XIAN-ZHOU LIU ( )

Transcription

1 XIAN-ZHOU LIU ( ) Hong-Sen Yan 1, Hsin-Te Wang 2, Chun-Wei Chen 2 and Kuo-Hung Hsiao 2 1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Dayeh University, Datsuen, Changhua 515, Taiwan, ROC 2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan, ROC hsyan@mail.ncku.edu.tw Abstract. Liu Xian-Zhou was a pioneer Chinese scientist who studied the history of ancient Chinese mechanisms and the first to write, in Chinese, systematic descriptions of the machines and their functions. He was truly China s leading pioneer in mechanical engineering. In addition to his scholarly publications, he was the first author to write textbooks in Chinese for students entering the fields of mechanisms and machines. Biographical Notes Liu Xian-Zhou was born on January 27, 1890 at Wan County in He-Bei Province, China (Figure 1). He passed away in 1975 at the age of 86. Fig. 1. Liu Xian-Zhou ( ) (Dong and Li, 1990). M. Ceccarelli (ed.), Distinguished Figures in Mechanism and Machine Science, Springer. Printed in the Netherlands.

2 268 Hong-Sen Yan et al. When Liu was a child, he directly experienced the hard labor of agriculture by working with his father on the family farm. When Liu was 8 to 16 years old ( ), he studied in an old-style private school for traditional Chinese and classical literature. With such a basic training, he had a solid background to study ancient Chinese historical records. Between 17 to 23 years old ( ), Liu was a middle-school student in He-Bei Province, graduating with an excellent academic grade of In 1914, Liu enrolled in the Department of Engineering at Hong Kong University, at government expense. He graduated in 1918 with a B.S. degree and received the First Class Honor. During 1918 to 1921, Liu was a teacher at a vocational school in He- Bei Province. He emphasized that theory and experiment should be equally important, and set up a practical training factory for the school. At age 34 (1924), Liu accepted an invitation to become President of the oldest Chinese engineering university, Bei Yang University, now Tianjin University. He set out to upgrade the academic excellence of the University to become the Massachusetts Institute of Technology of China. During 1928 to 1931, he was Chairman of the Department of Engineering at Northeastern University and offered courses such as Theory of Machines and Thermodynamics. In 1932, he joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Tsinghua University. He studied numerous ancient Chinese books and literature relating to mechanical technology and engineering, and he proposed standard Chinese terminology in mechanical engineering. During 1938 to 1946, Liu was a member of the faculty of the Department of Engineering at South-West Associated University and a Vice-Chairman in the Chinese Society of Mechanical Engineers. During 1946 to 1947, Liu visited the USA to investigate and study agriculture machinery. After returning to China, he started to write teaching materials in agriculture machinery and taught the subject at Tsinghua University. After 1949, Liu was a Vice-President at Tsinghua University, and the Chairman of the Chinese Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Chinese Society of Agriculture Machinery. Liu devoted his life to the development of a mechanical engineering curriculum, especially mechanism and machine science. He supervised many students and played an important role in early Chinese engineering education in the first half of the 20th century. Liu Xian-Zhou had two major academic achievements: writing Chinese teaching materials in mechanical engineering

3 Xian-Zhou Liu 269 and studying the history and inventions of ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines. During 1918 to 1948, he wrote fifteen books. He was the first professor to write college textbooks in modern science and technology in Chinese. Furthermore, Liu was the first Chinese to study and present the inventions of ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines systematically. He wrote eighteen papers and two books regarding ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines. Works on Mechanism and Machine Theory Contributions to Textbooks and Education in Chinese In the early 20th century, almost all teachers in higher education in China adapted foreign materials and conducted classes in foreign languages. Liu insisted on using Chinese teaching materials for engineering and technology, and he wrote Chinese textbooks by himself. From 1918 to 1948, he completed a series of Chinese textbooks relating to mechanical engineering, such as Engineering Drawings, Principles of Machinery, Dynamics of Machinery, Agricultural Machinery, Thermodynamics, Heat Engines, Steam Engines, Internal Combustion Engines, Gas and Valve Sensors, and Physics. Thus Liu became the first scholar to edit foreign teaching materials in engineering and technology and translate them into Chinese, which was a truly important contribution to the development of the curriculum of modern mechanical engineering in China. From the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century, the Chinese translation of terminology in mechanical engineering was not unified and was confusing. Liu accepted an assignment from the Chinese Institute of Engineers to compile English-Chinese Terminology of Mechanical Engineering. He extensively reviewed relative books and literature relating to engineering and technology since the Ming Dynasty ( ). Then, he identified suitable words as the Chinese translation according to the following four points: should be feasible, should be simple, should be general, and should be familiar. This book was published in 1934 with around 11,000 words. Two later versions were published in 1936 and 1945, respectively, with about 20,000 words.

