Important Inventions of the Industrial Revolution (1760 - 1840)
Edumaps Wissen🚂 The Steam Engine
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Year: 1769
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Inventor: James Watt
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How it works:
The steam engine uses the steam produced by heating water to perform mechanical work. Steam drives pistons in a cylinder, creating movement that can be transferred to machines or vehicles. -
Societal Impact:
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- Revolutionized industrial production by making it independent of water sources.
- Enabled factories to operate anywhere, not just near rivers.
- Led to city growth and fundamentally changed transportation and production.
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⚙ dampfmaschine
🧵 The Spinning Jenny
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Year: 1764
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Inventor: James Hargreaves
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How it works:
The Spinning Jenny is a mechanical spinning machine that enabled multiple threads to be spun at once instead of only one. This was achieved via a crank-driven mechanism. -
Societal Impact:
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- Greatly increased the efficiency and productivity of the textile industry.
- Lowered the production costs of textiles.
- Changed the working world, as many home workers were replaced by factory work.
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⚙ jenny
🔩 The Steam Locomotive
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Year: 1814
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Inventor: George Stephenson
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How it works:
The steam locomotive used a steam engine to drive a train via driving wheels. Steam heats a cylinder, moving pistons and gears that drive the wheels. -
Societal Impact:
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- Changed the transportation system, enabling faster and cheaper travel and freight transport.
- Promoted trade, migration, and urbanization.
- Creation of new jobs and industries along railway lines.
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⚙ dampflok
⛓ Power Loom
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Year: 1785
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Inventor: Edmund Cartwright
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How it works:
The steam-powered mechanical loom automated fabric weaving. Through a system of levers, gears, and rollers, the weft yarn was automatically guided through the warp yarn. -
Societal Impact:
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- Vastly increased fabric production and accelerated textile manufacturing.
- Many weavers lost their jobs as the process became mechanized.
- Women and children increasingly worked in factories.
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⚙ webstuhl
🌐 The Telegraph System
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Year: 1837
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Inventor: Samuel Morse
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How it works:
The electric telegraph used electrical pulses to transmit messages over long distances in Morse code. Pressing a button generated a signal that was translated into letters at the other end. -
Societal Impact:
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- Revolutionized communication via faster message transmission.
- Enabled coordination over great distances, e.g. in business and government.
- Contributed to globalization.
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⚙ telegrafensystem
🛤 The Railway Network
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Year: 1825 (first public railway: Stockton and Darlington Railway)
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Inventor: George Stephenson
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How it works:
The railway network consists of tracks on which steam locomotives and trains run. Standardized rails allowed large loads to be transported efficiently over long distances. -
Societal Impact:
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- Fundamentally changed travel and freight transport.
- Cities grew, trade and industrialization sped up.
- Became a symbol of progress and modernity.
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⚙ eisenbahn
🛠 The Blast Furnace Technology
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Year: Around 1709 (use of coke)
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Inventor: Abraham Darby
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How it works:
Blast furnace technology replaced charcoal with coke for melting iron. In the blast furnace, iron ore and coke are layered and processed at high temperatures to produce pig iron. -
Societal Impact:
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- Enabled mass production of cheap iron.
- Was the foundation for building machines, tools, and railways.
- Promoted urbanization and the growth of heavy industry.
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⚙ hochofen