying prayers.

It soon became clear that it was shining from a lantern hung by the famous mechanic Kulibin from the window of his apartment, which was located on the fourth floor of the Academy.”

The lanterns were in great demand, but Kulibin was a bad entrepreneur and orders went to other craftsmen who made more than a fortune from this.

Automobile

Leonardo da Vinci is considered the first inventor of the self-running stroller in history. True, the Florentine intended it for military purposes and, as they now claim, was the prototype of the modern tank.

Alas, having studied Leonardo’s drawings, modern experts assessed the invention as follows:

David Fletcher, British tank historian:

In order for this to move, the battlefield needs to be as flat as a table. Stone - and it will stop. A mole hole - and again a stop. The enemy will die of laughter before this thing reaches him.

But this is only at first glance. From the second, soldiers (!) of the British army noticed that there was a fundamental error in the drawing.

Now let's take a look at the inventions of Ivan Kulibin.

“Self-running stroller” by Kulibin

Bridges

Da Vinci
Arranging himself under the patronage of the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza, Leonardo positioned himself as a military engineer.

The KM Encyclopedia reports:
“In the 1770s. Kulibin designed a wooden single-arch bridge across the Neva with a span length of 298 m (instead of 50-60 m, as was built at that time). In 1766 he built a 1/10 life-size model of this bridge. It was tested by a special academic commission. The project was highly appreciated by the mathematician L. Euler, who used Kulibin’s model to check the correctness of his theoretical formulas.”

Question: why, exactly, did Kulibin need to invent a bridge of such an unusual shape? Thank God, there have been many bridge designs since ancient times...

And the single-arch bridge that Kulibin proposed seemed to float over the Neva, touching the ground only at two points - on the right and left banks.

HE WOULD NOT NEED TO BE BREEDED!

The Kulibin bridges, if their project had been accepted, would have allowed ocean-going ships to enter the port not only at night, but at any time of the day! And no costs for maintenance and repair of adjustable mechanisms.

Ideal solution (see above).

Watch

This is how this amazing watch is described in the book by Victor Karpenko:

“They struck every hour, half and even quarter hour. At the end of the hour, the doors in the egg opened, revealing a gilded chamber. Opposite the door stood an image of the Holy Sepulcher, into which a closed door led.

This is a truly grandiose structure, which even in the spacious Hermitage occupies a significant part of the space allocated to it.

Plus, in addition to all the bells and whistles, there is also a dial (in a mushroom cap), by looking at which you can, without any frills, find out in a purely human way what time it is.

The watch was purchased by Prince Potemkin from the English Duchess of Kingston, who in 1777 sailed to St. Petersburg on her own ship with a cargo of art treasures exported from England.

His Serene Highness Prince Potemkin-Tavrichesky, who spent a lot of money on the curiosity, called Kulibin and asked him to “revive the poor birds.”

The clock is still in effect.

Kulibin created a variety of watches of various designs: pocket watches, daily allowance watches, ring watches, watches with a harp...

What was so interesting about this device?

In fact, here we are again faced with the “perpetual motion machine” invented by Kulibin.

In fact, there are no springs, no weights, no visible source of energy... But the hand moves and shows the time very accurately. Miracle!

The secret is that Kulibin knew physics, perhaps better than the French Academy of Sciences.

The problem with a barge moving against the current due to the force of the current is solved in approximately the same way.

In a closed system such movement would be impossible. But why isolate yourself?!

The secret is so simple that it's even funny.

The current puts pressure on the wheel blades, they begin to rotate, and the rope is wound around the propeller shaft. The ship begins to move against the current.

The ship was tested for several days in a row. The cargo amounted to 8,500 pounds of sand.

Kulibin lived to be 83 years old, and continued to work until the very end.

Or maybe he would? It wasn't enough. Attention, money, effort, time...

Note ed. site. They say that the outstanding commander and great original A. Suvorov, seeing the great inventor at the other end of the hall, began to bow to him and say: “Your grace!”, “Your honor!”, “My respect to your wisdom!”

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin. Born on April 10 (21), 1735 in Podnovie, Nizhny Novgorod district - died on July 30 (11) August 1818 in Nizhny Novgorod. Famous Russian mechanic-inventor.

The father was a small trader.

From an early age he showed himself to be a very smart and capable young man. He especially surprised those around him with his mechanical crafts and ability to understand complex mechanisms that he saw for the first time.

