The Wright brothers are from Ohio, USA. Their father is a shepherd and their mother is a music teacher. Even as children, Wilbur and Orville Wright were influenced by what Thorsten Veblen called "the nature of labor." Their father, Milton Wright, often encouraged them in this regard and never criticized their habit of spending the little pocket money they had on buying tools and materials. He also urged children to earn as much money as possible to cover the costs of their creative work. He often said to his children: "People need money so that they will not become a burden to others. With this money, it is enough."
The Wright brothers were interested in machinery almost when they were sensible. Deep interest. As an adult, whenever Orville recalled his childhood life to others, he almost always told stories related to mechanical design. He often recalled with relish that on his fifth birthday, among a large number of birthday gifts, he first noticed a spinning top that was able to maintain its own spin even though it was supported on the edge of a knife-shaped support. Spin and balance.
The Wright brothers had a natural interest in machinery since they were children, and they liked to dismantle and tinker with them since they were children. They are especially interested in some old clocks and scales. However, Wilbur was 4 years older than Orville, and Wilbur often dated boys of his own age. Orville also has his own friends. At home, the two brothers naturally play together. What to play? Of course Orville listened to his little brother. Wilbur would often carry scraps of scrap metal from the streets home to "study" them, while Orville would run back and forth, huffing and puffing with all his strength, to help his little brother move these "treasures" back home. Small warehouse in the backyard.
In June 1878, when Orville was 7 years old and Wilbur was 11 years old, their family moved from Dayton, Ohio to Illinois because their father was elected bishop of the United Brethren Church of Christ. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, living on Adam Street in that city.
Oldest brothers Louis, 17, and Lorraine, 15, are both in high school. They did not transfer and remained in Dayton.
An incident happened shortly after the Wright family moved to their new home. This incident not only had a huge impact on the future lives of Wilbur and Orville, but also had far-reaching significance for all mankind.
For Christmas in 1878, the Wright brothers’ father brought them a "butterfly" toy. His father told them that it was a flying spiral that could fly high in the air. "A bird can fly! How can it fly!" Wilbur was a little doubtful, and his father performed on the spot. I saw that he first twisted the rubber band on it, and when he let go, it made a whining sound and flew high into the air. Only then did the brother believe that in addition to birds and butterflies, man-made things can also fly into the sky. So the brothers took it apart and wanted to explore why it could fly into the sky.
From then on, in their young minds, they had the idea that they would create something that could fly high into the sky in the future. This desire has always affected them. In June 1884, Bishop Wright's work moved from Richman back to Dayton, and the family moved back to their hometown again, moving back to the modest seven-room house they had purchased earlier on Hawthorn Street. inside. By this time, the eldest brother, Louis, and the second child, Lorraine, had already graduated from Dayton High School and went to college in Indiana.
If the family had returned to Dayton a few days later, Wilbur would have graduated from Richman's middle school, attended the graduation ceremony with his classmates, and received a high school diploma. On July 4, 1889, the fourth anniversary of their return to Dayton, Susan finally ran out of steam and left her minor children behind. For a long time, the Wright brothers could not dispel the sadness in their hearts. They will always miss their kind and smart mother!
After the death of his mother, the eldest and second brothers graduated from college one after another and started their own families and businesses. The Wright brothers read a lot of books at home during these lonely days.
The family's book collection is divided into two parts. One part is upstairs in Bishop Wright's study, and the other part for the whole family to read is placed in the living room downstairs. Almost all the books in his father's study were "very serious", but Wilbur still often fell into the pile of books. The father never made any demands on his children's reading. The books downstairs were the Wright brothers' favorite books, including "The Collected Works of Washington Irving"; fairy tales by Grimm and Andersen; and Plutarch's "Biographies". "; a set of "The Spectator"; a set of Addison's essays; Boswell's "The Life of Johnson"; "The Collected Works of Walder Scott"; Gibbon's "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire"; Green "History of England"; Guizot's "France"; several books by Nathaniel Hawthorne; Marey's "Animal Machines"; and a set of Encyclopedia Britannica and Chambers' Encyclopedia, The former is an edition from the late 1870s, while the latter was just published. Wilbur was the most active reader, followed closely by Orville, who read a lot of books. He was fascinated by the scientific articles in the encyclopedia almost from the time he learned to read.
