Georg Lankensperger (also: Lankensberger), (31 March 1779 – 11 July 1847) was a German

wheelwright A wheelwright is a craftsman who builds or repairs wooden wheels. The word is the combination of "wheel" and the word "wright", (which comes from the Old English word "''wryhta''", meaning a worker or shaper of wood) as in shipwright and arkwr ...

who invented the steering mechanism that is today known as Ackermann steering geometry. He patented the invention in Germany, but his agent

Rudolph Ackermann Rudolph Ackermann (20 April 1764 in Schneeberg, Electorate of Saxony – 30 March 1834 in Finchley, London) was an Anglo-German bookseller, inventor, lithographer, publisher and businessman. Biography He attended the Latin school in Stollbe ...

filed for the patent in the U.K.

Early life

Lankensperger was born in

Marktl Marktl, or often unofficially called ''Marktl am Inn'' ("Little market on the river Inn"), is a village and historic market municipality in the state of Bavaria, Germany, near the Austrian border, in the Altötting district of Upper Bavaria. T ...

in the district of

Oberbayern Upper Bavaria (german: Oberbayern, ; ) is one of the seven Regierungsbezirk, administrative districts of Bavaria, Germany. Geography Upper Bavaria is located in the southern portion of Bavaria, and is centered on the city of Munich, both state ...

in Germany.

Career

Lankensperger invented his steering mechanism in 1816 as Hofwagner (''Head waggoner'') in Munich, to allow the front wheels of a carriage to individually follow the natural arc of its turning circle, rather than skidding and slipping when they are forced to each share a common arc with the conventional pivoted axle. It continues to be used in horse-drawn carriages and passenger cars to this day..Veröffentlicht: ''„Wöchentlicher Anzeiger für Kunst- und Gewerbfleiß im Königreich Baiern“, No. 24, 15. Juni 1816, Spalte 394''Bayerisches Privileg für Georg Lankensberger vom 25. Mai 1816
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Death

He died at

Birkenstein Hoppegarten is a municipality in the district Märkisch-Oderland, in Brandenburg, Germany. History The current municipality was created in 2003 when the former municipalities of Hönow and Münchehofe were united with Dahlwitz-Hoppegarten. The ...

near

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lankensperger, Georg Engineers from Bavaria Engineers from Baden-Württemberg 19th-century German inventors 1779 births 1847 deaths People from Upper Bavaria