Since the car was born at the end of the 19th century, it has gone through ups and downs for more than 100 years. The first three-wheeled car built by Karl Benz ran at a speed of 18 kilometers/hour. Now, it takes only a little more than 3 seconds to accelerate from zero to 100 kilometers/hour. supercar. In the past 100 years, the speed of automobile development has been so amazing! At the same time, the automobile industry has also created many giants, who single-handedly created some famous companies such as General Motors, Ford, Toyota, and Honda that play a decisive role in the world economy.
The car, like other modern advanced and complex tools such as electronic computers, was not invented by just one person sitting there. The car at the time of invention was not what it is now. If you could see the car at that time, you might think it was not a car. The development of automobiles also has a long history. Generally speaking, the history of automobile development can be divided into three stages: before the invention of the steam engine, the advent of steam automobiles, and the beginning of mass production of automobiles.
The original work of human beings was entirely done by humans themselves. There were no cars or engines at all. If there were any, before cows and horses were used, the human body was used as the engine. Slaves are a kind of "biological engine". With the progress and development of human beings, people have a deeper and deeper understanding of the natural world, and their ability to utilize and transform nature has become increasingly stronger. People not only use human and animal power, but also know how to use water power and wind power.
In 1705, Newcomen invented for the first time a practical steam engine that did not rely on humans and animals to do work but relied on machinery to do work. This steam engine was used to drive machinery, resulting in the first epoch-making industrial revolution. With the birth of steam-driven machinery, the automobile, the endless development of automobiles began in human society.
In 1769, Frenchman N.J. Guignaud built the world's first steam-driven three-wheeled vehicle. By 1804, Tweedik designed and built a steam car, which also pulled 10 tons of cargo on the railway for 15.7 kilometers.
In 1831, the American God Swatch Ler put a steam car into transportation, and regular transportation began to appear between Gestsha and Cherotenham, which are 15 kilometers apart. service, it takes about 45 minutes for this transport vehicle to complete the journey. Within the next three years, steam-driven buses also appeared on the streets of London. The hulking monster caused quite a stir when it ran through British towns. Speaking of which, this kind of vehicle is heavier than the current rollers used for road construction, and its speed is low. It often crashes into unpaved roads and causes various accidents. Citizens had called for the ban on such cars. To this end, the United Kingdom formulated the so-called "red flag regulations." Ironically, due to the implementation of this regulation, the United Kingdom later fell far behind other industrial countries in the start of manufacturing cars.
Because steam cars themselves are bulky and heavy, and riding in a steam car is hot and dirty, in order to improve this engine, Etili Renault built a steam engine in 1800 that burned the fuel externally ( An engine that is different from an external combustion engine (external combustion engine) allows fuel to be burned inside the engine. People later called this type of engine an internal combustion engine.
In 1876, Conte Nicoza Otto invented the method of first compressing the air and gasoline mixture entering the cylinder and then igniting it, which improved engine efficiency. This kind of engine has four strokes: intake, compression, power and exhaust. In order to commemorate Otto's invention, people call this cycle the Otto cycle.
In 1879, German engineer Carl Benz successfully tested a two-stroke experimental engine for the first time. In October 1883, he founded the "Benz Company and Rhein Gas Engine Factory". In 1885, he made the first Benz patented motor vehicle in Mannheim, which was a three-wheeled vehicle and used a two-stroke engine. A single-cylinder 0.9 horsepower (1 horsepower is about 735 watts) gasoline engine, this car has some basic features of modern cars, such as spark ignition, water-cooling cycle, steel tube frame, leaf spring suspension, rear-wheel drive, front-wheel steering and Brake handle etc.
At the same time, the German Daimler, who had cooperated with William Maybart in 1893 to create the first high-speed gasoline experimental engine, with the assistance of Maybart, in 1886 The world's first "horseless carriage" was built in Bad Canstatt.
The car was purchased from a four-wheeled "American Carriage" and equipped with an engine they made with a power of 1.1 horsepower and a speed of 650 rpm. "Driving from Stuttgart to Konstatt at a speed of 18,000 meters, the world's first four-wheeled car powered by a gasoline engine was born. Actual use shows that this car is used well. The next year, Benz sold a three-wheeled car to a French Parisian for the first time. Due to its reliable design, fine material selection and fine manufacturing, this three-wheeled car was well received and sold increasingly.
Due to the above reasons, people generally regard 1886 as the first year of the automobile. Some scholars also regard the year when Carl Benz built the first three-wheeled automobile (1885) as the birth year of the automobile. . Benz and Daimler are regarded as the originators of the automobile industry. This is the second major event in the history of automobile development.
It should be noted that the car driver at that time had to be a brave and resourceful mechanical repairman. On many occasions he had to "climb out of or under the car" or go to the blacksmith in the country. Go to get your car repaired, so it is beyond the reach of most people. Despite this, sitting on an extremely noisy and vibrating machine not only exposes you to the ridicule of passers-by and the sun and rain, but also lacks the comfort and style of today's drivers. Moreover, horse-drawn riders think that cars have taken away their business. When cars and carriages were traveling side by side, they often whipped the drivers of the cars.
