Nikolaus Otto

Nikolaus August Otto (June 14, 1832 - January 28, 1891) was the German inventor of the

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June 14 - 1832 - January 28 - 1891

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internal-combustion engine.

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As a young man he began experimenting with gas engines and in 1864 joined with two friends to form his own company. The company was named N. A. Otto & Cie., which was the first company to manufacture internal-combustion engines. The company exists today as Deutz AG.

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1864 - N. A. Otto & Cie. - Internal-combustion engine - Deutz AG

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His first atmospheric engine was completed in May 1867. Five years later he was joined by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach and together they produced the idea of the four-stroke cycle or Otto cycle.

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Atmospheric engine - 1867 - Gottlieb Daimler - Wilhelm Maybach - Four-stroke cycle

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First described in 1876, the stroke is an upward or downward movement of a piston in a cylinder. Otto's patent was invalidated in 1886 when it was discovered that another inventor, Alphonse Beau de Rochas, had already described the four-stroke cycle principle in a privately published pamphlet.

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1876 - 1886 - Alphonse Beau de Rochas

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According to recent historical studies, the italian inventors Eugenio Barsanti and Felice Matteucci patented a first working efficient version of an internal combustion engine in 1854 in London (pt. Num. 1072). The Otto engine is in many parts at least inspired from this precedent invention http://www.barsantiematteucci.it.

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Eugenio Barsanti - Felice Matteucci - 1854 - London

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