Noting his son's talent, his father sent him to study metalworking, turning and watchmaking, in which Ivan Kulibin quickly achieved great skill. The talented young man was noticed and invited to Nizhny Novgorod. There he had a watch workshop. Ivan Petrovich devoted his free hours to inventing various devices and designing clock mechanisms.

Having learned that the empress was to visit the city, he decided to surprise her with his watch, which at that time was only owned by rich people and was very expensive. Having enlisted the support of his father's friend, the merchant Mikhail Kostromin, who helped his family and supported him in every possible way, he began work on a watch for the empress. Since the gift was created for the august person, the watch also assumed a unique design worthy of the empress. Work on the clock lasted three years from 1764 to 1767. The case of the product is made of silver with gold plated and has the shape of a goose egg, inside of which there is a unique mechanism consisting of 427 parts. The watch is wound once a day. The dial of the product is located at the bottom of the egg. For ease of use, the brilliant master designed a special stand for this watch, which made it possible to see the hands of the watch without turning the case over. The clock not only shows the time, but also chimes the hours, half and quarter hours. They also contained a tiny automatic theater with movable figures that played several melodies.

Kulibin presented his unique watch to the Empress, who appointed him in 1769 as head of the mechanical workshop of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

He supervised the production of machine tools, astronomical, physical and navigational instruments and instruments.

By 1772, Kulibin had developed several projects for a 298-meter single-arch bridge across the Neva with wooden lattice trusses. He built and tested a large model of such a bridge, demonstrating for the first time in bridge construction the possibility of modeling bridge structures.

In subsequent years, Kulibin invented and manufactured many original mechanisms, machines and apparatus. Among them is a spotlight with a parabolic reflector made of tiny mirrors, a river boat with a water-powered engine moving against the current. The design of the power-driven vessel was as follows: it had two anchors, the ropes of which were attached to a special shaft. One of the anchors on a boat or along the shore was delivered forward 800-1000 m and secured. The oxen working on the ship rotated the shaft and wound the anchor rope, pulling the ship towards the anchor against the current. At the same time, another boat carried the second anchor forward - this ensured continuity of movement. Kulibin came up with the idea of how to do without oxen. His idea was to use two wheels with blades. The current, rotating the wheels, transferred energy to the shaft - the anchor rope wound, and the ship pulled itself to the anchor using the energy of the water. In 1804, in Nizhny Novgorod, Kulibin built a second waterway, which was twice as fast as the Burlatsky barks. Nevertheless, the Department of Water Communications rejected the idea and prohibited funding - the waterways never gained distribution.

He built a mechanical carriage with a pedal drive and improved the grinding of glass for optical instruments.

In 1773-1775, Kulibin, together with the optician Belyaev, designed the first achromatic microscope according to the Euler-Fuss project.

In 1791 he made a scooter cart, in which he used a flywheel, a gearbox, and rolling bearings. The cart was driven by a person through a pedal mechanism.

He also developed the design of “mechanical legs” - prostheses.

In the mid-1790s, the aging Catherine II commissioned Kulibin to develop a convenient elevator for movement between floors of the Winter Palace. She definitely wanted an elevator chair, and Kulibin was faced with an interesting technical problem. It was impossible to attach a winch to such an elevator, which was open at the top, and if you “picked up” the chair with a winch from below, it would have caused inconvenience to the passenger. Kulibin solved the problem ingeniously: the base of the chair was attached to a long axis-screw and moved along it like a nut. Catherine sat on her mobile throne, the servant turned the handle, the rotation was transmitted to the axis, and it raised the chair to the second floor gallery. The Kulibin screw elevator was completed in 1793, but the second such mechanism in history was built by Elisha Otis in New York only in 1859. After Catherine's death, the elevator was used by courtiers for entertainment and was then bricked up. To date, drawings and remains of the lifting mechanism have been preserved.

Twice, in 1792 and in 1799, Kulibin mounted the famous “Peacock” clock made by the English mechanic James Cox, which is constantly exhibited in the Pavilion Hall of the Small Hermitage.

In 1801 he was dismissed from the Academy and returned to Nizhny Novgorod, where he continued his inventive work.

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin, even in his old age, was keenly interested in technical innovations. This can be confirmed by the “Excerpt from a letter to the Russian Artist Gladkov (From Nizhny)”, published in the January issue of “Russian Messenger” for 1810, where Kulibin, who learned about the works of Alexei Filippovich Gladky, writes with admiration to a fellow inventor: “it’s a pity, that I'm so old! otherwise I would go to Moscow to hug my brother.”