4 270 Hong-Sen Yan et al. Fig. 2. Animal and water-driven mechanisms of piston bellows (Liu, 1962). Achievements in Agricultural Machinery In 1920, Liu designed two types of waterwheels to improve the efficiency of water supply for farmers. One type was designed for manpower input and another was for use of animal power. Not only was the manufacturing of the two designs simple, but also the efficiency of the water supply process was improved. During , Liu also studied and modified other machines such as the plow, waterwheel, and water pump. And, he published a paper entitled Problems Regarding the Improvement of Chinese Agricultural Machinery. In 1946, Liu went to the USA and for one and a half years investigated and studied American agricultural machinery. He collected over 500 related books and documents. After the trip, Liu realized that agriculture was the foundation of every development in China. Since the major powers of agricultural machinery at the time were manpower and animal power, he suggested a temporary hold on importing heavy machines from abroad. Instead, he focused on the modification of existing manpower and animal power machines.

5 Xian-Zhou Liu 271 Fig. 3. A windmill (Liu, 1962). And, he suggested a long-term plan for the development of agricultural machines with other types of power. Liu s improved designs of waterwheels were soon adopted by many farmers and this key technology of agricultural machinery continued to be developed. A schedule for applying electrical power was also planned. Truly this was the time of the birth of technological development in Chinese agriculture. In 1963, Liu authored a book entitled History of Inventions of Ancient Chinese Agricultural Machinery. In the book, Liu provided his comments and introduced many designs in agricultural machinery over the past several thousand years in China, including the following areas of agriculture machines: soil preparation, seeding, weeding, irrigation, harvesting and threshing, manufacture, and transportation. Reconstructions of the water-driven mechanism of piston bellows (Figure 2) and a windmill (Figure 3) were demonstrated and displayed at the National Museum of China in Beijing.

6 272 Hong-Sen Yan et al. Research in Ancient Chinese Mechanisms and Machines Liu studied extensive literature regarding the inventions of Ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines. In 1933, he wrote a book entitled Introduction to Ancient Chinese Engineering Books. In 1935, he presented a book entitled Historical Records of Mechanical Engineering in China including hand tools, transportation machines, agriculture machines, irrigating machines, weaving machines, an armory, potential fuels, printing on hard materials, a timekeeper, and foreign-import machinery. Liu studied over 2,000 ancient books and articles, and he produced about 16,000 files on cards. Furthermore, based on historical records and archaeological excavation, he thoroughly analyzed the development of ancient Chinese mechanical technology and commented extensively on them. In 1962, Liu completed a classical book entitled Chronology of Inventions of Ancient Chinese Mechanical Engineering, Volume 1. In the book, the development and inventions of ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines was systematically introduced, including simple labor-saving devices and various types of mechanisms and machines. This book became an important publication regarding the history of ancient Chinese technology and deeply influenced later researchers in this topic. Many inventions introduced in this book, such as a water-driven device for astronomical observation, the south-pointing chariot, the hodometer, and five-wheel sand-clocks, were reconstructed and displayed at the National Museum of China in Beijing. As to the device for water-driven astronomical observation, Liu studied and designed a gear mechanism and he reconstructed a prototype (Figure 4). Regarding the south-pointing chariot, Liu studied the designs by Wu De-Ren Fig. 4. Reconstruction of the gear mechanism of the device for water-driven astronomical observation (Liu, 1962).

