List of mechanical engineers explained

This is a list of mechanical engineers, noted for their contribution to the field of mechanical engineering.

See also List of engineers for links to other engineering professions.

A

• Ahmed Zulfikar (1952–2010) – entrepreneur and businessman
• Al-Jazari (1136–1206) – polymath, numerous mechanical innovations
• Al-Zarqali (1029–1087) – instrument maker, astrologer, and leading astronomers
• Archimedes (c. 287–212 BC) – polymath, inventor of the screw pump
• Richard Arkwright (1733–1792) – credited with inventing the spinning frame but most notable for contributions to the modern factory system
• William George Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong (1810–1900) – hydraulic power pioneer, founder of Armstrong Whitworth

B

• Charles Babbage (1791–1871) – creator of the difference engine
• George Herman Babcock (1832–1893) – co-invented an improved safety water tube steam boiler, co-founder of Babcock & Wilcox
• Joseph Cyril Bamford (1916–2001) – founder of the JCB company, manufacturing heavy plant, and especially backhoes
• Eugenio Barsanti (1821–1864) – early developer of internal combustion engine
• Karl Benz (1844–1929) – generally regarded as the inventor of the gasoline-powered automobile, founder of Mercedes-Benz
• Henry Bessemer (1813–1898) – best known as the creator of the Bessemer Process
• John Blenkinsop (1783–1831) – steam locomotive pioneer, developed rack and pinion railway system
• Thomas Bouch (1822–1880) – railway engineer, helped develop the roll-on/roll-off train ferry
• Matthew Boulton (1728–1809) – steam engineer, associate of James Watt
• Joseph Bramah (1748–1814) – hydraulic power pioneer and inventor of the hydraulic press
• Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1805–1859) – design contributions include the Great Western Railway and the SS Great Eastern
• William Brunton (1777–1851) – early steam power pioneer, inventor of the Brunton's Mechanical Traveller
• Oliver Bulleid (1882–1970) – railway engineer
• David Bushnell (1742–1824) – creator of the Turtle, credited as the first military submarine

C

• Gerolamo Cardano (1501–1576) – numerous mechanical inventions including the combination lock, gimbal, Cardan shaft, and Cardan grille
• Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot (1796–1832) – physicist and military engineer
• Willis Carrier (1876–1950) – pioneered the design and manufacture of modern air conditioning systems
• Edmund Cartwright (1743–1823) – inventor of the first commercial power loom
• George Cayley (1773–1857) – aerodynamics pioneer and founding member of the British Association for the Advancement of Science
• Colin Chapman (1928–1982) – automotive engineer, founder of Lotus Cars
• André Citroën (1878–1935) – founder of Citroën automotive, known for application of double-helical gears
• Joseph Clement (1779–1844) – best known as the maker of Babbage's difference engine
• Dugald Clerk (1854–1932) – inventor of the two-stroke engine
• Demetrius Comino (1902–1988) – inventor of Dexion slotted angle steel construction system
• Peter Cooper (1791–1883) – designed and built the first American steam locomotive, the Tom Thumb, and founded the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
• William R. Cosentini (1911–1954) – founder of Cosentini Associates
• Thomas Russell Crampton (1816–1888) – inventor of the Crampton locomotive and an early advocate of the Channel Tunnel
• Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot (1725–1804) – early developer of a self-propelled (steam) vehicle

D

• Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) – polymath
• Rudolf Diesel (1858–1913) – inventor of the diesel engine
• Bryan Donkin (1768–1855) – associated with paper making and printing machinery, tinned food, beam engines, gas valves and the Babbage difference engine; employed on civil engineering projects such as the Thames Tunnel, Chatham Docks and Caledonian Canal; member of Royal Society of Arts, Institution of Civil Engineers, and the Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers; founder member of the Royal Astronomical Society
• Cornelius Drebbel (1572–1633) – inventor of the first navigable submarine
• Keith Duckworth (1933–2005) – designer of the Cosworth DFV

E

• Thomas Alva Edison (1847–1931) – inventor, entrepreneur
• Chaim Elata (born 1929) – Israeli professor of mechanical engineering, President of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and Chairman of the Israel Public Utility Authority for Electricity
• John Ericsson (1803–1889) – steam engine design, propeller design, iron clad warships (USS Monitor)
• Oliver Evans (1755–1819) – steam power pioneer and inventor, best known for his "Oruktor Amphibolos"

F

• William Fairbairn (1789–1874) – steam power pioneer, developer of early high-pressure boiler (Lancashire boiler)
• Harry Ferguson (1884–1960) – agricultural equipment engineer, founder of Ferguson Company (later Massey Ferguson)
• Giovanni Fontana (c. 1395 – c. 1455) – fifteenth-century Venetian engineer
• Henry Ford (1863–1947) – automotive engineer and industrialist, founder of Ford Motor Company
• Benoît Fourneyron (1802–1867) – pioneered early practical water turbine
• Robert Fulton (1765–1815) – credited with the development of the first commercial steamboat
• Yuan-Cheng Fung (1919–2019) – American bio-engineer, a founding figure of bioengineering, tissue engineering, and the "founder of modern biomechanics"