In order to improve family facilities and environment, Wilbur and Orville worked hard again and again. The brothers first immersed themselves in drawing the drawings, then looked around for materials to repair the house, and undertook all the lathe work for the house. Not only did they quickly build a comfortable front porch and line it with flowers, but they also redecorated the interior and changed the layout of the rooms. Bishop Wright, who was busy with church affairs all day long and often worked outside, felt happy when he came home and was deeply grateful for his son's concern for him. Their sister Katharine (1874-1929) had already entered Oberlin University at this time. Although the family lost its mother, it was inevitable that the family would be deserted. However, the Wright brothers continued to contribute to the family with practical actions, so the small house was born again. Somewhat angry. In addition to their determination, wisdom, and surging passion left to them by their pioneer ancestors, perhaps the family they lived in had more to do with their subsequent achievements. Years later, Orville expressed his thoughts with deep confidence. One of his friends said to him: "Although you have accomplished great achievements, you have no idea of ??making money. Facts have shown that the Wright brothers will always be a role model for American youth, and they can achieve success without special conditions." "However, Orville said seriously, "That's not true, because, you see, we do have special conditions." "What do you mean by special conditions?"
"Simply put. , that is, we are lucky to live in such a family environment. At home, adults always enthusiastically encourage children to pursue knowledge and investigate all strange phenomena. In another family environment, our curiosity may have emerged earlier. It was killed before it came to fruition." The Wright brothers started the Dayton Weekly after graduating from high school. They were smart enough to make the newspaper prosperous, but what they dreamed about most was machinery. In 1894, they pawned the newspaper to a news agency and opened a bicycle shop. From then on, they began to pursue their dream careers. In the winter of 1885-1886, Wilbur was accidentally hit in the face with a hockey stick while playing ice hockey with friends at an ice rink, causing him to lose his front teeth. Until the incident, Wilbur was energetic and lively. Although Wilbur's injuries did not appear to be serious at the time, he became withdrawn and taciturn, and did not attend Yale University as previously planned. Had Wilbur attended Yale, his career might have taken a very different, less ordinary path than the one he later followed Orville. Instead, he spent the next few years at home, caring for his mother, who was terminally ill with tuberculosis, and reading diligently in his father's library. He vigorously assisted his father in dealing with the disturbances in the Christian Council church, but also expressed his uneasiness about his own lack of ambition. Orville dropped out of high school in his senior year and started his printing business in 1889, designing and building his own printing press with Wilbur's help.
They also installed an elevator, a swing rudder, on the front of the aircraft that can be used to control the lateral axis.
One evening in October 1900, Wilbur Wright lay on the fragile glider frame and floated in the sea breeze. He succeeded. Although it was only a few seconds of flight and only more than 1 meter high, the Wright brothers' achievement surpassed Lilindaal who tried to control flight by moving his body weight. The next year, the brothers made another glider based on their last production and after many improvements. In the fall of this year, they came to Kitty Hawk Beach again. After a test, the flight height suddenly reached 180 meters.
From 1900 to 1903, they built 3 gliders and conducted more than 1,000 gliding flights. They also made more than 200 different wings and conducted thousands of wind tunnel experiments, correcting Li Lin's Dahl used some wrong flight data to design a wing cross-section shape with greater lift. During this period, their gliders repeatedly glided over 1,000 meters. At the time, this was no small achievement. After continuous study and improvement, the Wright brothers not only quickly mastered the aircraft manufacturing technology at that time, but also made major breakthroughs in many aspects. Beginning in the summer of 1903, the Wright brothers began building the famous "Flyer One" biplane. Powered flight first required an engine, but there were no aircraft engines on the market at the time, and no company was willing to take the risk of manufacturing an aero engine. But the brothers were undeterred and hired machinist Charles Taylor to help them build a piston engine with approximately 12 horsepower and a weight of 77.2 kilograms. With the engine in hand, Wilbur and Oliver just look forward to the windy autumn coming soon. In mid-October, the "Aviator" was assembled. Orville was very satisfied with the new aircraft. "This is the best aircraft we have built so far. 'She' is very obedient." Orville's feelings are not difficult to understand, Every "rib" of "Aviator One" is made by them.
The miracle happened on December 17, 1903! ! !
In the early morning of this morning, Kitty Hawk in North Carolina, USA, was still sleeping. The weather was cold and windy. A strange guy with huge wings was parked quietly on the empty beach. , this is the first airplane in human history-"Aviator One". The empty venue was deserted, and only five people came to watch. At 10:35, everything was ready. In order to be able to board the plane first for a test flight, the brothers decided to toss a coin to determine who would board the plane first, and the younger brother Orville won.
