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George (Gogu) Constantinescu was a Romanian engineer, scientist, innovator and inventor. He was born in Craiova, on October 4th<\/sup> 1881. His mother was a pianist of Alsacian origins and his father was a renowned Romanian mathematics teacher.<\/p>\nHe attended high school in Craiova and finished it in 1899. Constantinescu then applied for the \u201cNational School of Bridges and Roads\u201d in Bucharest, which he graduated from in 1904, top student of his year with the highest score ever achieved. He obtained an engineer diploma after doing a project on bridges made of reinforced concrete, a topic that had not been properly explored before, which he presented to professor Anghel Saligny. He was then hired by the engineer Ilie Radu, who supported his daring projects, unlike his former professor, Anghel Saligny.<\/p>\n
In 1904 Constantinescu published in Bulletin of the Polytechnic Society<\/em> magazine the article Study on reinforced concrete<\/em> which showed, through theoretical calculations, the utility of the new construction material. He used reinforced concrete for constructions, despite all the opposition of the technical authorities of that time, caused by previous collapse of some buildings made of this material. His technical activity includes the construction of many reinforced concrete bridges and buildings such as the current National Library of Romania, the City Hall of Bucharest, the Casino and the minaret from the Great Mosque in Constan\u021ba.<\/p>\n Constantinescu moved to London in 1910, where he put in practice his innovative ideas regarding the use of reinforced concrete and the transmission of mechanical energy through vibrations. Here he began to determine a complete theoretical approach to his ‘sonics’, based essentially on electrical theory. In 1918, he published the book A treatise on transmission of power by vibrations<\/em>, in which he described his Theory of sonics, a new branch of continuum mechanics. The theory is applicable to various systems of power transmission, but has mostly been applied to hydraulic systems. Later on the theory was expanded in electro-sonic, hydro-sonic, sonostereo-sonic and thermo-sonic. The theory was the first chapter of\u00a0compressible flow\u00a0applications and has stated for the first time the mathematical theory of compressible fluid. The laws discovered by Constantinescu, used in sonicity, are the same with the laws used in electricity.<\/p>\n In 1923 he came up with a mechanical\u00a0torque converter\u00a0actuated by a\u00a0pendulum.\u00a0This was applied to the\u00a0Constantinesco<\/i>, a\u00a0French-manufactured car. It was also tried on rail vehicles. A 250 hp\u00a0petrol engined\u00a0locomotive with a Constantinescu torque converter was exhibited at the 1924\u00a0Wembley Exhibition. The system was not adopted on British railways but it was applied to some railcars on the Romanian State Railways. He was an honorary\u00a0member of the Romanian Academy. Constantinescu was considered one of the 17 leaders of the scientific world. His recognition at worldwide level is attested by a picture entitled Leaders in the March of Progress, published by The Graphic, where he appears next to Einstein, Edison, Marie Curie and others.<\/p>\n He had several patents for improvements to\u00a0carburetors.\u00a0He also devised a hydraulic system for operating both the valves and the fuel injectors for\u00a0diesel engines. Constantinescu continued to work on his inventions in his workshop on the shores of Lake Coniston until his death in December 1965.<\/p>\n Constantinescu had over 317 patents, many of them patented in Denmark, Swiss, Austria, Germany, United Kingdom, France, USA and Romania. A short calculation shows that from his first invention in 1907 until his death in 1965, a patent was issued on average every forth month.