Pierre Jaquet-Droz

Pierre Jaquet -Droz ( born July 28, 1721 La Chaux -de-Fonds, † November 28, 1790 in Biel) was a Swiss watchmaker.

Pierre Jaquet -Droz was born the son of a farmer and clockmaker in 1721 in La Chaux -de-Fonds (NE ) in Switzerland and died in 1790 in Biel. He attended primary school in his native town, after which the grammar school, followed by studies in philosophy in Basel. Jaquet -Droz 1740 turned to watchmaking, which had its center in Le Locle and La Chaux -de-Fonds. In 1758 he traveled to Spain to King Ferdinand VI. Pendulum clocks for sale, two of which were equipped with an automatic drive. From 1759 he built in La Chaux -de-Fonds to an international company that produced high-quality watches. His son, Henri -Louis (1752-1791) came also as a watchmaker in his father's business. His company had offices in London, Paris and Basel. 1774 presented the Jaquet -Droz androids three to the audience, which were a huge success. You are to visit his most famous works and is still functional in Neuchâtel. Later, the Jaquet -Droz and her business partner Jean -Frédéric Leschot began to build prostheses that were apparently even functional.

The watchmaker Jaquet -Droz

Pierre Jaquet -Droz was one of the leading Swiss watch and machine builders, the Stutz watches and clocks produced pomp and specialized in machines of all kinds (among songbird watches, snuff-boxes with songbirds ) and luxury watches. He developed an automatic elevator for pocket watches.

He should also have built a clock which he is said to have presented at the Spanish court: When the clock struck, played a shepherd a little tune on the flute and a dog approached him joyfully. The king was delighted, but Jaquet -Droz said, the friendliness of the dog would be one of its lowest virtues, which he would immediately notice if he would take away one of the apples from the basket of the shepherd. The king did so, and the dog began to supposedly so lifelike barking that the dog out of the king answered and the ladies fled for fear of sorcery left the room. Only the Navy Minister was brave enough to stay in the room. When the king then the black man, who was also on the clock, for the time asked, this did not answer, said Jaquet -Droz only does this just not a Spanish could ...

Which belongs to the Swatch Group watch brand " Jaquet Droz " is named after him.

The three androids ( the so-called " Jaquet -Droz automata" )

The brothers Jaquet -Droz and Jean -Frédéric their employees Leschot, Henri Maillardet and Jacob Frisard began in 1770 with the construction of three androids that were presented to the public in 1774. The success must have been incredible, at least writes a contemporary, that people have come literally there and gardens and squares full of carriages were. For more than a century, the androids were touring in Europe and could be visited for an entrance fee.

The figures are about 70 cm high, heads, arms, and eyes are movable. They are dressed in courtly contemporary fashion and look very young, if not like children. They are probably amongst the most beautiful androids ever created. Jacques de Vaucanson, himself a pioneer and master of the automaton construction is, according to their tour against Henri -Louis Jacquet -Droz have exclaimed: " Young man, you start where I intend to finish! "

The writer

If the writer set in motion, he dips the pen into the ink, shake it off easily, puts his hand on top of the page and stops. If another lever is operated, he begins to write. He is like a real writer from, observe the up and down strokes, the space and the row (!), Places a dot at the end and stops again.

The writer can write any text up to 40 characters. This is entered on a disc with interchangeable cams. ( That is, for example, when important visitors come, the writer can also write a text related to this visitor, the last to have been the case during the visit Mitterrand. ) " Depending on the height of a cylinder with cam a set of cam discs is moved, which includes the coding of the individual letters. Each three cams move the hand up and down, back and forth, right and left. The dimensions of the cams used for the programming of the text must adhere to very tight tolerances. Therefore, the machine is quite error prone. That was probably a constructive concession to the desire to accommodate the whole mechanics of the figure. "

Some authors consider the writer a forerunner of today's computer because he has a program ( the disc with which the text is set ) and a memory ( the cam discs that represent the individual letters ).

The Artist

The mechanism of the signer is controlled by a set of cams on which the program is the drawings. With three interchangeable cam sets four different drawings can be made:

• A portrait of Louis XV and the dog " Toutou " (both images on a roll)
• King George of England and his wife,
• The romantic motif of a butterfly drawn carriage.

The organist

The musician is controlled by a pin roller and of the associated cams, with which the fingers of the hands are moved. The figure strikes the keys of a kind organ with flute sound. You can play five different pieces that have been composed especially for them.

Automatic Drawing

Automatic Drawing

The organist

The Grotto of the Jaquet -Droz family

In written by Charles Perregaux and Perrot F.Louis Book The Jaquet- Droz and Leschot, the authors tell: "We know the three androids from 1774, but we have not yet mentioned a fourth in the same era built machines work that extremely interesting and complex be had to: " The Grotto ".

A on January 3, 1784 on the occasion of a vending machine idea printed in Lyon poster describes " the cave " as follows: " One, based in Switzerland, landscape, where to see: cliffs, a sheep farm, a cottage, a mill, a waterfall and a stream, a calf being suckled by a cow, goat and sheep grazing, bitching and bleating, and a dog guarding the flock. a sitting on a donkey farmer comes out of his hut, passing through the countryside to the go to mill, and soon after he goes back on foot, by leading his donkey laden with a sack. , if he goes over, a dog barks.

A shepherd comes out of the hollow of a rock, the flute takes to his mouth, playing a prelude, the echoes in an echo; approaches after the awakening shepherdess, who takes her guitar and accompanied their pastors. The front of this piece represents a completed through the facade of a building ground floor, under whose gate one sees a peasant woman, the various minuet plays on a chopping board, while two Miss dancing with grace and precision. There are also waterfalls and fountains, the game is an illusion, and an aviary where different birds can hear her singing. "

It is likely that such a well-developed work could never be repaired, it must be neglected and dilapidated have been left in a hovel. "

The construction of prostheses

Addition to their other activities Jaquet -Droz began and her business partner Jean -Frédéric Leschot prostheses for amputated limbs to produce. Jean -Frédéric Leschot specialized in this activity and its reputation in this field earned him numerous commissions from abroad.

Unlike the other conventional prostheses had more aesthetic value, these were apparently even functional, ie Knees were bent and objects are kept.