The human being is a deficiency, wrote philosopher Arnold Gehlen 1940. It seems to be myth of progress: because his organs developed in evolution are too weak, man tries to compensate for this deficiency by means of technology. Stupid: A lot of problems he faces, man has gotten himself in. So he puts his technical imagination into motion to invent a thing that can do better than he does. And doubt continues to gnaw: Is this good enough, or can we do it even better? For example: umbrella
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When you’re on a scorching sun, you crave shadows. But you have to put yourself under a tree. Already in ancient times people, from Egypt to China, discovered that when walking a screen above head could replace tree. But only princes and dignitaries came to this delight. This was also case in Europe, where glider only gradually found its way from Asia. Probably in 17th century, ladies of fine society in France discovered that sun protection can also serve as rain protection. covered umbrellas, which were initially made of silk, with a wax layer, y stopped raindrops. Now head remained dry.
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These early screens were, however, rigid: rails, also called spokes, on which fabric was clamped, sat firmly in canopy. As long as only glitterati walked around with it, that was enough. The Parisian trader Jean Marius came 1710 to idea that rails could be mounted in a movable position, n glider could be folded toger. Marius fastened thin rods at center of each rail, which ran down in a ring on floor. This ring was used as a “slider”: if you put it on floor, Poles pushed rails apart, and so limp cloth was clamped to screen. As a result, Marius had found one of “Simple Machines” in history of technology – a new and elegant application for lever – such as wheel, wedge (inclined plane) and deflection pulley: The force is transferred over slider to several rods, all of which appeared simultaneously in Press height. If you lock slider over a barb on stick, glider remains taut.
Is it good enough now?
Hans Haupt, a former mining official in Wroclaw, found 1928 that could be done even better. Since Jean Marius ‘ times, materials have changed, rails and sticks have been made of steel since second half of 19th century, covering was made of cotton cloth. But construction remained same. The handicapped chief was now annoyed that he had to carry a long umbrella with him in addition to walking stick. He wanted a screen that you could put in your pocket. So he replaced rigid stick with a telescopic stick, in which individual limbs are held with so-called blocking balls when you pull m apart. He provided rails and rods with two joints, similar to insect legs, where y folded when telescopic stick was pushed toger again. The “Peck” was born and came to market 1932. He was enthusiastically admitted: in a survey of British Patent Office at same time, 3,000 respondents had expressed desire for a compact, portable umbrella.
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If you wanted to jump into a car with a stormy rainy wear, you know that re is still a problem: because rails of glider close down to floor, you have to leave door wide open – and get really wet. Could you not construct a screen that folds in opposite direction, like a calyx that closes to night? Various inventors have fiddleded around it, British aerospace engineer Jenan Kazim finally found 2009 a solution that has now brought it to production. Instead of attaching rails to canopy, he mounted two more rings on stick. Only fabric is attached to crown. Pulling slider downwards, or two rings are pulled down via connecting rods and take rails with m. With a sophisticated arrangement of furr connecting rods, Kazim created third reinvention of umbrella – let’s call it “calyx effect”. Lucius Burckhardt, humorous design orist, would have had his pleasure, because in addition to his clever remarks on design and technology, he also founded science of walking, “Promenadologie”. And a good walk in central and norrn Europe is an umbrella.