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”rgba(147,175,193,0.39)” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on”]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_comments admin_label=”Comments” show_avatar=”on” show_reply=”on” show_count=”off” background_layout=”light” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” custom_button=”off” button_letter_spacing=”0″ button_use_icon=”default” button_icon_placement=”right” button_on_hover=”on” button_letter_spacing_hover=”0″]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_comments][\/et_pb_column_inner][\/et_pb_row_inner][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″][et_pb_blog admin_label=”Blog” fullwidth=”off” include_categories=”11″ show_thumbnail=”off” show_content=”off” show_more=”off” show_author=”on” show_date=”on” show_categories=”off” show_comments=”off” show_pagination=”on” offset_number=”0″ use_overlay=”off” background_layout=”light” use_dropshadow=”on” use_border_color=”on” border_color=”#e5e5e5″ border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_blog][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" George Constantinescu <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"[et_pb_section admin_label=\"Section\" fullwidth=\"off\" specialty=\"on\"][et_pb_column type=\"3_4\" specialty_columns=\"3\"][et_pb_row_inner admin_label=\"Row\"][et_pb_column_inner type=\"4_4\" saved_specialty_column_type=\"3_4\"][et_pb_text admin_label=\"Text\" background_layout=\"light\" text_orientation=\"justified\" use_border_color=\"off\" border_color=\"#ffffff\" border_style=\"solid\" saved_tabs=\"all\"]\r\n\r\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/eSoyEsJ.png\")
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The first application of his theory was the hydraulic machine gun synchronization gear\u00a0 \u00a0(Constantinesco Fire Control Gear) which allowed airplane-mounted guns to shoot 1200 bullets per minute between the spinning blades of the propeller without bullets striking the blades. It was developed after Major Colley, the Chief Experimental Officer and Artillery Adviser at the War Office Munitions Invention Department, became interested in\u00a0Constantinescu’s theory and worked with him to determine how his invention could be put to practical use. The new gear had several advantages over all mechanical gears: the rate of fire was greatly improved, the synchronization was much more accurate, and above all it was readily adaptable to any type of engine and airframe, instead of needing a specially designed impulse generator for each type of engine and special linkages for each type of aircraft.\u00a0In the long run it also proved far more durable and less prone to failure. \u00a0From November 1917 the gear finally became standard, being fitted to all new British aircraft with synchronized guns from that date up to the\u00a0Gloster Gladiator\u00a0of 1937.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/IrRivpN.jpg\")
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No. 55 Squadron’s\u00a0DH.4s\u00a0arrived in France on 6 March 1917 fitted with the new gear,\u00a0followed shortly after by\u00a0No. 48 squadron’s\u00a0Bristol Fighters\u00a0and\u00a0No. 56 Squadron’s S.E.5s. Over 6,000 gears were fitted to machines of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service between March and December 1917. Twenty thousand more „Constantinesco-Colley” gun synchronization systems were fitted to British military aircraft between January and October 1918, during the period when the\u00a0Royal Air Force\u00a0was formed from the two earlier services on April 1, 1918. A total of 50,000 gears were manufactured during the twenty years it was standard equipment. By early 1918 Constantinescu had built a reputation as a major contributor to the war effort. The Admiralty wanted more from him and financed the construction of a sonic’s laboratory at West Drayton, where he continued to pursue a broad range of experimental approaches.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nGeorge (Gogu) Constantinescu a fost un inovator, inventator, om de \u0219tiin\u021b\u0103 \u0219i inginer rom\u00e2n. S-a n\u0103scut \u00een 4 octombrie 1881 la Craiova, fiind fiul unui renumit profesor de matematic\u0103 \u0219i al unei pianiste cu origini alsaciene.