Gottlieb Daimler

From Free net encyclopedia

Current revision

Image:Gottliebdaimler1.jpg

Gottlieb Wilhelm Daimler (born March 17, 1834, Schorndorf; died March 6, 1900, Cannstatt, Stuttgart) was an engineer, industrial designer and industrialist from Germany. He was a pioneer of internal-combustion engines and automobile development.

Daimler and his lifelong partner Wilhelm Maybach were two workaholic inventors whose dream was to create small, high speed engines to be mounted in any kind of locomotion device, patenting, in 1885, the precursor of the modern petrol engine which they subsequently fitted to a bicycle, supposedly the first motorcycle, a stagecoach or horseless carriage, and a boat. They purchased a stagecoach in March 1886 to convert to a motorized vehicle.

Later, in 1890, they reorganized their business to form Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG). In 1924, the company entered into an agreement with Karl Benz's Benz & Co. and in 1926 the two companies merged to become Daimler-Benz AG now part of DaimlerChrysler.

Early life (1834 to 1852)

Gottlieb Wilhelm Daimler was the son of a baker named Johannes Däumler (Daimler) and his wife Frederika, from the town of Schorndorf. By the age of 13 (1847), he had completed his six years of primary studies in Lateinschule where he had also had additional drawing lessons on Sundays and expressed an interest in engineering. The next year, he started studying gunsmithing; building with his teacher, Riedel, a double-barreled gun.

Again, Daimler became restless in his studies as his main interest still lay in engineering. In 1852 when 18, he finally decided to take up mechanical engineering, and left his hometown.

Career beginnings and Maybach

Gottlieb Daimler made his first mechanical engineering approach in an industry at Graffenstaden; abandoning it soon (1857) to begin serious studies in the Stuttgart's Polytechnic (continuing the Corps Stauffia.)

After his , Daimler acquired experience traveling through several European countries. In France, he studied the novel gas engine of J J Lenoir, working in some other factories also: one of locomotives (Strasbourg) and other of banded-saws.

In the United Kingdom, Daimler developed engineering works at Oldham, Leeds and Manchester (with Joseph Whitworth). Later, he worked in Belgium also. Finally returning him to Germany, working as technical designer in a metallurgist factory at Geislingen, with the father of his friend Heinrich Straub.

At 29 years old, in 1863, Daimler started in a special factory, Bruderhaus of Reutlingen. It had charitable purposes, with a staff made up of orphans, invalids and poor people. One of the orphans was the same Wilhelm Maybach --Workshop Manager--, qualified designer of 19 years who would be his lifelong partner eventually.

In his free-time Daimler had fun designing machinery drafts: industrial agricultural and also some scales. In 1867, he married Emma Kunz --a pharmacist's daughter--, having 5 sons --among whom was Paul Daimler--.

In 1869 (35), Daimler moved to Karlsruhe, integrating the workshop's Executive Committee of a heavy factory focused on locomotives. It was the mechanical-engineering manufacturer Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe AG. Six months later, Maybach was brought also, as Technical Designer. Both inventors spent long nights discussing new designs of engines for pumps, lumber industries and punching metal panels.

The Otto Four-Stroke engine (1876)

In 1872 (at age 38), Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach moved to work at the world's largest manufacturer of stationary gas-engines of that time, the Deutz-AG-Gasmotorenfabrik in Cologne. It was half-owned by Nikolaus August Otto who was looking for a new Technical Director. As Directors, both Daimler and Otto focused on gas-engine development. While Maybach was Chief Designer.

In 1876, Otto invented the Four-Stroke-Compression system also known as the Otto Cycle. It was a gas internal combustion engine characterized by pistons --combined with the cylinder´s valves-- alternately moving in phases of: intake, compression, power and exhaust. Otto intended to replace the steam engines (predominant in those years), though his was primitive and inefficient still. Otto's engine was patented in 1877, but the patent was soon voided. Unknown to Daimler and Maybach, Karl Benz concentrated all his efforts, in Manheim during 1878, on creating a reliable two-stroke gas engine based on Nikolaus Otto's design of the four-stroke engine which had lost its patent. Benz finished his engine on New Year's Eve and was granted a patent for it in 1879.

