Life of Being a Crown Prince in France - Chapter 1254 - 1159: The Rise of Machining Technology
Chapter 1254: Chapter 1159: The Rise of Machining Technology
Moreover, the Security Bureau telling the Tsar such sensitive matters would make it seem as if Russia had been seriously infiltrated by the French intelligence organizations.
It must be noted that Paul I was quite a suspicious person.
“You don’t need to worry about this matter,” Joseph waved his hand at Lavallette, frowning, realizing it wasn’t appropriate for him to handle it either.
Suddenly, he patted his forehead, aha, wasn’t there still Alexandra?
He would let her write a family letter to Paul I, mentioning that someone might pose a threat to him. Her father would surely listen to his daughter’s words.
Then the Director of Security mentioned Central Asia situation: “The grain in Khiva and Bukhara has been overly consumed, and even if Russia could regroup its forces, it would be difficult to launch an attack on India before the next harvest. Unless we replenish their supplies via the Black Sea route.”
Joseph promptly shook his head: “There’s no need.”
The British will soon discover that it is practically impossible for Russia to advance southward from Central Asia through the Khyber Pass — the transportation situation is too poor, and the logistical supplies completely can’t keep up — so they wouldn’t continue to invest resources into Persia and Afghanistan.
However, the encounter of the Bakhov Corps this time reminded Joseph that logistical issues must be more carefully attended to.
Actually, when Napoleon and Moro reached into Austria, the French Army’s logistical supply was also very strenuous. Especially through sparsely populated areas, relying entirely on rear transport, the logistical costs were 3 to 5 times higher than combat on the West Bank of the Rhine River.
If the French Army were to march into Central Asia, could they do better than Bakhov?
Joseph immediately thought of the logistical magic — canned food.
Canned food could allow the army to carry large quantities of meat, thereby greatly reducing logistical transport — a bottle of canned meat only weighs 0.5 kilograms and substitutes for three times the weight of grain.
Moreover, cans are stackable, fitting tightly in carts, allowing one cart to carry thousands of bottles, and loading and unloading is more convenient. Canisters are waterproof, eliminating the need for oilcloth covering the wagon, which is another hundred pounds of weight.
Additionally, cans are already cooked food, they can be eaten in emergencies simply by opening them. Sometimes launching an attack fifteen minutes earlier can influence the outcome of a war.
Previously, Joseph had also considered building a canned food factory, but at the time only glass bottles could be used as can carriage, which was not only expensive but also prone to breaking during heating sterilization and even more so during transportation.
Therefore, during the Napoleonic Wars, glass bottle can production was limited to several thousand bottles a month, making it impossible for large-scale logistical supply.
Joseph turned his head, looking towards the faintly visible building cluster of the French Academy of Sciences outside the carriage window.
A surge of fine mechanical processing equipment had started in France, and producing sealed tin cans was now technically unchallenging.
In fact, with the support of high-precision lathes and milling machines, coupled with high manganese steel bearings, even rolling presses might be possible to manufacture.
Yes, his visit to the Academy today was to attend the demonstration conference of batch-produced “High-Precision Rotary Milling Machines”.
Through cost-intensive investment, Whitney and the Renou brothers completed the new milling machine design in less than ten months.
This industrial marvel would trigger a leap forward in France’s mechanical technology field.
Tin cans might just be one of the most insignificant among them.
Due to confidentiality, only ten or so senior members from the Academy and Royal Precision Equipment Company greeted the Crown Prince at the door, without even a band.
As Joseph stepped into the experimental workshop, guarded by the military, he immediately saw the 4-meter-long, entirely black high-precision milling machine.
The steam engine driving it had long heated the boiler, producing rhythmic “tik-tak” sounds.
Chief Designer Whitney noticed the Crown Prince constantly eyeing the new machine and hurriedly stepped forward from the rear, enthusiastically introducing: “Your Highness, this ’Royal Type I’ rotary milling machine has reached a machining precision of 0.2 millimeters.”
Philippe Renou murmured from behind: “Actually, it can achieve 0.16 millimeters.”
Whitney glanced at him, and said to Joseph: “Yes, sometimes it can reach 0.16 millimeters, but it’s still not stable. You know, this requires time for tuning and improvement.”
He then pointed to the complex feed mechanism: “Simultaneously, it can directly process curved and concave surfaces, with a maximum capacity for workpieces of 55 centimeters, where skilled technicians only need over 20 minutes to complete the machining of a complex bearing bracket…”
This speed might not sound significant, but in the late 18th century when mechanical processing primarily relied on manual labor, at most assisted by a linear-style machine, it was simply a magical miracle!
Usually, merely cutting a side groove for bearing brackets took two hours.
An entire workpiece required at least a day and a half to complete, with precision far inferior to using the “Royal Type I” milling machine.
Whitney also signaled towards the steam engine at the rear of the milling machine: “Your Highness, this is the LJ20R model steam engine specifically designed by the United Steam Engine Company, offering very stable rotation…”
However, Joseph interrupted him, asking the most crucial question: “How is the effect of processing steam engine crankshafts with your new milling machine?”
Whitney froze for a few seconds, then turned to exchange a look with Renou before hesitantly murmuring: “If combined with a lathe and grinder, it could indeed perform crankshaft processing…”
The light of excitement flashed in his eyes: “Yes, it can directly mill crankshafts. Without even needing bolt fastening or welding!”
Joseph sighed silently to himself, realizing it was indeed the nascent era of mechanical processing technology. Clearly, more design and manufacturing techniques would need to be slowly developed by technicians.
Whitney was still pondering the crankshaft matter: “The precision of grinders may be inadequate, requiring manual handling, likely taking two days to complete the processing of a crankshaft…”
The structure of the crankshaft is extremely complex, and can only be crafted entirely by hand, taking at least over ten days to produce a qualified crankshaft.
Additionally, crankshafts processed using milling are mostly monolithic structures, with strength and precision several times higher than those hand-manufactured.
The Royal Precision Equipment Company’s general manager noticed the chief technician was lost in thought and quickly signaled to Philippe Renou beside him.
The latter immediately stepped forward and bowed to Joseph: “Your Highness, please allow me to demonstrate this ’Royal Type I’ milling machine to you.”
“Alright, I look forward to it greatly.”
Renou bowed again and then took a trapezoidal iron blank from the material pile, expertly securing it onto the milling machine’s fixture.
As he pulled the handle, the gears engaged, setting the rear steam engine in motion to rotate the milling cutter made with high manganese steel at high speed.
Iron filings scattered everywhere.
In just 15 minutes, Renou wiped his sweat and extracted a main shaft bracket for a lathe from the fixture, displaying it to everyone present.