Orville climbed onto the lower wing of the Flyer One and lay prone behind the joystick, holding the wooden joystick tightly in his hand while Wilbur started the engine and pushed it slide. The plane first vibrated violently under the action of the engine. After a few seconds, it slowly slid down from the "Devil Killing Hill" under the power of its own power. After the plane reached a certain speed, Wilbur let go of his hand, and the plane resembled a small one. Like a bird, it lifted off the ground and flew into the sky. Although the "Aviator One" flew very unevenly and even stumbled a bit, it flew in the air for 12 seconds and 36.5 meters before landing on the beach. Then, they took turns and flew three more times. In the last flight of the day, Wilbur flew 260 meters in 59 seconds in a wind speed of 30 kilometers. People's dream of manned sustained power flight in the air has finally succeeded! Unfortunately, a few minutes later, a sudden strong wind overturned the "Flyer" 1. The aircraft was seriously damaged, but it had completed its historical mission. The history of human powered aviation thus began.
However, it is regrettable that the success of the Wright Brothers did not immediately receive the attention and recognition of the US government and the public. People even doubted the authenticity of the news, and most newspapers refused to report it.
"Aviator One"
"Aviator One" is an ordinary biplane. Its two pusher propellers are installed on both sides of the pilot's position. Driven by a single engine chain. The control system adopts a canard layout with the elevator in front and the rudder in the rear. This is the greatest contribution of the Wright brothers to the aviation industry.
Lilindaal had to move his body and control the aircraft to fly by changing its center of gravity, while the pilot of "Aviator One" achieved the same purpose by curling the entire wingtip through a mechanical device. The aircraft climbs and dives to a pair of biplane elevators mounted at the front of the aircraft; a pair of rudders are interconnected with the wing curling mechanism and mounted behind the pilot. The major components for turning and maneuvering in modern aircraft can be found in this first aircraft, however primitive it was.
"Flyer 1" never returned to the sky, and its replica is treasured in the National Air and Space Museum in Washington. However, all this still failed to attract real attention from the press, who kept the invention in their stables for two years. It was the U.S. military that finally realized its potential. In early 1908, when the Wright brothers succeeded in building their sixth airplane, the U.S. War Department expressed its willingness to watch one of their flight demonstrations. At this time, France was also willing to buy their patents. On August 8, 1908, at the Le Mans racecourse near Paris, France, Wilbur flew the "Wright Model A" aircraft in the air around the racecourse for a minute and a half, flying at a height of 10 meters, which amazed the audience. Incessantly. The news soon spread around the world via telegraph. The London Daily Mirror exclaimed that the plane was "the most amazing flying machine ever built." After that, Wilbur made several flights. On one of them, he brought the French agent's wife on board the plane and flew in the air for 2 minutes and 3 seconds - France was boiling. For a time, there was an endless stream of awards and honors. Some European entrepreneurs also began to rush to buy his patent. Throughout August, Wilbur performed more than 100 flying demonstrations in France, setting off an aviation craze in Europe.
At the same time, the situation in the United States was also ideal: Orville flew 55 times around the Fort Meyers Parade Ground in the United States, setting a world flight record of one hour of continuous flight. Orville also performed a flying demonstration from Fort Myers, Virginia, across the Potomac River in Washington, to the cheers of a packed crowd.
In 1908, the Wright brothers won many honors in Paris, London and Washington. U.S. President Taft praised "these outstanding American brothers who devoted themselves wholeheartedly to the cause of aircraft manufacturing." At this point, the Wright brothers became famous.
In March 1909, the U.S. Department of War officially placed an order with the Wright Brothers. The Wright brothers added special seats to the aircraft for lookouts and gunners, laying the foundation for the aircraft's military use. On July 30, 1909, the Wright brothers delivered the first military aircraft to the War Department. They also helped train the first military pilots. The aircraft is now on display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
Then, governments of many countries also began to develop aircraft. The Wright brothers then formed the Wright Aircraft Company (Wright Company) and signed a contract to establish an aircraft company in France. But as businessmen, they soon discovered that they lacked experience in market development. Competitors in aircraft design quickly "referenced" their technology, and the aircraft they built quickly surpassed them in performance. In 1911, Wilbur contracted typhoid fever and died at the age of 44. Orville was shy and not good at publicity. Three years later, he sold the company to a financier in New York and spent the rest of his life in a house in Dayton. In 1948, when the 77-year-old inventor of the airplane was about to pass away, he still longed to fly high into the blue sky. The winter of 1947 was unusually cold. Orville was bedridden most of the time.
Many friends came after hearing the news.
After careful treatment by doctors, Orville finally passed away on January 30, 1948, at the age of 77.
A superstar in the aviation industry has died. The entire United States is in mourning, and flags in many countries are flying at half-mast. People deeply miss this great pioneer and inventor in the history of aviation!