An old cigarette card (c. 1929) with a portrait of Louis Brennan CB (1852–1932) and an illustration of his monorail train. Brennan was an Irish-Australian mechanical engineer and inventor. The gyro monorail, gyroscopic monorail, gyro-stabilized monorail, or gyrocar are terms for a single-rail vehicle that uses the gyroscopic action of (usually two) spinning wheels to overcome the inherent instability of balancing on a single rail. The gyro monorail was never developed beyond the prototype stage and the illustration here is purely a fantasy view of what might have been.
An old cigarette card (c. 1929) with a portrait of Louis Brennan CB (1852–1932) and an illustration of his monorail train. Brennan was an Irish-Australian mechanical engineer and inventor. The gyro monorail, gyroscopic monorail, gyro-stabilized monorail, or gyrocar are terms for a single-rail vehicle that uses the gyroscopic action of (usually two) spinning wheels to overcome the inherent instability of balancing on a single rail. The gyro monorail was never developed beyond the prototype stage and the illustration here is purely a fantasy view of what might have been. The advantage of the monorail was an abilty for sharper turns as the vehicle would bank automatically on bends. The massive drawback was each car in a train would need a constantly powered gyroscope to stay upright. This card is from a 1929 set entitled 'Scientific Inventions and Discoveries' (35 cards in the series). The firm of R and J Hill Cigarettes was established on Shoreditch High Street, Hackney, London in the 1700s. In the twentieth century the company issued cards with their Sunripe and Spinet Oval cigarettes. The firm expanded to include H Archer and Co and issued cards, like this set, under 'The Spinet House' brand. The company no longer exists.
Size: 1956px × 3307px
Location: UK
Photo credit: © M&N / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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