Machines throughout History for Technological Development: Analysis from Engineering Graphics

A special issue of Machines (ISSN 2075-1702). This special issue belongs to the section "Machine Design and Theory".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2021) | Viewed by 14654

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The study of engineering of different machines throughout history is undoubtedly an exciting topic. For this reason, many of these historical inventions of the different productive sectors (agri-food, civil, industrial, chemical, textile, automotive, military, etc.) have been the object of study in the different engineering disciplines.

In particular, engineering graphic analyses of these historical inventions (of which in most cases there are no material remains) are frequently used for the virtual reconstruction and valorization of technical historical heritage. Subsequently, the 3D obtained computer-aided design (CAD) models have been subjected to computer-aided engineering (CAE) studies to analyze different functional and structural aspects.

Not in vain, the study of engineering graphics, defined as the set of graphic communication techniques that engineers, architects and designers use to express ideas and concepts, or the graphic expression applied to the design process, is becoming increasingly important.

The scope for case studies is very broad and can cover different disciplines of engineering, such as engineering graphics, mechanical engineering, civil engineering, chemical engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, automation and robotic engineering or telecommunications engineering, among others.

This Special Issue invites researchers to submit original research papers and review articles related to any engineering discipline in which theoretical or practical issues of engineering graphics applied to notable historical inventions are considered. The topics of interest include but are not limited to:

  • engineering graphics;
  • computer-aided design;
  • computer-aided engineering;
  • industrial design;
  • geometric modeling;
  • virtual reality;
  • augmented reality;
  • computer animation.

Contributions in other domains are welcome, although we ask that you please contact the Guest Editor.

Prof. Dr. José Ignacio Rojas Sola
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Machines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

  • engineering graphics
  • computer-aided design (CAD)
  • computer-aided engineering (CAE)
  • industrial design
  • virtual reality
  • augmented reality

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 12089 KiB  
Article
Study of an “Artefact” of the Castilla Canal: Reconstruction of the Missing Machinery
by Jose Manuel Geijo, Alberto Sanchez-Lite, Patricia Zulueta and Alcínia Zita Sampaio
Machines 2022, 10(4), 239; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines10040239 - 28 Mar 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2427
Abstract
This work aims to apply a systematic methodology to the analysis and graphical recovery of the “artefact” of the first lock of the Canal de Castilla (“the forge of Alar del Rey”) located in the Canal de Castilla as it passes through the [...] Read more.
This work aims to apply a systematic methodology to the analysis and graphical recovery of the “artefact” of the first lock of the Canal de Castilla (“the forge of Alar del Rey”) located in the Canal de Castilla as it passes through the province of Palencia (Spain). The canal, a great engineering work that began in the 18th century, was declared an asset of cultural interest (BIC, for its acronym in Spanish) in 1991 and was included in the National Plan for Industrial Heritage. To analyze and to obtain graphic reconstruction proposals, six main activities were developed, following three phases (study of primary and complementary technological and historical sources, fieldwork, and digital reconstruction). The reconstruction proposals were evaluated using three criteria: artefact data, the number of similar artefacts, and the performance. The weights of these three criteria were obtained using the Best-Worst Method (BWM), and the reconstruction proposals were classified using the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) under uncertain conditions. AutoCAD was used to obtain detailed artefact geometric documentation (plans and detail drawings of each element). The work carried out on the artefact has allowed the reconstruction of the missing machinery and its factory, establishing a proposal consistent with the technological solutions of the end of the eighteenth century as well as with the ironworks studied and with the documentary sources consulted, recovering the memory of an artefact that is about to be lost. Full article
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23 pages, 8937 KiB  
Article
An Approach to the Study of a 19th-Century Sugarcane Mill and Steam Engine through CAD Techniques and Mechanical Engineering
by José Ignacio Rojas-Sola, Gloria del Río-Cidoncha, Rafael Ortíz-Marín and Justino Trenas-Arbizu
Machines 2021, 9(11), 295; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines9110295 - 19 Nov 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3166
Abstract
This article shows an approach to the three-dimensional modelling of a sugarcane mill and its associated steam engine, designed by the Robey and Co. engineering company in 1869. In order to obtain the 3D CAD model of said invention, CATIA V5 R20 software [...] Read more.
This article shows an approach to the three-dimensional modelling of a sugarcane mill and its associated steam engine, designed by the Robey and Co. engineering company in 1869. In order to obtain the 3D CAD model of said invention, CATIA V5 R20 software has been employed. Various sources of starting material, from the basis of this research and found in the process of searching for relevant information, provide information on the main elements, operating conditions, and mechanism of the machine. Thanks to the three-dimensional geometric modelling carried out, it has been possible to explain, in detail, both its operation and the final assembly of the invention through the assemblies of its different subsets, thereby obtaining a virtual recreation that shows its operation. Likewise, a study has been carried out, from a mechanical engineering viewpoint, of the gear train that transmitted the movement, in order to ascertain the compression force exerted on the sugar cane. This research, related to industrial archaeology, therefore, enables the reader to understand a machine that constituted a milestone in the sugarcane industry, while paying tribute to the English engineer, Robert Robey. Full article
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22 pages, 11598 KiB  
Article
Blaise Pascal’s Mechanical Calculator: Geometric Modelling and Virtual Reconstruction
by José Ignacio Rojas-Sola, Gloria del Río-Cidoncha, Arturo Fernández-de la Puente Sarriá and Verónica Galiano-Delgado
Machines 2021, 9(7), 136; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines9070136 - 16 Jul 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 8072
Abstract
This article shows the three-dimensional (3D) modelling and virtual reconstruction of the first mechanical calculating machine used for accounting purposes designed by Blaise Pascal in 1642. To obtain the 3D CAD (computer-aided design) model and the geometric documentation of said invention, CATIA V5 [...] Read more.
This article shows the three-dimensional (3D) modelling and virtual reconstruction of the first mechanical calculating machine used for accounting purposes designed by Blaise Pascal in 1642. To obtain the 3D CAD (computer-aided design) model and the geometric documentation of said invention, CATIA V5 R20 software has been used. The starting materials for this research, mainly the plans of this arithmetic machine, are collected in the volumes Oeuvres de Blaise Pascal published in 1779. Sketches of said machine are found therein that lack scale, are not dimensioned and certain details are absent; that is, they were not drawn with precision in terms of their measurements and proportions, but they do provide qualitative information on the shape and mechanism of the machine. Thanks to the three-dimensional modelling carried out; it has been possible to explain in detail both its operation and the final assembly of the invention, made from the assemblies of its different subsets. In this way, the reader of the manuscript is brought closer to the perfect understanding of the workings of a machine that constituted a major milestone in the technological development of the time. Full article
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