7 Xian-Zhou Liu 273 Fig. 5. Reconstruction of the mechanism of the south- pointing chariot (Liu, 1962). Fig. 6. Mechanism of the sand-driven wheel-clocks (Liu, 1962). and George Lanchester. Furthermore, he cooperated with Wang Zhen-Duo to reconstruct a prototype (Figure 5). Regarding the five-wheel sand-clock, Liu reconstructed the mechanism of one of the sand-driven wheel-clocks (Figure 6). The five wheels are the driving-wheel (with scoops) below the feed, three large gear-wheels, and one middle wheel fitted with audible signal triplugs and borne on the shaft of the pointer (which made the rounds of the dial-face). On this design, the markings for the twelve double-hours can be seen. And, four small gear-wheels were connected below the main gears to transmit the motion. Based on long-term study of literature regarding the development of ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines, Liu identified many unfamiliar de-

8 274 Hong-Sen Yan et al. signs to the western world, in addition to the four well-known inventions: paper, print, compass, and gunpowder. With regard to wind power, Liu pointed out that Chinese invented the sail 3,000 years ago, and the windmill was invented 900 years ago. As for water power, the water-driven mill was invented 2,000 years ago. The water-driven wind box was invented 1,900 years ago. The water-driven large spinner was invented 600 years ago. With regard to heat power, the prototype of a steam engine was invented 1,200 years ago. A rocket driven by gunpowder was invented 700 years ago. The prototype of a rocket was invented in the 14th century and the prototype of a twostage rocket was invented in the beginning of the 17th century. With regard to gear transmissions, the hodometer and the south-pointing chariot, transmitted by gear trains, were invented at least 1,000 years ago. In the Eastern Hang Dynasty ( AD), Zhang Heng invented the armillary sphere, which automatically indicated the date, 1,800 years ago. Monk Yi-Xin and Liang Lin-Chan invented a complicated astronomical and time-counting instrument 1,200 years ago. Zhan Xi-Yuan invented a timekeeper similar to the modern western clocks about 600 years ago. Liu included these materials as part of his class notes in mechanical engineering. This greatly motivated young Chinese students interest in learning and studying ancient inventions. His efforts also attracted scholars and students to study history of ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines in addition to popular areas such as histories of physics, chemistry, architecture, agriculture, and medicine. These great echoes of history created an unforgettable image for students who had previously been educated in the ideas of Euclid, the ancient Egypt mathematician and his geometry, and Archimedes with his rules. They had no knowledge about ancient Chinese scientists and inventors in engineering and technology (Figure 7). Liu s research efforts on ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines also attracted the attention of western scholars. He was invited to attend the Eighth International Conference on History of Science held in Florence in 1965 (Figure 8). He addressed the topic entitled On Chinese Inventions of Time- Keeping Apparatus (Liu, 1965). And, he indicated that the earliest timecounting device was designed on Zhang Heng s armillary sphere, driven by water power and transmitted by gear trains around 130 AD in China.

9 Xian-Zhou Liu 275 Fig. 7. Liu taught his student at museum (You, 2006). Fig. 8. Group photo in the 8th International Conference on History of Science in 1965, X.Z. Liu (second from the left) and J. Needham (third from the left) (You, 2006). Methodology on Studying Ancient Chinese Machines Liu devoted most of his career to studying the development of ancient Chinese mechanical inventions. His methodology was scientific and effective.

