Stephan Farffler
German inventor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stephan Farffler (1633 – October 24, 1689[1]), sometimes spelled Stephan Farfler, was a German watchmaker of the seventeenth century whose invention of a manumotive carriage in 1655 is widely considered to have been the first self-propelled wheelchair. The three-wheeled device is also believed to have been a precursor to the modern-day tricycle and bicycle.[2]
Stephan Farffler | |
|---|---|
Farffler in his hand-driven carriage | |
| Born | November 12, 1633 |
| Died | October 24, 1689 (aged 56) |
| Occupations | Watchmaker, inventor |
Farffler, who was either a paraplegic[3][4] or an amputee,[5] also created a device for turning an hourglass at regular intervals and added chimes to the clocktower of Altdorf bei Nürnberg.[6]
According to the German astronomer Johann Gabriel Doppelmayr, Farffler suffered an accident at the age of three that paralyzed him from the hips down.[7] Others described him as having "crippled" legs.[8]