G

• Emile Gagnan (1900–1979) – co-inventor (with Cousteau) of the diving regulator used in SCUBA equipment
• Henry Laurence Gantt (1861–1919) – inventor of the Gantt chart
• Blasco de Garay (1500–1552) – early steam power pioneer and developer of paddle wheels as a substitute for oars
• Herbert William Garratt (1864–1913) – inventor of the Garratt system of articulated locomotives
• Daniel Gooch (1816–1889) – first chief mechanical engineer of the Great Western Railway
• John Viret Gooch (1812–1900) – locomotive superintendent of the London and South Western Railway
• J.E. Gordon (1913–1998) – engineering author and developer of composite materials
• George B. Grant (1849–1917) – worked on improved calculators and gear industry pioneer
• Nigel Gresley (1876–1941) – steam locomotive engineer, developed Gresley conjugated valve gear
• Ravi Grover (born 1949) – Indian nuclear scientist and mechanical engineer; widely given credit for building India's nuclear bomb
• John Josiah Guest (1785–1852) – manager of the Dowlais Ironworks, Wales
• Goldsworthy Gurney (1793–1875) – inventor and steam power pioneer, known for his Gurney Steam Carriage

H

• Timothy Hackworth (1786–1850) – early steam locomotive designer, associate of William Hedley and George Stephenson
• James Harrison (1816–1893) – pioneer in the field of mechanical refrigeration
• William Hedley (1779–1843) – railway pioneer, built the first practical steam locomotive relying only on the adhesion of wheels to rails
• Beulah Louise Henry (1887–1973) – nicknamed "Lady Edison", patents included a bobbin-free sewing machine and vacuum ice cream freezer
• Hero of Alexandria (c. 10–70 AD) – described many inventions including the aeolipile and the windwheel
• August Horch (1868–1951) – automotive engineer, founder of Audi
• Jonathan Hornblower (1753–1815) – steam power pioneer, developed the first compound steam engine
• Elias Howe (1819–1867) – refined Hunt's ideas, was granted the first U.S. patent for a sewing machine using a lockstitch design

I

• Alec Issigonis (1906–1988) – automotive engineer associated with the development of the Mini

J

• Joseph Marie Jacquard (1752–1834) – invented the Jacquard loom, forerunner of modern digital computers (also see Basile Bouchon)
• György Jendrassik (1898–1954) – developed first working turboprop engine (the Jendrassik Cs-1)

L

• Frederick Lanchester (1868–1946) – polymath with contributions in automotive and aviation engineering, co-founder of Lanchester Motor Company
• Gustaf de Laval (1845–1913) – developer of the De Laval nozzle, contributions in steam and dairy engineering, founder of Alfa Laval
• Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716) – polymath who invented, among other things, the Leibniz wheel

M

• Ma Jun (fl. 220–265) – 3rd-century China, invented the south-pointing chariot, mechanical puppet theaters, chain pumps, improved silk looms
• Felice Matteucci (1808–1887) – early developer of internal combustion engine
• Henry Maudslay (1771–1831) – considered a founding father of machine tool technology, helped perfect the hydraulic press
• Elijah McCoy (1843–1929) – African Canadian inventor, contributions include automatic lubricator for steam engines
• Eckart Meiburg (born 1959) – German/American researcher, notable contributions to Computational fluid dynamics
• Andrew Meikle (1719–1811) – contributions include threshing machine and windmill sails
• Otto Metzger (1885–1961) – German/British engineer and inventor of impact extrusion of containers
• Thomas Midgley Jr. (1889–1944) – developed tetraethyllead (TEL) and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
• Samuel Morey (1762–1843) – steamship and internal combustion engine pioneer
• James Morgan (1776?–1856) – Applied Materials CEO
• William Murdoch (1754–1839) – associate of Watt, improved steam engine (sun and planet gearing), also developed gas lighting
• Gordon Murray (born 1946) – Formula One, Brabham BT46B, McLaren F1
• Matthew Murray (1765–1826) – steam engine designer, built one of the first commercially viable steam locomotives (Salamanca)
• Mohammad Reza Eslami (born 1945) – Iranian scientist and professor of Mechanical Engineering at Tehran Polytechnic (Amirkabir University of Technology), Tehran, Iran

N

• James Nasmyth (1808–1890) – inventor of the steam hammer and other important machine tools
• Thomas Newcomen (1664–1729) – inventor of the first practical steam engine for pumping water
• James Henry Northrop (1856–1940) – inventor of the shuttle-charging mechanism which led to the fully automatic Northrup Power Loom

O

• Nicolaus Otto (1832–1891) – developer of the first commercially viable four-stroke engine

P

• Denis Papin (1647–1712) – inventor of the steam digester, forerunner of the steam engine
• Charles Algernon Parsons (1854–1931) – steam and power engineer, inventor of compound steam turbine
• Ferdinand Porsche (1875–1951) – automotive engineer, best known for creating the Volkswagen Beetle

