Welcome to the Museum of Simple Machines Timeline Museum Entrance Screw Pulley Lever Wheel and Axle Wedge Inclined Plane Curator’s Offices

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Wheel and Axle Room 1 Return to Entry

Pulley Room 2 Return to Entry

Lever Room 3 Return to Entry

Inclined Plane Room 4 Return to Entry

Wedge Room 5 Return to Entry

Screw Room 5 Return to Entry

Linked citation goes here Wheel and Axle 1 The Wheel and Axle is a simple machine made by a large will accompanied by a smaller wheel called and Axle. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wheel and Axle 2 There are two main ways to use the Wheel and Axle. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wheel and Axle 3 Archaeologists discovered the oldest known wheel in 3600 b.c Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wheel and Axle 4 To find the mechanical advantage you need to find the radius of the wheel and axle, and then divide the wheel’s radius by the axle’s radius. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Pulley 5 A pulley is used to lift things. Such as bricks, and other things. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Pulley 6 Pulley’s are often used on sewing machines, flag poles, sailboats, clothing lines and other things. etc Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Pulley 7 Object’s similar to pulleys is told to be used by the Mesopotamians in early 1500 b.c by lifting water buckets. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Pulley 8 A pulley moves objects by altering their direction, amount of speed of force, according to the University of Arkansas. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Lever 9 The lever is a simple bar attached to a pivot point that it is able to rest on. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Lever 10 A see-saw is an example of the lever as well as the crowbar. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Lever 11 There are three classes of lever, first-class, second-class, and third-class. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Lever 12 This wheel barrow is an example of a second-class lever. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Inclined Plane 13 An inclined plane is a simple machine with a sloping slide. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Inclined Plane 14 Trucks use inclined planes to moves and load heavy boxes. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Inclined Plane 15 The roof on a building can be and inclined plane. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Inclined Plane16 Wheel chair ramps are inclined planes. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wedge 17 A wedge is an object with at least one slanting slide ending in a sharp edge that cuts material. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wedge18 A wedge converts motion in one direction into a splitting motion that acts at right angles to the blade. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wedge19 Wedges are either use to hold or separate devices. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wedge 20 A wedge is made out of two inclined planes. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Wedge 21 A wedge is basically an inclined plane. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Screw 22 A car “Jack” that is used to repair tires or change them is also a screw. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Screw 23 A screw holds more firmly to a piece a wood than a nail. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Screw 24 A screw is a pointed nail with screws in it. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Linked citation goes here Screw 25 A screw holds things together and also can lift many things too. Linked citation goes here Return to Exhibit

Timeline History of Simple Machines lever Pulley Wedge Wheel and Axle Return to Entrance Inclined Plane Screw

Pulley About 1100 AD the building of large churches called cathedrals became popular. These buildings were very large and some were around 150 meters high. Huge blocks of stone had to be lifted to build the walls and spires. The cathedral builders were the same people who designed and built the pulley systems to lift the blocks of stone. Return to Exhibit

Lever Levers are one of the basic tools; they were probably used in prehistoric times. Levers were first described about 260 BC by the ancient Greek mathematician. Many of our basic tools use levers, including scissors, pliers, hammer claws, nutcrackers, and tongs. Return to Exhibit

Wedge History is not clear since it has been around for around 9,000 years. Almost all known ancient civilations had their version of the wedge. Return to Exhibit

Wheel and Axle The wheel is probably the single most important invention of all time. The oldest wheel was found in a place that is now called Mesopotamia. It is believed to be over fifty-five hundred years old. Before that time, people did not have wheels to move heavy objects. Axles were used to unite two or more wheels in order to achieve more work or transportation done. Return to Exhibit

Inclined Plane The inclined plane is one of the simple machines of antiquity, the physical operations of which were first theorized by Archimedes in the second century B.C., and then further explained by Hero of Alexandria in the first century A.D. Return to Exhibit

Screw Around the first century, screw shaped tools became common, however, historians do not know who invented the first. Early screws were made from wood and were used in wine presses, olive oil presses, and for pressing clothes. Metal screws and nuts used to fasten two objects together first appeared in the fifteenth century. Return to Exhibit