Mechanical design tools landmarked

A collection of machine components used in the 19th century to teach the fundamentals of mechanical design, which were designed by one of ASME's first Honorary Members, was cited for historical significance by the Society in a ceremony last month.

ASME recognized the Reuleaux Collection of Kinematic Mechanisms at a ceremony held at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. The collection remains on permanent exhibit there, in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

Part of the Reuleaux Collection at Cornell.

The Reuleaux Collection will be named an ASME Mechanical Engineering Heritage Collection. The unique collection encompasses 230 iron and brass models representing the fundamental building blocks of machinery.

Franz Reuleaux, a 19th-century German engineer trained in the mechanical arts, designed the models as teaching aids for designing industrial machinery. He was one of ASME's first Honorary Members, gaining that status in 1882 when Honorary Membership was restricted to members who had retired from active practice. Reuleaux died in 1905.

In honoring the collection, ASME cites the scientific theories of Franz Reuleaux, which helped standardize 19th century machine design.

The collection is the world's largest collection of 19th-century kinematic mechanisms. They are still used today in the teaching of machine design and synthesis, robotics, dynamics, architectural drawing, and mathematics.

The ASME History and Heritage Committee is the sponsor of the historic mechanical engineering heritage collection and landmarks program. To date, 229 machine systems around the world have been designated as historic mechanical engineering landmarks, heritage collections, or heritage sites.

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