Stephan Farffler (1633 – October 24, 1689), sometimes spelled Stephan Farfler, was a German watchmaker of the seventeenth century whose invention of a manumotive carriage in 1655 is widely considered to have been the first self-propelled wheelchair. The three-wheeled device is also believed to have been a precursor to the modern-day tricycle and

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

. Farffler, who was either a paraplegic or an amputee, also created a device for turning an hourglass at regular intervals and added chimes to the clocktower of Altdorf bei Nürnberg. the German WiKi says: either paraplegic as a result of an accident when aged three years; others describe him as a human with crippled legs Fabian Zilliken: ''Die Evolution des Fahrrads - Von der Laufmaschine zum "Custom(izing)" Artefakt'', 2012
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/ref> („verkrüppelten“ - which could also mean disfigured or malformed and this might, for onlookers, be an accurate description when, as said, the accident happened at a very young age which would likely impair normal growth of the affected limbs).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farffler, Stephan 17th-century German inventors 17th-century German artisans People with paraplegia German amputees German watchmakers (people) 1633 births 1689 deaths People from Altdorf bei Nürnberg Sustainable transport pioneers

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