But, meanwhile, serious personal differences arose between Daimler and Otto. The laborly hearty Otto went jealous of Daimler's peskily nerd attitude, stemmed from Daimler´s university background and really deep knowledge. Daimler was fired finally, in 1880, receiving 112.000 Gold-marks in Deutz-AG shares in behalf of the all patents by both inventors, Daimler and Maybach. Maybach resigned later.

Daimler Motors: Fast and small engines (1882)

Image:Stuttgart-cannstatt-daimler-gewaechshaus.jpg

Daimler and Maybach were forced to found their own company. In 1882, they settled back again in Southern Germany, in Taubenheimstrasse --route 13, distinguished suburb--, Cannstatt, Sttutgart. Purchasing a cottage with 75,000 gold marks --from the litigation against Deutz-AG--. In the garden, they added a brick-extension to the roomy glass-fronted summerhouse. Blanketed with curtains, it became their 24-hour workshop.

But, eventually, their hermetic discretion altered the neighborhood. Then, the police obtained a key-copy secretly --extended by their gardener-- and raided the house in their absence, under charges of false coining; albeit obviously finding only engines.

So, was founded the Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft --Daimler Engines Company--, DMG, finally, with Maybach as Chief Designer. Its scope was the construction of engines small, fast, with constant combustion and applied universally to: land, water and air transportation. Just as the modern Mercedes Benz logo is: a three-pointed star each one representing a different way.

Daimler and Maybach spent long hours debating how to power Otto's Four-Stroke, that didn't allow higher speeds fueled by gas; discovering the use of petroleum (known only as a cleaner, sold in pharmacies until then).

The Grandfather´s Clock Engine (1885)

In late 1885, Daimler and Maybach developed the first of their engines. It's considered the prototype of all modern petrol-engines, consisting in a reduced size single-horizontal Four-Stroked cylinder and stringing together:

• air cooling
• large Iron-cast flywheel
• revolutionary hot tube ignition system --patent 28022--
• exhaust valve regulated by curved groove control, allowing high speeds
• 600 rpm, overcoming any standard until then --about 120 to 180 rpm--

In 1885, they created the first carburetor. It injected evaporated gasoline mixed with air (allowing its use as fuel). Also this year, Daimler and Maybach assembled a new and bigger version of the engine, albeit still relatively compact, now of vertical cylinder:

• 1 hp at 600 rpm, something unusual
• 100 cc of engine displacement
• patent DRP-28-022: "non-cooled, heat-insulated engine with unregulated hot-tube ignition"

It was baptized the Grandfather´s Clock --Standuhr--, because of Daimler's impression that it resembled an old pendulum clock.

Karl Benz had built a three wheeled automobile in 1885 and was granted a patent for this first automobile, dated January 29, 1886.

Soon after this, November 1885, Daimler installed a smaller version of his engine in a wooden bicycle, creating the first motorcycle --Patent 36-423: "Vehicle with gas or petroleum drive machine"--. It was named "riding car" --Reitwagen--. Maybach drove it by 3 kilometers, from Cannstatt to Unterturkheim, reaching 12 km/h (7 mph).

On March 8, 1886, Daimler and Maybach brought a stagecoach --by Wilhelm Wimpff & Sohn-- secretly to the house, telling the neighbors that was a birthday gift for Mrs. Daimler. But indeed, Maybach supervised the installation of a larger Grandfather Clock into the horse carriage.

This "Reitwagen" became the first four-wheeled vehicle reaching 16 km/h (10 mph) with 1.5 hp. The engine-power was transmitted by a set of belts. It was tested again on the way to Unterturkheim.

Enthusiastically, Daimler and Maybach proved the engine in many ways since then. Successively:

• on water (1887), mounting it on a boat, 4.5 meters long, achieving 6 knots (11 km/h). It was called Neckar because the testing was carried out on that river (patent DRP 39-367), becoming Daimler's staple before DMG 's expansion.
• several times on land, attached to street-cars and a trolley.
• through the sky, by Daimler's gas balloon, that is usually regarded as the first airship. They replaced hand-operated-engine sketch, by Dr. Friedrich Hermann Woelfert from Leipzig, with the engine, flying over Seelberg successfully in August 10, 1888.

