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- In full:
- Gaspard-Clair-François-Marie Riche, baron de Prony
- Born:
- July 22, 1755, Chamelet, France
- Died:
- July 29, 1839, Paris (aged 84)
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Gaspard de Prony
French mathematician and engineer
Also known as: Gaspard-Clair-Franƈois-Marie Riche, Baron de Prony(Show More)
Gaspard de Prony (born July 22, 1755, Chamelet, France—died July 29, 1839, Paris) was a French mathematician and engineer. He invented the Prony brake (1821), a device for measuring the power developed by an engine. In the Prony brake, brake blocks are squeezed against a rotating wheel, and the friction generated at the ends of the wheel applies torque to a lever; a scale measures the force needed to hold the lever in place.
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