Biography: Leonardo da Vinci was an Italian painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer. He was extreemly talented, and therefore is labled Renaissance man. He constructed designs of many things that would not be inventede untill much later in time, such as helichopters, tanks, machine guns, and flying machines. Artists have always found it difficult to make a living off their art. Even a master like Leonardo was forced to sell out in order to support himself, so he adapted his drawing skills to architecture, military engineering, canal building and weapons design. Although he had a more peacefull nature, Leonardo worked for the Duke of Milan,  calling himself a military engineer and outlining some of his ideas for weapons and fortifications.

Work:

Some of his famous works and designs are listed below.

• Artillery Park
• Stretching Device for Barrel Spring
• Design for Boat
• Ornithopter Flying Machine
• Design for Flying Machine
• Armoured Car
• Giant Crossbow
• Machine for Storming Wall
• Eight Barreled Machine Gun
• Automatic Igniting Device for Firearms
• Parachute Drawing
• Crane Clocks
• Drilling Machines
• Grinding Convex Lenses
• An Arsenal
• Hydraulic Machine
• Horseless Carriage 



Tank/ Armored Car

       Leonardo da Vinci’s tank, or armored car,  was capable of moving in any direction and was equipped with a large number of weapons. It is concidered the most famous of da Vinci’s war machines.  It was designed to intimidate and scatter an opposing army.

       The motion of the machine was to be powered by eight men inside of the tank who would constantly turn cranks to spin the wheels. Despite its detailed design, da Vinci’s tank has a major flaw.  The powering cranks went in opposite directions. This made forward motion impossible. 

http://features.cgsociety.org/newgallerycrits/g03/358103/358103_1247483950_large.jpg

Horseless Cairage

This was a very basic system involving a platform on wheels, the front ones being articulated, and a number of coiled springs which drove a set of gears. As each spring was released the driver was required to wind up another one, thus providing (semi) continuous propulsion for his vehicle. Leonardo's drawings for this machine are sketchy when it comes to the spring system and it is thought he could not find a way to overcome the problem of connecting the springs to the wheels. He did make clear depictions of the transmission and this contains a differential which enabled each wheel to turn at a slightly different speed when corning. Many early motor cars lacked this important detail so it is fascinating to see it in Leonardo's design.

http://www.1099.com/graphics/illustrations/leonardo/spring_powered_car.jpg

Flying Machine

One of da Vinci’s most famous inventions, the flying machine (also known as the "ornithopter") ideally displays his powers of observation and imagination, as well as his enthusiasm for the potential of flight. The design for this invention is clearly inspired by the flight of winged animals, which da Vinci hoped to replicate. In fact, in his notes, he mentions bats, kites and birds as sources of inspiration.

http://0.tqn.com/d/inventors/1/0/v/x/FlyingMachine.jpg

Sites:

www.da-vinci-inventions.com 

http://www.lairweb.org.nz/leonardo/vehicles.html