While they sold their first licenses --fee to produce and commercialize an invention in some region-- abroad in 1887, their commercial ambitions took Maybach as brand representative to Paris' World Design Exhibition (1886 to 1889), to show all these achievements.

Grandfather´s clock engine (1885)

Replica of the first motorcycle (1885)

Daimler-Maybach motorized stagecoach (1886)

First Daimler-Maybach automobile (1889)

The sales increased, mostly from motorboat sellings. In June 1887, Daimler bought another property in Seelberg hill, Cannstatt. It was located some miles away --Ludwig Route 67--, because Cannstatt's Mayor was bothered by the workshop, costing 30,200 gold marks. They built new installations for 23 employees. Daimler managed commercial issues, while Maybach was in the Design Department.

In 1889, Daimler and Maybach built their first automobile right from scratch, without readapting a previous horse carriage platform, influenced by the popular bicycles. Its was mass-licensed along France and presented publicly in Paris, in October 1889, by both inventors. The same year, Daimler´s beloved wife, Emma Kunz, died.

Their licensing to build Daimler engines sowed the world, becoming the basing of the modern automobile industry worldwidely:

• France, since 1890, by Panhard & Levassor and Peugeot
• United Kingdom, since 1896, by Daimler Coventry
• USA, since 1891, by Steinway German piano-maker

Gottlieb Daimler´s "devil pact" and the Phoenix engine (1890 to 1900)

Daimler and Maybach couldn't cope the company's stride financially, neither were enough their sellings nor their patent's revenues. Two financiers arrived to inject the alleviating capital, Max Von Duttenhofer and William Lorenz --former ammunition makers--, associated with the influential Kilian Steiner --with his German Investment Bank, converting companies into corporations--. It was Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft 's refundation (November 28, 1890). The company started effectively to sell any kind of engines, both mobile or static, from Moscow to New York.

Albeit German historians consider that this was Daimler's "devil pact" [1] seriously, because the jarred decade to come. DMG was expanded, but it changed. In example, the newcomers ordered the creation of additional static-engine departments --disbelieving in automobile production--, planning to merge DMG with Otto's Deutz-AG even.

Though, Daimler and Maybach preferred to produce automobiles obviously, particularly reacting against Duttenhofer and Lorenz. Short time later, Maybach was denied in the Board of Management and he formally abandoned the company (February 11, 1891), continuing his designing work roaming by Cannstatt: from his own house --with Gottlieb's support-- and later from the former Hermann hotel (autumn 1892) --at both its ballroom and winter garden, gathering 12 workers and 5 apprentices, on Gottlieb's behalf again--.

Gottlieb Dailmer (58) had heart problems and suffered a hard collapse (winter of 1892/1893). He was medically prescribed to trip to Florence (Tuscany, Italy). There, sparked a sentimental relationship with Lina Hartmann --widow 22 years younger, owner of the hotel where he was vacationing--. They married in July 8, 1893, honeymooning at Chicago --during its World Exhibition--.

But the discussions with Lonrenz increased. Daimler --who, worried, attempted to buy 102 extra shares to get majority also-- was forced out his Technical Director department. Additionally, Gottlieb Daimler was pressed by DMG: the company --with debts up to 400,000 goldmarks-- would declare bankruptcy if Daimler didn't sell them all his shares and all his personal patent rights from the last 30 years. Daimler accepted that option, receiving 66,666 Gold-marks, resigning away in 1893.

Next, in the Hermann Hotel, Maybach designed --and DMG produced--, together with Daimler and his son Paul, their third engine: the Phoenix (1894):

• pioneer with four cylinders for a car: one-block-cast and disposed vertical and parallel
• camshaft aiding the exhaust valves
• spray-nozzle carburetor --patented by Maybach in 1893--
• belt drive system improvements

It awoke worldwide attention. One of this cars won the first race in history --in its petrol engine category--, Paris to Rouen 1894.