After entering the 20th century, automobiles were not only the domain of Europeans. Especially when Henry Ford began selling the famous "T" model in October 1908, the production of this type of car increased astonishingly. In just 19 years, 15 million vehicles were produced. In 1913, Ford Motor Company also introduced the assembly line operation method for the first time, which caused the cost of automobiles to plummet and the prices of automobiles to be low. They were not only luxury goods for aristocrats and wealthy people, but began to gradually become a popular commodity. It was also at this time that American cars became the darlings of the world, and Ford became a veritable automobile kingdom. Therefore, people say that the automobile was invented in Europe, but it achieved great development in the United States in the 1930s. Ford used assembly lines to produce cars, setting a third milestone in the history of automobile development.
In just a few years, the automobile has transformed from an experimental invention into a comprehensive industry with the widest range of related industries and the greatest impact of industrial technology. Therefore, the development of the automobile industry not only depends on the technological progress of the automobile industry itself, but also depends on the investment capacity of the automobile industry in applying these technologies and the launch capacity of the world automobile market. The two influence each other and are affected by the development of the entire economic situation and people. Impact on environmental requirements and energy and raw material supply, unexpected changes and national policies. For example, World War I showed the mobility of automobile transportation, and many drivers were trained to drive military trucks. Many of them also learned some automobile mechanical skills, so the automobile business boomed after the war. In the United States, automakers and accessories suppliers are still running at full capacity to meet the rapid growth in demand. Car prices are several times what they were before the war. But soon after, due to the economic recession, the high demand for cars came to an end.
After World War II, the demand for cars in Britain was higher than after World War I, and almost as many cars were produced as they could be sold. The United States made a fortune during the war. After the war, American industry became more prosperous, and automobile production has always been far ahead in the world. The three major industries of automobiles, steel, and construction were once known as the "three pillars" of the United States, and the automobile industry is a symbol of American industrial pride. For a long time, they have been focusing on the research of luxury cars. But when the first oil crisis occurred in 1973, the U.S. automobile industry was greatly affected. Japan seemed to have noticed this long ago. They developed and produced a large number of small fuel-saving cars. As a result, they finally overthrew the United States in 1980. The throne of the "car kingdom" was replaced.
Japan is truly a “rising star”. When history entered the 20th century, the first automobile appeared in Japan, and it was only a few years later that the Japanese began to develop automobiles. But who would have expected that Japan, which exported cars for the first time (to Shanghai, our country) in 1925, would export 64 million cars 60 years later and become the automotive kingdom. This incident attracted widespread attention around the world and became a huge news in the history of automobile development. Of course, the United States will never give up. It is difficult to predict who will win. The future automobile market will still be the most competitive market in the world.
Some people take General Motors, the king of American automobiles, as an example. It invests an average of US$1.8 million in automobile production every 15 minutes. This is really a surprising figure. Therefore, people expect that in the future, only automobile companies with huge funds will have such investment capabilities. However, due to the support from the government and other sectors, the future automobile stage will not be a one-man show for large companies. Small and medium-sized automobile companies will also have great development.
In order to occupy the future automobile market, many companies have now integrated various advanced technologies and equipment, such as microcomputers, radio communications, satellite navigation and other new technologies, new equipment, new methods, and new materials. It is widely used in the automobile industry, and automobiles are moving toward automation and electronics. With the satellite navigation system, the car can receive communication data from traffic satellites, determine the car's location, automatically provide the optimal driving route, and display the traffic map; the car's radar system can tell the driver the distance and size of obstacles. , which makes parking easier; and the language perception system can use diagrams, tables and sounds to tell the driver the conditions of various parts of the car. In addition, it can also act according to the "sound", execute driving-related instructions, etc. In addition, the energy consumption, exhaust gas, noise and pollution of automobiles will also be reduced day by day, and their safety and ease of use will be improved day by day. Even if the oil crisis occurs again, the automobile industry will not be greatly affected. Experts believe that cars are the most important means of transportation in the world at present, and they will still be the main means of transportation in the world in the future. It is impossible for any other means of transportation to completely replace cars.
Knowledge Points
Henry Ford
Henry Ford, American automotive engineer and entrepreneur, founder of Ford Motor Company, founded Ford Motor Company in 1903 company. In 1908, Ford Motor Company produced the world's first car for ordinary people, the Model T, and the world's automotive industrial revolution began. He was also the first person in the world to use the assembly line to mass-produce cars. In 1913, Ford Motor Company developed the world's first assembly line. This pioneering achievement brought the number of Model T cars sold to 15 million units in one go, setting a world record that has not yet been broken. It not only revolutionized the mode of industrial production, but also had a huge impact on modern society and culture. Therefore, some social theorists call this period of economic and social history "Fordism." For this reason, Mr. Ford is revered as the man who "put the wheels on the world."