Ferdinand Redtenbacher

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
portrait

Ferdinand Jacob Redtenbacher (born July 25, 1809 in Steyr ; † April 16, 1863 in Karlsruhe ) was professor of mechanical engineering at the Technical University of Karlsruhe from 1841 until his death and the founder of scientific mechanical engineering.

Life

Redtenbacher, son of an iron trader from Steyr , received a commercial training. After a short interlude as a technical draftsman in the Linz building department , he attended the Polytechnic in Vienna from 1825 to 1829 . He stayed there until 1834 as an assistant to Johann Arzberger . In 1835 he was appointed to the higher industrial school in Zurich as professor of mathematics and geometry .

In 1840 he was appointed to succeed Professor Wilhelm Ludwig Volz at the Grand Ducal Badische Polytechnische Schule in Karlsruhe. Redtenbacher linked his commitment with the condition of reorganizing the associated higher vocational school. It was divided into two technical schools: a chemical-technical and a mechanical-technical school, of which Redtenbacher became the director. In 1841 he finally became professor of mechanics and mechanical engineering at the Karlsruhe Polytechnic, where he achieved an excellent reputation among students with his vivid and lively lectures. This led to an increasing number of students in the mechanical engineering school in Karlsruhe, with a provisional record of 359 being reached in 1860. During his lectures, Redtenbacher introduced those subject areas that were later referred to as "theoretical machine theory". But he also dealt with areas such as spinning and weaving . Thus, his lecture content included the entire then known mechanical engineering.

In 1857 Redtenbacher became director of the entire polytechnic and thereafter re-elected annually. At the same time he held the only professorship in the mechanical-technical school. In 1859 this was renamed the Mechanical Engineering School and a new building, initiated and designed by Redtenbacher, opened on the former riding arena of the Dragoon barracks. After 1860 the number of pupils fell again, which can be explained by Redtenbacher's stomach illness and his irritability and differences with his professor colleagues. According to a contemporary report, his lecturing skills had not been the same since 1859.

At Easter 1862 he took leave of absence until the end of the academic year because of his illness and went to a spa stay, which, however, did not bring about the desired improvement - his condition had even worsened by autumn 1862. Because of his state of health, Redtenbacher first had to reduce his lectures, at the beginning of December he stopped his events entirely, although continuation after the New Year of 1863 was planned, but could not be realized. The students of Redtenbacher, whose material was completely canceled, addressed a petition to the teachers' conference. Thereupon Redtenbacher was forced to ask the ministry to release his teaching duties and management business, whereupon by decree of January 16, 1863 Professor Wilhelm Schell took over the theoretical part and an assistant took over the practical part of the teaching.

Redtenbacher finally died on April 16, 1863 in Karlsruhe of his stomach disease. After his death it was not easy to find a worthy successor for him. Finally Moritz August Seubert was appointed director of the Polytechnic School.

Redtenbacher was Catholic and had a son, the architect and architectural historian Rudolf Redtenbacher .

reception

Bust in the courtyard of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology

Redtenbacher is considered to be the founder of scientific mechanical engineering in Germany. At the Baden Polytechnic in Karlsruhe, he put what had previously been more empirical teaching on a mathematical basis. His students included Carl Benz , Emil von Škoda and Franz Reuleaux . According to Redtenbacher's motto

"Mathematics is not a luxury, you can achieve something with it in mechanical engineering, provided that you understand what is practical and know exactly what is necessary for life."

it did not degenerate into the abstract. However, he did not overestimate the technology, which can be seen in a saying he wrote under his portrait in 1856:

“Wherever something moves, the mechanics are in play; but the spirits are not moved by mechanics. "

On the occasion of his commemorative speech in Steyr on Redtenbacher's 70th birthday, the Austrian Reichstag member Franz Wickhoff gave the following quote regarding Redtenbacher's lecture style:

“I have met mature men who remember those days with enthusiasm when they hung on Professor Redtenbacher's lips; under his clear, lively presentations the machines received truly dramatic life "

Between 1865 and 1866, a bronze monument was cast for Redtenbacher based on a design by Karl Friedrich Moest , which is still located in the courtyard of the Karlsruhe University today.

The aim of the Redtenbacher Society in Steyr, which was founded in 2010, was to revive the transdisciplinary spirit of Ferdinand Redtenbacher.

Fonts

Theory and construction of the water wheels (1846)
  • Theory and construction of turbines and fans , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1844 1860 (on Google Books: 1st , 1st , 2nd edition)
  • Theory and construction of water wheels , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1846 1858 (on Google Books: 1st , 2nd edition)
  • Results for mechanical engineering , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1848 1852 1856 1860 Heidelberg 1869 1875 (on Google Books: 3rd , 3rd , 4th edition)
  • Principles of mechanics and mechanical engineering , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1852 1859 (on Google Books: 1st , 1st , 2nd edition)
  • The air expansion machine , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1853 (on Google Books: books.google.de )
    • The caloric machine , 1853 (2nd edition; on Google Books: books.google.de )
  • The laws of locomotive construction , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1855 (on Google Books: books.google.de )
  • The movement mechanisms , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1857 1861
  • The dynamid system. Principles of mechanical physics , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1857 (on Google Books: books.google.de , books.google.com )
  • The initial and present warming states of the cosmic bodies , Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1861
  • Joseph Hart (Ed.): Der Maschinenbau (3 volumes), Friedrich Bassermann, Mannheim 1862 1863 1865 (at Google Books: 1st , 2nd , 3rd volume; at zvdd: digitalisiertedrucke.de )
  • Rudolf Redtenbacher (ed.): Spiritual meaning of mechanics and historical sketch of the discovery of their principles , Bassermann, Munich 1879 (lecture from autumn 1859; 66 pages biography; in the Internet archive: archive.org ; at zvdd: digitalisiertedrucke.de )

literature

Web links

Commons : Ferdinand Redtenbacher  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
Wikisource: Ferdinand Redtenbacher  - Sources and full texts

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Various . In: Heinz Schmitt (ed.): Monuments, fountains and free sculptures in Karlsruhe 1715–1945 . 2nd Edition. tape 7 . Karlsruhe 1989, ISBN 3-7617-0264-7 , pp. 686 (Publications of the Karlsruhe City Archives, p. 278 ff.).
  2. ^ Redtenbacher Society in Steyr
personal data
SURNAME Redtenbacher, Ferdinand
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Redtenbacher, Ferdinand Jacob
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian-German pioneer of scientific mechanical engineering
DATE OF BIRTH July 25, 1809
PLACE OF BIRTH Steyr
DATE OF DEATH April 16, 1863
Place of death Karlsruhe