Automobiles are among the most popular forms of Personal Property in the United States, making them an essential part of everyday life. They are a favorite mode of transportation for people, both for pleasure and for commerce. Automobiles are also some of the most valuable pieces of Personal Property. Because of their high value, they are taxed heavily and oftentimes become targets for thieves. Additionally, they can cause tremendous personal injury if involved in an accident. The law surrounding automobiles covers four general phases in their life cycle.
Nicolaus August Otto invented a four-stroke engine
Nicolaus August Otto’s invention revolutionized the internal combustion engine. Otto improved upon Lenoir’s basic design with improved fuel mixture control and efficiency. He also spread the cycle of combustion across four strokes rather than one. This innovation allowed the engine to produce more power with less fuel.
The four-stroke engine Otto developed is still in use in cars today. Otto invented this engine in 1861 while working with Eugen Langen, another inventor. The improved engine won him the gold medal at the 1867 Paris Exposition. His engine is also known as the Otto cycle.
Otto’s first attempts to develop an engine had mixed results. However, his efforts were recognized and he was able to patent the first two-stroke engine in 1861. Eugen Langen, owner of a sugar factory, recognized Otto’s work and took him on as his partner. In 1864, he shared his ideas with him while buying sugar. In 1865, the two partners founded N.A. Otto & Cie, a company which would eventually become DEUTZ AG.
Edouard Delamare-Debouteville built a single-cylinder four-stroke engine
The early history of the automobile can be divided into three distinct eras, based on the method of propulsion. Later periods are characterized by changes in the design of automobiles and changes in size and utility.
Delamare-Debouteville was born in Rouen, France, on 8 February 1856. His parents were Francois Vendemiaire Delamare and Lucille Elie Audibert of Boutteville. He had three brothers and two sisters. His eldest brother was 21 years older than him. He studied mechanical engineering at a university in Rouen and was inspired to improve spinning mill machines. His father’s business acumen did not seem to influence him in his pursuit of an engineering education.
Delamare-Debouteville went on to build a single-cylinder gas engine capable of 100 horsepower. He dubbed his design the “Simplex” and improved its efficiency. The resulting engine produced equal power to a steam engine while using 10 times less coal.
Nicolaus August Otto patented a four-stroke engine
Nicolaus August Otto was a German inventor who patented the first four-stroke car engine in 1872. He left school at age sixteen and began working in a grocery store in Holzhausen, Germany. He then worked as a clerk in Frankfurt and then set out on his own as a traveling salesman. He eventually met and married a woman he met at a carnival in Cologne.
Otto studied physics and chemistry in school. After graduating from university, he worked as a merchant and clerk in Frankfurt. Later, he became a traveling salesman and sold sugar, tea, and kitchenware. He also traveled to Belgium, where he learned about Etienne Lenoir’s gas engine. Otto died in 1891, at age 58.
Although Otto never worked in the automotive industry, his inventions made it possible for the world to have cars. His four-stroke engine was an important breakthrough in the development of the internal combustion engine. Its four ignition cycles made it practical for cars and the Otto cycle is used in many modern cars today.