Treadwheel crane
Okay kiddo, let me tell you about the fascinating treadwheel crane! So, it's a special kind of machine used a long time ago to lift heavy things like rocks and building materials. It's made up of a big wooden wheel or cylinder that rotates on an axle, which is connected to a long beam or arm.
Now, here's where it gets interesting. People would actually power the wheel by walking on it! They would climb up onto the wooden steps, called treads, on the outside of the wheel and start walking in a continuous loop. As they walked, the wheel would turn, which in turn lifted the beam and whatever was attached to it.
Can you imagine, people really used their legs to lift heavy things instead of using electricity or engines like we do today! And the best part was, they could work together as a team to lift things even higher by having more people walk on the treads at the same time.
Treadwheel cranes were used a lot during Medieval times in Europe to build castles and cathedrals, and in Asia they were used for irrigation and farming. Today, we have machines that can do the same thing more easily, but it's still amazing to think about how people used their own muscles to build some of the most impressive structures of the past!
Now, here's where it gets interesting. People would actually power the wheel by walking on it! They would climb up onto the wooden steps, called treads, on the outside of the wheel and start walking in a continuous loop. As they walked, the wheel would turn, which in turn lifted the beam and whatever was attached to it.
Can you imagine, people really used their legs to lift heavy things instead of using electricity or engines like we do today! And the best part was, they could work together as a team to lift things even higher by having more people walk on the treads at the same time.
Treadwheel cranes were used a lot during Medieval times in Europe to build castles and cathedrals, and in Asia they were used for irrigation and farming. Today, we have machines that can do the same thing more easily, but it's still amazing to think about how people used their own muscles to build some of the most impressive structures of the past!