These Maybach creations are considered the best of the second half of the 1800s. Developing him devices that any other manufacturer in the World had to include in their units, becoming the France's automobile technological backbone, where Maybach was hailed as the "King of Constructors".

But the underlying vagueness with the inventors harmed DMG 's Technical Department image. Until 1894, when the British industrial Fredrick Simms conditioned his purchasing to DMG ' Phoenix 's license --350,000 marks, which would stabilize the finances-- at Daimler's (now 60) return. Gottlieb Daimler revived from his ashes, first as shareholder and later in the Board of Management even, receiving 200,000 gold marks in shares, plus a 100,000 bonus. In 1895 --when DMG assembled its 1000th engine--, Maybach returned also, as Chief of Engineers, receiving 30,000 in shares --through his oldly original contract with Daimler--. Both left Hermann hotel then.

Third Daimler-Maybach engine: The Phoenix (1894)

DMG Phoenix car of 1894

DMG Phoenix car of 1896

Daimler's last months (1900)

Image:Gottlieb-daimler-kurpark.jpg

Gottlieb Daimler became a disabled person, albeit attending the design department still --with Maybach and Paul--. He kept fighting for mass produced automobiles, against the mercantilist chairmen. Until March 6, 1900, when Daimler died from heart disease, at 65, being buried in Uff-Kirchhof.

Beyond that:

• Also in 1900 (months later), the pioneering prototype of the Mercedes car was designed by Maybach and built by DMG.
• Gottlieb Daimler left a quarter of his shares to his widow and four children. But, always by Duttenhofer's pressure, the DMG refused them France's royalties. Daimler's family finished as a small shareholder group only, without having any influence further, though sparking a later scandal that prevented Duttenhofer to take the DMG's chair.
• After suffering economic crisis and banking pressure, Daimler Motors decided to merge with Karl Benz's Benz & Co --Benz & Cie., Rheinische Gasmotorenfabrik Mannheim-- in 1926, forming the Daimler Benz AG. Abeit Gottlieb Daimler never met Karl Benz.

Trivia

• A casual mail to his wife, in 1870s decade, was historically significant. Over a panoramic postal of Cologne, Gottieb Daimler traced a three pointed star, writing: "one day this star will shine over our triumphant factories". The motto inspired Daimler and Maybach silently, throughout time, in the process to achieve petrol engines to all locomotion ways --other three: land, water and air--. After more than two decades without any, Daimler's star clicked as DMG-Mercedes 's trademark justly, after Paul and Adolf Daimler's initiative to the company's chairmen. It became the worldwide known logo of Mercedes Benz nowadays, from DaimlerChrysler firm.
• Gottlieb Daimler was accepted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1978.
• Several car models are denominated Daimler in the world, from different companies that bought historically the license to do so --especially in Europe before Second World War--. Some of these car models were very popular among 1960 to 2000. As example, Jaguar's Daimler Super Eight (2005), from United Kingdom, survived until our days.
• In Germany, Stuttgart's Gottlieb Daimler Stadium is venue for 6 matches of the Football World Cup 2006.
• A remembered Gottlieb Daimler´s motto was: “Nothing but the best.”
• Neckar motorboat: Since the first customers expressed fear that the petrol engine could explode, Daimler hid the engine with a porcelain shell and lied to them that it was "Oil-Electrical".

Jaguar 's Daimler logo'

thumb|right|82px|1926 logo of Mercedes-Benz

See also

External links

• Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz-Foundation
• Mercedes Benz USA
• Mercedes Benz Canada
• Encarta article
• German Wikipedia (german)

Template:Commonsar:غوتليب دايملر cs:Gottlieb Daimler da:Gottlieb Daimler de:Gottlieb Daimler fr:Gottlieb Daimler hr:Gottlieb Daimler nl:Gottlieb Daimler pl:Gottlieb Daimler pt:Gottlieb Daimler ro:Gottlieb Daimler fi:Gottlieb Daimler sv:Gottlieb Daimler