10 276 Hong-Sen Yan et al. In the process of research and writing, Liu studied as many original records and reports as possible. He compared documents and archaeological excavations to prove historical facts and to reveal the pattern of development. He also paid attention to new discoveries in archaeology, and he always tried his best to visit the sites. If he could not visit the excavation, he always asked for photos or copies of reports as part of the records. An additional dimension to Liu s research was his comparison of ancient Chinese machines with Western designs and his studies of the social systems that affected the development of ancient science and technology. Liu also devoted his efforts to the practical aspects of reconstruction of ancient machines. In 1959, he presented a paper entitled Intensive Applications of Gear Trains in Ancient China. And, he built a facsimile of the transmission mechanism of Zhang Heng s armillary sphere. Liu further cooperated with Wang Zhen-Duo at the National Museum of China, and they reconstructed a wooden prototype to display to the public. Modern Interpretation of Main Contributions to Mechanism Design Liu was a pioneer in developing Chinese terminology in mechanical engineering. This work required familiarity with modern English and traditional Chinese, even local culture, including different Chinese spoken languages regarding mechanical terminology in the factories. Liu s efforts received a positive response in academia and industry. The English-Chinese Terminology of Mechanical Engineering published by the Chinese Academy of Sciences was based on the results of Liu s study. Furthermore, the Chinese terminology of mechanism and machine science was based on this publication. In Liu s three books, he analyzed, organized and summarized historical literature, mechanical inventions, and agricultural machines in ancient China. This work needed tremendous manpower and long hours to review large numbers of documents from ancient literature. Liu never stopped his work of literature survey during his lifetime. He studied numerous ancient records and books, and he filed various ancient inventions on cards which became a very valuable database for other researchers to follow up in the future. Liu s achievements in ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines also influenced the field of history of technology in the world. At the time, people thought that the astronomical clocks driven by mechanical gear transmissions

11 Xian-Zhou Liu 277 were invented by the Europeans in the 14th century. After Liu s intensive study for about twenty years, he pointed out that there was a mechanical timekeeper in Zhang Heng s water-driven armillary sphere in the East Hang Dynasty around 130 AD. According to Liu s paper, the applications of gear transmissions in ancient China were already highly developed in the second century and the timekeeper by Zhang Heng was designed with gear transmissions. Although Liu did not complete his work, many scholars followed his research approach and spirit. During the thirty years after Liu died, four scholars at Tsinghua University, Zhang Chun-Hui, You Zhan-Hong, Wu Zong-Ze, and Liu Yuan-Liang, continued and completed Liu s unfinished work. They edited a book entitled Chronology of Inventions of Ancient Chinese Mechanical Engineering Vol. 2 in They led the study in history of ancient Chinese mechanisms and machines to another landmark. The study of ancient mechanisms and machines is the key that links ancient history and modern history of mechanical engineering. With today s ever developing technology and requirements for better and newer products, reflection on and understanding of the past is crucial to drawing on that knowledge and generating new ideas. The birth of any new academic subject is difficult and arduous, but it requires the work of many followers of the pioneers in the field. Liu Xian-Zhou was such a pioneer. Acknowledgement The authors are grateful to Gao Xuan, vice-chairman of the Institute for History of Science and Technology & Ancient Texts at Tsinghua University, Beijing, for providing the literature regarding Liu Xian-Zhou. References Dong, S.P. and Li, Y.Y., 1990, Xian-Zhou Liu A Famous Expert in Mechanics and an Educationalist of Mechanical Engineering; Liu Xingzhou In Memory of the Hundredth Anniversary of His Birthday, China Historical Materials of Technology, 11(3), pp [in Chinese]. Liu, X.Z., 1933, Introduction to Ancient Chinese Engineering Books, Tsinghua Weekly Journal, Tsinghua University, Beijing [in Chinese].

12 278 Hong-Sen Yan et al. Liu, X.Z., 1935, Historical Records of Mechanical Engineering in China, Tsinghua University, Beijing [in Chinese]. Liu, X.Z., 1959, Intensive Applications of Gear Trains in Ancient China, Chinese Journal of Mechanical Engineering, Beijing [in Chinese]. Liu, X.Z., 1962, Chronology of Inventions of Ancient Chinese Mechanical Engineering Vol. 1, Science Press, Beijing [in Chinese]. Liu, X.Z., 1963, History of Inventions of Ancient Chinese Agricultural Machinery, Science Press, Beijing [in Chinese]. Liu, X.Z., 1965, On Chinese Inventions of Time-Keeping Apparatus, in Actes du VIII Congrès International d Histoire des Sciences, Florence, p You, Z.H., 2006, Tsinghua University and Modern Technology in China, Tsinghua University, Beijing [in Chinese].