So it was for James Watt, whose Watt engine is often considered one of the cornerstones of the Industrial Revolution. This is why the watt is what we call the unit of power equal to one joule of ...

The history of the rotary engine is a strange and wonderful tale that dates back as far as 1588 when Ramelli invented the first rotary-piston-type water pump. Almost 200 years later James Watt, ...

The history of the rotary engine is a strange and wonderful tale that dates back as far as 1588 when Ramelli invented the first rotary-piston-type water pump. Almost 200 years later James Watt, ...

Watt refined the engine until it was efficient enough to run all sorts of machinery. Thanks to Watt, steam powered the first railway engine in 1804. He died in 1819 and the electrical unit, the ...

Watt Rotary Engine Designer: James Watt: Lived: 1736-1819: Built: (see notes) Type: double-acting, low pressure, rotative engine: ... The final version of the new Watt engine worked in 1778. In 1782 ...

Much like James Watt's improvements to the steam engine of yore, the Adams-Farwell 20 horsepower engine provided a much smoother operation because it was well-balanced, had fewer moving parts (i.e ...

James Watt invented horsepower so he could sell his steam engine as the next great thing. Learn more about how it started, and how it's calculated.

The steam engine may seem like a relic of the past. But without this game-changing invention, the modern world would be a much different place.

In 1763, working as an instrument maker at the University of Glasgow, James Watt was assigned to repair an early steam engine. Watt was intrigued by the idea but noted the machine's inefficiency.

He patented several other important inventions including the rotary engine, the double-action engine and the steam indicator, which records the steam pressure inside the engine. Watt died on 19 ...