The vast majority of Kulibin’s inventions, the possibility of which our time has confirmed, were not implemented then. Outlandish machines, funny toys, ingenious fireworks for the high-born crowd - only this impressed contemporaries. Kulibin became widely known after P. Svinin published the book “The Life of the Russian Mechanic Kulibin and His Inventions” in 1819.

His surname has become a household name in the Russian language: Kulibins are self-taught masters who have achieved great success in their craft. Streets in many Russian cities are named after Kulibin.

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin

Personal life of Ivan Kulibin:

Was married three times.

He married for the third time at the age of 70. The third wife bore him three daughters.

In total he had 12 children - 5 sons and 7 daughters. He educated all his sons. His sons are known: Alexander Kulibin (1798-1837; Russian mining engineer, local historian, poet, historian of Altai factories), Pyotr Kulibin, Semyon Kulibin.

In his home life, Kulibin was conservative. He never smoked tobacco or played cards. Wrote poetry. He loved parties, although he only joked and joked at them, since he was an absolute teetotaler. At court, among the embroidered uniforms of Western cut, in his long caftan, high boots and with a thick beard, Kulibin seemed like a representative of another world. But at balls he responded to ridicule with inexhaustible wit, endearing him with his good-natured loquacity and innate dignity in appearance.

There have been many outstanding inventors in Russia, but there is a name. which you cannot pass by. Ivan Petrovich Kulibin impressed his contemporaries so much that his name became a symbol of invention and Kulibin began to be called all self-taught inventors who create some kind of ingenious devices, and simply talented craftsmen. So, what did Kulibin become famous for?

Ivan Petrovich Kulibin

Kulibin was born on April 10 (21 according to the new style) April 1735 in the village of Podnovye near Nizhny Novgorod. He was born into a family of Old Believers and until the end of his life he followed Old Believer traditions. For example, he did not drink alcohol, did not smoke, did not gamble, and even refused to shave his beard in order to receive a noble title. But he chose a completely different occupation than his father, a flour merchant, wanted. From an early age he was attracted to all sorts of mechanical devices and tried to make them. He made various mechanical toys, built a model of a mill, and made a device for supplying water to a pond so that the fish in it would not die. He was especially interested in watches. Kulibin tried in every possible way to obtain and study various watches and parts for them, and looked for various books that would describe how to make mechanical devices.

When Kulibin was 17 years old, he visited Moscow, where he visited watch workshops and bought various instruments. After returning to Nizhny Novgorod, he himself began repairing watches, and after the death of his parents, he closed the flour shop and instead opened a watch workshop. Rumors about the skilled craftsman soon spread throughout the city, and watch repairs began to generate good income. But Kulibin also didn’t want to be a simple watchmaker. He showed interest in a variety of technical innovations when an electrostatic machine, a microscope and a telescope brought by one of the merchants to Nizhny Novgorod fell into his hands. Kulibin spent a lot of time understanding their structure and learning how to do such things on his own. Kulibin learned to make lenses and mirrors; through the telescope he assembled, it was possible to examine the city of Balakhna, which was more than 30 kilometers away, in all details.

In 1764 it became known that Empress Catherine was going to visit Nizhny Novgorod and other cities on the Volga. The merchant Kostromin, who knew about Kulibin’s talent and that he was trying to make a watch of a complex and unusual design, offered to present this watch as a gift to the Empress. Kostromin provided Kulibin with a house and money so that nothing would distract the inventor from his work. The clock was not finished on time, but Kulibin showed Catherine other mechanisms when she arrived in Nizhny Novgorod in 1767. Only two years later the watch was ready and Kulibin and Kostromin went to St. Petersburg to present it to the Empress. The unique watch was made in the shape of a goose egg. They struck every hour, half hour and quarter hour. Every hour small doors opened and inside, to the accompaniment of church music, small figures showed a scene from religious life.

Every hour the small Royal Doors opened in it, behind which the Holy Sepulcher could be seen. On either side of the door stood two warriors with spears. The doors of the golden palace opened, and an angel appeared. The stone rolled against the door fell off, the door leading to the coffin opened, and the guards fell on their faces. Half a minute later the myrrh-bearing women appeared, the chimes played the prayer “Christ is Risen” three times, and the doors were closed.

At noon, the clock played a hymn composed by Kulibin in honor of Catherine and other music at different times of the day. The watch was framed in gold with lots of curlicues and embellishments.

