Where are we rolling to?

Many things created by Man were inspired by Nature. For example, carefully watching how the birds build their nests, people learned to weave baskets. The flight of a maple seed showed people what benefits can be gained from the use of screw-type mechanisms. Leonardo da Vinci has developed an aircraft – ornithopter, which shape evidently reminds the bird’s wings.

The specific place among the masterpieces of engineering genius is occupied by a wheel. It differs from all other inventions. The development of the wheel led to a kind of industrial revolution. Due to this device, the construction of the Egyptian pyramids, the Chinese Wall, and the National Library of the Republic of Belarus became possible. The wheel gave jobs to potters, millers and weavers.

The wheel has permanently settled in our lives long ago. And do you know, where it has already rolled us to? If all wheels, gears, rolls, pulleys stop all at once – new times will come… caveman times! Just imagine, if you want to take a shower you first have to chop wood, fire a furnace, bring water from the river, boil water in the furnace, pour it into the tub – and only afterwards wash seven sweats off yourself.

A wheel also played a significant role in the fate of the American inventor William Gleason. In 1874 he developed the first gear shaping machine for bevel gears, which made possible angular torque transmission. This event marked the beginning of a new industry and opened up huge opportunities for the transfer of mechanical energy.

Within 150 years, his small family business has turned into a huge corporation. It developed into the world expert in gear processing and leading manufacture of gear equipment, gear cutting tools and gearboxes design.

Gleason gear machines have been successfully operating for long time at the Belarusian industrial enterprises. Moreover, a great number of gears produced by Gleason machines rotate multiple Belarusian wind turbines.

This year Gleason Corporation holds the first Belarusian Open International Forum “Gear Solution Forum – 2017“. Innovations, which will be presented by Gleason speakers, might surprise even an experienced Doctor of Technical Science.

And the most important thing you will learn is that the run of the wheel is impossible to stop!

Published: 18.07.2017.