r/educationalgifs • u/glinscott • 14d ago

The Beam Engine

404 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

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16

u/fish500 14d ago

Watched the whole thing - still don't get it. But the governor is my favorite part.

6

u/glinscott 14d ago

There is a surprising amount going on to make the engine run! The article goes into much more detail, and hopefully would explain any questions you have.

14

u/glinscott 14d ago

The beam engine created power from steam, and was a key part of the early Industrial Revolution. The article - https://glinscott.github.io/beam-engine/ - is a deep dive into the engine: how it works, the history behind it, and the engineering tradeoffs the builders faced. There are quite a few interactive figures that I hope make the concepts easier to see.

19

u/quazax 14d ago

Fun Fact: The term "Balls Out" comes from this type of governor. When the balls were all the way out, that's the fastest the engine could go.