Q

• Muhammad Hafeez Qureshi (1930–2007) – weapons scientist, aerodynamicist, rocket engineer and missile technologist

R

• Adele Racheli (1894–?) – Italian mechanical engineer and founder of a patent protection office in Milan in 1925.
• Agostino Ramelli (c. 1531–1600) – inventor of the bookwheel as well as various water-powered inventions (clockwork, treadmill, pump)
• John Ramsbottom (1814–1897) – inventor of the tamper-proof spring safety valve and the displacement lubricator
• William John Macquorn Rankine (1820–1872) – major contributor to thermodynamics, heat engine theory and metal fatigue
• George Rennie (1791–1866) – among other developments, a pioneer in food processing equipment (biscuit, corn, chocolate mills)
• Osbourne Reynolds (1842–1912) – major contributor to the science of fluid dynamics and heat transfer
• Harry Ricardo (1885–1974) – internal combustion engine designer and researcher
• Richard Roberts (1789–1864) – developer of high-precision machine tools which helped enable mass production
• Alfred H. Rzeppa (1885–1965) – developer of the constant-velocity joint

S

• Ralph Sarich (born 1938) – invented orbital engine
• Thomas Savery (c. 1650–1715) – early steam engine patent holder, author of A Miner's Friend; or An Engine to Raise Water by Fire
• Per Georg Scheutz (1785–1873) – pioneer in computer technology (Scheutzian calculation engine)
• Dan Shechtman (born 1941) – discovered Icosahedral Phase
• Carl Wilhelm Siemens (1823–1883) – inventor of the regenerative furnace
• Igor Sikorsky (1889–1972) – aviation engineer, inventor of the single-rotor helicopter, founder of Sikorsky Aircraft Company
• Isaac Singer (1811–1875) – credited with improvements in lockstitch sewing machine, founder of the Singer Sewing Machine Company
• John Smeaton (1724–1792) – principally a civil engineer, but made numerous improvements to Newcomen's steam engine
• Edward Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Worcester, (c. 1601–1667) – numerous mechanical innovations as described in "Century of Inventions" (1663)
• Rebecca Sparling, P.E. (1910–1996) – professional engineer licensed in mechanical engineering, innovations in high-temperature metallurgy and nondestructive test methods, including simpler liquid dye penetrant inspection technique
• Sir William Stanier (1876–1965) – Chief Mechanical Engineer of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway
• George Stephenson (1781–1848) – known as the "father of railways", founder of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers
• Robert Stephenson (1803–1859) – railway engineer; son of George Stephenson
• Robert Stirling (1790–1878) – inventor of the Stirling engine
• Su Song (1020–1101) China – first to use an escapement mechanism (see Yi Xing below) and chain drive to operate his astronomical clock tower
• Dr. Victor Szebehely (1921–1997) – aerospace engineering and celestial mechanics

T

• Taqi al-Din (1526–1585) – polymath, numerous mechanical innovations
• Nikola Tesla (1856–1943) – Serbian electrical and mechanical engineer contributing to the development of AC motors and power delivery
• Torine Torines (1876–1944) – pioneer Swedish sewing machine mechanic engineer
• John Tregoning (1840s–1920s) – American mechanical engineer, who wrote the first books on factory management
• Richard Trevithick (1771–1833) – steam power pioneer, designer of early high-pressure boiler (Cornish boiler) and "Puffing Devil" locomotive

V

• Jacques de Vaucanson (1709–1782) – credited with creating early robots (automata) as well as the automated loom
• Richard Velazquez – automotive designer for Honda R&D Americas, Inc. and Porsche AG
• Sir M Vishweswarayya (1861–1962) – chief designer, flood protection systems, Hyderabad; chief engineer, Krishna Raja Sagara dam, Mandya
• Wernher Von Braun (1912–1977) – mechanical engineer, space architect credited with inventing the V-2 rocket for Nazi Germany and the Saturn V for the United States

W

• Felix Wankel (1902–1988) – inventor of the Wankel Rotary Engine
• James Watt (1736–1819) – inventor of the Watt steam engine whose development helped enable the Industrial Revolution
• Samuel T. Wellman (1847–1919) – inventor and industrialist responsible for numerous steel industry innovations
• Eli Whitney (1765–1825) – inventor of the cotton gin
• Joseph Whitworth (1803–1887) – associated with standardizing thread pitch and techniques enabling precision machining
• Martin Wiberg (1826–1905) – computer technology pioneer (logarithmic table machine)
• Walter Gordon Wilson (1874–1957) – inventor of the Wilson preselector gearbox
• Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951) – aerospace engineer turned philosopher
• Nathaniel C. Wyeth (1911–1990) – developed polyethylene terephthalate (PET) beverage container

Y

• Yi Xing (683–727) China – first to use an escapement mechanism in operating a water-powered armillary sphere

Z

• Zhang Heng (78–139) – 1st century-2nd century China, inventor of first hydraulic-powered armillary sphere, and first seismometer