Kulibin's watch is now kept in the Hermitage

Ekaterina was impressed, and Kulibin received a position as a mechanic at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. He became the head of academic workshops, becoming Lomonosov's successor in this post.

Kulibin worked at the Academy for 30 years. Under the leadership of Kulibin, a huge number of different instruments and scientific instruments were manufactured in the workshops, many of which were significantly superior in quality to foreign ones. Microscopes, telescopes, thermometers and barometers, precision scales, lathes and engraving machines - all this and much more was made in the workshops under Kulibin.

Courtiers and nobles often turned to Kulibin with various problems requiring technical talent, knowing that only Kulibin could solve them. For example, Prince Potemkin once bought a complex mechanical Peacock watch in England. But they were transported disassembled and the parts were damaged during transportation. It was impossible to assemble the watches from different masters; only Kulibin coped with this task. Kulibin repaired and manufactured complex machines, arranged bright illumination and smokeless fireworks, used mirrors to illuminate a long semi-basement corridor in the palace, and also made an elevator that took Catherine to the upper floors.

Kulibin made many practically significant inventions. Unfortunately, many of them did not go beyond prototypes and drawings, because they did not find funding. Here are just some of Kulibin's inventions:

The photo shows a spotlight invented by Kulibin. In the 18th century there were no bright light sources, but Kulibin was able to construct a spotlight with such a system of mirrors that the light of an ordinary candle, reflected many times, gave a narrowly focused bright beam. Based on this searchlight, Kulibin proposed making an optical telegraph for fast transmission of messages over long distances, but the prototype of such a telegraph, despite positive reviews, was sent to the Kunstkamera.

Kulibin developed the design of the bridge across the Neva and even built a model of it on a scale of 1:10, but the state never allocated money for construction. In the bridge project, Kulibin used elements that are used in modern bridges, for example, lattice arches. The length of the bridge was supposed to be 300 m, significantly longer than any other bridges of that time, so many were skeptical about Kulibin’s project, assuming that the bridge would collapse. However, calculations carried out already in the 20th century according to all the rules of strength of strength showed that Kulibin’s project was absolutely correct and the bridge would have withstood the planned load with a reserve.

Another useful invention that turned out to be unclaimed was the water boat. In those days, delivering goods along rivers, if they had to be transported against the current, was difficult work. The ship was usually pulled upstream by barge haulers, or in extreme cases, oxen or horses. Kulibin came up with the design of a vessel that would use the energy of the water flow, but at the same time move against the current! A long rope was fixed on the bank upstream, and a special mechanism driven by water wheels pulled the ship up using this rope. The Kulibin waterway overtook both barge haulers and rowing ships. Despite successful tests of two water conduits built by Kulibin, officials decided that they were too expensive and had a complex design, so the water conduits never went into production.

What else did Kulibin invent?

Artificial prostheses with a movable knee joint;
Self-running stroller with brake, gearbox, bearings and flywheel;
Salt machine for pumping brines out of mines;
Various machines, seeders, mills and much more.

After Kulibin, about 2000 drawings remained.

During his lifetime, Kulibin became a celebrity. On the personal instructions of Catherine II, Kulibin was awarded a personalized gold medal on a St. Andrew’s ribbon with the inscription “To the Worthy. Academy of Sciences - mechanic Ivan Kulibin." The poet Derzhavin called Kulibin “the Archimedes of our days.” And the great commander Suvorov, once seeing Kulibin in the palace, staged a whole performance:

As soon as Suvorov saw Kulibin at the other end of the hall, he quickly approached him, stopped a few steps away, made a low bow and said:
- Your Grace!
Then, taking another step closer to Kulibin, he bowed even lower and said:
- Your honor!
Finally, approaching Kulibin completely, he bowed from the waist and added:
- My respect to your wisdom!
Then he took Kulibin by the hand, asked him about his health and, turning to the whole meeting, said:
- God have mercy, a lot of intelligence! He will invent a flying carpet for us!

But despite all the fame he gained, the last period of Kulibin’s life can hardly be called prosperous. In 1801, the inventor, tired of working in St. Petersburg and disappointed by the lack of attention to his projects, returned to Nizhny Novgorod. He continued to work on inventions, tried to introduce waterways on the Volga, and made a project for an iron bridge across the river. Kulibin died in poverty, at the age of 83, at the end of his life admitting that for many years he secretly worked on a perpetual motion machine project, for which he spent considerable personal funds. Of course, the inventor never built a perpetual motion machine, but this in no way detracts from his talent.