Differential Gears

The Gearwork Prophets - Part 2: South-Pointing Chariot: The Inertial Guidance System

5 March 2020·617 words·3 mins

Systems and Innovation South-Pointing Chariot Inertial Guidance Differential Gears Ancient Chinese Technology Mechanical Navigation Technological History

The South-Pointing Chariot used complex differential gearing to maintain orientation, demonstrating advanced mechanical computation for navigation in ancient China.

The Gearwork Prophets: Mechanical Minds Before the Machine Age

4 March 2020·251 words·2 mins

Systems and Innovation Ancient Engineering Mechanical Computation Automation Astronomical Instruments Differential Gears Technological History Innovation History

Exploring the sophisticated mechanical inventions of ancient civilizations, from the Antikythera Mechanism to Zhang Heng's seismoscope, revealing a lost tradition of mechanical computation and automation.

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