James Watt and copy press

inventor was born in Greenock, in 1736, on January 19 .
1755 was the most difficult year of the scholar's adolescent life. His mother died, and his father's health was rapidly deteriorating. By chance, the family was left without a ship's trade - the main source of income. The role of primary breadwinner fell on James' shoulders. For inspiration and a profession he went to London, the heart of Great Britain. He managed to learn the locksmith's trade program, designed for 7 years, in one year. The scientist then moved to Glasgow, Scotland's largest city, intending to devote himself to the invention of mathematical instruments.

patented the portable copy press, which consisted of a box that had compartments for pencils, pen, ruler, and paper, as well as a special compartment for copy paper. The metallized box had a supply of ink and water for 24 sheets of copy paper. A metal cover was used to clamp the original sheet. The copy sheets were held in a special compound for 12 hours before starting work. The actual copying was done by turning the handle of the machine, which rotated two brass rollers located in the bottom of the case. The original document was placed on the copying plate between the lifting covers. It was pressed against the wet copy paper to make an imprint and thus a mirror copy of the document was obtained on the copying plates, which after 24 hours of drying was ready for use.

of the 19th century, and such famous people as Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson used them in their work.
In his elderly years the inventor also worked on a machine for copying sculptural works, the eidograph, a mechanical device that allowed high-precision copying of bas-reliefs, medallions, statues, and other things of the most complex shape.