Jacques De Vaucanson
Vaucanson, Jacques De
Born Feb. 24, 1709, in Gre-noble; died Nov. 21, 1782, in Paris. French engineer.
Vaucanson created many designs for automatic machines based on the use of a clock mechanism to carry out complex movements. He also constructed a mechanical silk-weaving loom. His inventions are collected in the room named after him in the Paris Conservatory of Arts and Crafts. Vaucanson was the author of the brochure The Mechanism of the Automatic Flutist (1738).