Cycloped
| Cycloped | |
|---|---|
 The Cycloped (e)
|
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| Number: | 1 |
| Manufacturer: | Thomas Shaw Brandreth , Liverpool |
| Year of construction (s): | 1829 |
| Retirement: | 1829 |
| Axis formula : | B. |
| Gauge : | Standard gauge (1435 mm / 4 ' 8.5 " ) |
| Service mass: | 3.05 t / 3 tons |
| Top speed: | 8 to 9.6 km / h |
| Traction power: | 1 horse |
| Drive: | Horse power |
Cycloped (occasionally Cyclopede ) was one of the locomotives registered to take part in the Rainhill race in 1829.
The Cycloped , a construction by the mathematician and inventor Thomas Shaw Brandreth , differed fundamentally from the other machines reported : The vehicle was not driven by steam, but by a horse lashed to an endless conveyor belt. As a result, it did not meet the conditions set, which expressly only allowed steam locomotives to compete.
Nevertheless, the Cycloped was allowed to take part in the test drives out of competition in order to obtain comparative values that could provide information about the advantages of steam power over animal propulsion. The results clearly showed that a workhorse- powered locomotive was clearly inferior in power to any steam-powered locomotive: the Cyclopede only reached top speeds of between 5 and 6 miles (8 to 9.6 kilometers) per hour, while the winning Rocket up to 28 Miles (45 km / h) fast. This means that the minimum requirements of the competition were so clearly undercut that no further test runs with the Cycloped took place.
literature
- Luke Hebert: The Engineer's and Mechanic's Encyclopaedia. T. Kelly, 1836.
- LTC Rolt: George and Robert Stephenson: The Railway Revolution. Longmans, 1960.