Carl Edgar Myers (March 2, 1842 to November 30, 1925) was an American businessman, scientist, inventor, meteorologist, balloonist, and aeronautical engineer. Myers is primarily know for inventing several types of hydrogen balloon airships and related equipment with his wife, Mary "Carlotta" Myers at their "balloon farm" in Mohawk, New York.
| Carl Edgar Myers | |
|---|---|
| Born | 2 March 1842, Fort Herkimer, Herkimer County, New York |
| Died | 30 November 1925 (aged 83), Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia |
| Occupation(s) | Inventor, balloonist, meteorologist |
| Known for | Making Airships |
Patents
- Patent US-1885-318575 (English title: Guiding Apparatus for balloons, Filing date: 1885-05-19)
- Patent US-1897-581218 (English title: Sky-Cycle, Filing date: 1889-03-13)
- Patent US-1913-1078455 (English title: Airship, Filing date: 1908-04-08)
Sky-cycle
The Sky-cycle had a "symmetrical wave-line spindle-shaped body" with a mechanism for using human power Myers called "aerial velocipede for flying."
Myers wrote on February 5, 1900:
The sky-cycle, or gas-kite, is a hand and foot propelled air-ship, provided with revolving screw-sails, vibrating wings, movable aeroplanes and universal rudder—the object of the entire equipage being to test the relative advantages of all known systems for propulsion and guidance, and to attain practical experience in manipulating air craft. The operator and machinery are suspended below a peculiarly shaped gas-spindle, whose fabric has been treated by a special process, original with me, which enables it to retain hydrogen permanently during use. It has within a limited period made upwards of one hundred flights, embracing New York State, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan and Illinois.
References an earlier patent, granted to Carl & Carlotta Myers, aeronauts: Patent US-1885-318575, dealing with a reversible cloth screw.