\r\n\r\nDup\u0103 ce a urmat liceul la Craiova s-a \u00eenscris \u00een anul 1899 la \u201c\u0218coala Na\u021bional\u0103 de Poduri \u0219i \u0218osele\u201d din Bucure\u0219ti, unde a ob\u021binut \u00een anul 1904 diploma de inginer, ca \u0219ef de promo\u021bie cu cea mai mare medie pe care o avusese un absolvent de la \u00eenfiin\u021barea acelei \u0219coli. Proiectul s\u0103u de diplom\u0103 a fost despre podurile de beton armat, pentru care \u00eenc\u0103 nici nu exista un curs \u00een \u0219coal\u0103 \u0219i a fost sus\u021binut la profesorul Anghel Saligny. \u00cen anii 1904-1908 a lucrat \u00een servicul de poduri \u0219i \u0219osele condus de Ilie Radu, care l-a sprijinit \u00een lupta\u00a0 pentru introducerea tehnicii noi \u00een \u021bara noastr\u0103, spre deosebire de Anghel Saligny, care se opunea proiectelor sale \u00eendr\u0103zne\u021be.\r\n\r\n\u00cen 1904 a publicat \u00een Buletinul Societ\u0103\u021bii Politehnice<\/em> o teorie proprie a calculului betonului armat. El construie\u0219te folosind acest material, \u00een ciuda tuturor \u00eempotrivirilor autorit\u0103\u021bilor din acea vreme, cauzate de pr\u0103bu\u0219irea unor construc\u021bii din beton armat. A executat \u0219osele \u0219i a proiectat plan\u0219ee de beton armat pentru cl\u0103direa Ministerului Lucr\u0103rilor Publice \u0219i a Palatului Bursei. A proiectat Moscheea din Constan\u021ba, cu minaretul \u0219i cupola din beton armat, podul de beton armat de la Lainici, peste Jiu, scheletul de rezisten\u021b\u0103, de asemenea din beton armat, al cupolei Marii Adun\u0103ri Na\u021bionale \u0219i alte lucr\u0103ri.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n\u00cen 1910 George Constantinescu s-a stabilit la Londra, unde a g\u0103sit un mediu favorabil pentru punerea \u00een practic\u0103 a ideilor sale originale \u00een domeniul utiliz\u0103rii betonului armat \u0219i transmiterii energiei prin unde sonore, idee care l-a fr\u0103m\u00e2ntat \u00eenc\u0103 din timpul liceului. Aici a pus bazele unei \u0219tiin\u021be noi, sonicitatea, o ramur\u0103 a mecanicii mediilor continue, stabilind legile de generare \u0219i reflectare ale undei sonice \u0219i fundamentarea matematic\u0103 a acestora. Sonicitatea este \u0219tiin\u021ba care se ocup\u0103 cu transmiterea energiei mecanice \u00een masa lichidelor sau a solidelor prin intermediul vibra\u021biilor \u0219i al undelor elastice longitudinale care se propag\u0103 \u00een masa fluidului sau solidului. Teoria sonicit\u0103\u021bii (publicat\u0103 \u00een 1918) se aplic\u0103 la diferite sisteme de transmisie a puterii, \u00een special la sisteme hidraulice. Ulterior au fost dezvoltate capitole derivate privind electrosonicitatea, c\u00e2mpurile sonore \u0219i termosonicitatea. Teoria permite folosirea compresibilit\u0103\u021bii lichidelor pentru a transmite putere prin vibra\u021bii (oscila\u021bii), prin folosirea modelelor matematice existente \u00een domeniul electricit\u0103\u021bii.\r\n\r\nPrima aplica\u021bie a Teoriei Sonicit\u0103\u021bii a fost sistemul de sincronizare sonic (Constantinesco Fire Control Gear), mitraliera sonic\u0103 a c\u0103rei caden\u021b\u0103 de tragere era sincronizat\u0103 cu rota\u021bia elicei. Aceasta era capabil\u0103 s\u0103 trag\u0103 1.200 de gloan\u0163e pe minut printre palelele elicei avionului care se rotea \u00een zbor, f\u0103r\u0103 a lovi palele ei. Mecanismul a fost realizat cu ajutorul maiorului Colley, unul din membrii conducerii Comitetului Regal, care a fost interesat de teoria inginerului rom\u00e2n \u0219i a dorit s\u0103 o pun\u0103 \u00een practic\u0103. \u00cen august 1916 s-au realizat primele teste cu un avion echipat cu ceea ce avea s\u0103 devin\u0103\u00a0\u201eC.C. Gear\u201d (Constantinesco-Colley).<\/em> Noul mecanism avea multe avantaje, cum ar fi rata de foc crescut\u0103, sincronizarea mult mai precis\u0103 \u0219i adaptabilitatea la orice tip de motor \u0219i avion. Din noiembrie 1917 mecanismul a devenit unul standard, fiind montat pe toate aeronavele britanice cu arme sincronizate, ultimul fiind Gloster Gladiator \u00een 1937.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Escadrila 55 a RAF cu avioane Airco DH.4, ajunge \u00een Fran\u021ba la 6 martie 1917, fiind primele avioane din serviciul activ echipate cu sincronizatorul Constantinescu-Colley. Datorit\u0103 succesului \u015fi superiorit\u0103\u021bii fa\u0163\u0103 de sistemul utilizat de avia\u0163ia german\u0103, p\u00e2n\u0103 la sf\u00e2r\u015fitul r\u0103zboiului peste 8000 de aparate de zbor americane si britanice au fost dotate cu astfel de sisteme. George\u00a0Constantinescu a ob\u021binut fonduri importante pentru continuarea cercet\u0103rilor. A fost numit consilier al amiralit\u0103\u021bii \u0219i i s-a pus la dispozi\u021bie la West Drayton un laborator de \u00eencerc\u0103ri \u0219i experiment\u0103ri, unde a avut posibilitatea de a realiza numeroase obiecte ale inven\u021biei sale \u00een domeniul sonicit\u0103\u021bii.