V.Ryan © 2018-2022

A genius, his ability cannot be overstated. One of the greatest painters of all time, with an inquisitive intellect to match. In addition to painting, his range of expertise included sculpture, engineering, cartography, geometry and science. He was born in Anchiano, close to Vinci in the Republic of Florence, hence his name Leonardo da Vinci.
Many design innovations have been attributed to his work, in the specialist areas referenced above. However, he had very little formal training. He was an architect and military engineer, inventing new types of machines. Many of his sketches / designs, have been made into working models, such as his design for a hang glider. He also designed a tank, helicopter and a lens grinding machine. Less known is his design of a calculating machine (see below).
His study of human autonomy, led to a design of what has been called the first robot, in 1495. It was operated by a series of pulleys. An internal mechanism controlled the movement of its arms and legs.
Many of his sketches / designs, have been studied throughout history, inspiring thousands of engineers and product designers.
He studied nature and some of his flying machine designs, are clearly based on his extensive analysis of birds. In this sense, he was possibly the first to apply biomimicry to design.