\r\n\r\n\u00cen 1923 George\u00a0Constantinescu\u00a0a prezentat o inven\u021bie remarcabil\u0103, cunoscut\u0103 sub denumirea de \u201econvertizorul de cuplu\u201d sau schimb\u0103torul de viteze automat. De fapt, el a inventat o cutie de viteze automat\u0103 pentru ma\u015fini prin care s-a eliminat cutia de viteze tradi\u0163ional\u0103 \u015fi ambreiajul. A aplicat aceast\u0103 idee \u0219i \u00een cazul locomotivelor, prezent\u00e2nd \u00een cadrul Expozi\u021biei Imperiului Britanic de la Wembley, din 1924, o locomotiv\u0103 cu convertor sonic.\r\n\r\n\r\n\u00centr-un num\u0103r din anul 1926, revista britanic\u0103 \u201eThe Graphic\u201d a publicat un articol despre sonicitate, afirm\u00e2nd despre George\u00a0Constantinescu (primul de pe al doilea r\u00e2nd) c\u0103: \u201eaceast\u0103 descoperire \u00eel situeaz\u0103 pe savantul inginer rom\u00e2n printre marii inventatori ai lumii, al\u0103turi de Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Ernest Rutherford, T.A.Edison, \u0219i al\u021bii\u201d.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u00cen 1961 George\u00a0Constantinescu\u00a0a f\u0103cut o vizit\u0103 \u00een \u021bar\u0103, iar cu acel prilej Institutul Politehnic din Bucure\u0219ti i-a acordat titlul de \u201eDoctor honoris causa\u201d \u00een \u0219tiinte tehnice. A fost membru al Societ\u0103\u021bii Politehnice, membru de onoare al Academiei Rom\u00e2ne \u0219i membru de onoare al Societ\u0103\u021bii inginerilor din Anglia.\u00a0A \u00eencetat din via\u021b\u0103 la 11 decembrie 1965, la Londra.\r\n\r\n\u00cen contul lui Gogu Constatinescu figureaz\u0103 circa 300 de brevete de inven\u021bie. Un mic calcul ne arat\u0103 c\u0103 de la apari\u021bia primei inven\u021bii (1907), p\u00e2n\u0103 la data trecerii \u00een eternitate (1965), a fost realizat c\u00e2te un brevet la mai pu\u021bin de 4 luni.\r\n\r\nOpera lui Constantinescu nu a fost cunoscut\u0103 \u00eendeajuns, \u00een mare parte datorit\u0103 caracterului secret dat de utiliz\u0103rile preponderent militare \u0219i a pu\u021binelor publica\u021bii referitoare la acestea. El a avut o minte str\u0103lucit\u0103, fiind un vizionar care \u0219i-a dep\u0103\u0219it cu mult contemporanii, inova\u021biile sale p\u0103str\u00e2ndu-\u0219i valabilitatea.\r\n\r\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=\"Divider\" color=\"rgba(147,175,193,0.39)\" show_divider=\"on\" divider_style=\"solid\" divider_position=\"top\" hide_on_mobile=\"on\"]\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n[\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_comments admin_label=\"Comments\" show_avatar=\"on\" show_reply=\"on\" show_count=\"off\" background_layout=\"light\" use_border_color=\"off\" border_color=\"#ffffff\" border_style=\"solid\" custom_button=\"off\" button_letter_spacing=\"0\" button_use_icon=\"default\" button_icon_placement=\"right\" button_on_hover=\"on\" button_letter_spacing_hover=\"0\"]\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n[\/et_pb_comments][\/et_pb_column_inner][\/et_pb_row_inner][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=\"1_4\"][et_pb_blog admin_label=\"Blog\" fullwidth=\"off\" include_categories=\"11\" show_thumbnail=\"off\" show_content=\"off\" show_more=\"off\" show_author=\"on\" show_date=\"on\" show_categories=\"off\" show_comments=\"off\" show_pagination=\"on\" offset_number=\"0\" use_overlay=\"off\" background_layout=\"light\" use_dropshadow=\"on\" use_border_color=\"on\" border_color=\"#e5e5e5\" border_style=\"solid\"]\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n[\/et_pb_blog][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_section]","_et_gb_content_width":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2},"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[127],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-aviation-and-astronautics"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n