The automobile has undergone many transformations since its invention over 100 years ago, with more than 90 million vehicles produced annually using fossil fuels and electricity as energy sources. It is an important industry in South Korea, accounting for 80% of transportation and 10% of employment. However, advances such as autonomous driving technology are being made along with environmental pollution issues, and continued innovation is expected in the future.
History and development of the automobile
Since its invention more than 100 years ago, the automobile has undergone many transformations. These machines use fossil fuels, electricity, and other energy sources to transport cargo and people, and nowadays, more than 90 million cars of various types are produced annually and 1 billion are registered worldwide. Especially in Korea, the automobile industry is a very important business, accounting for 10% of employment, as it is a close element of life with a transportation share of over 80%. In addition, there are problems such as environmental pollution, and at the same time, there is the possibility of various developments in the future as technologies such as autonomous driving are developed and various technologies are introduced.
The classification of automobiles is utilized in places where different types of cars are needed depending on their size, use, and energy source. In Korea, the most common classification is based on size, which includes light, small, subcompact, medium, and large cars. There are also classifications based on usage, and there are many other subcategories, but the most fundamental classifications are gasoline, diesel, electric, hybrid, and steam. Steam, electricity, and gasoline were the first to be developed, and for a long time they competed with steam and electric vehicles, but nowadays, the majority of cars are gasoline cars and diesel cars that operate on similar principles.
Development of the steam engine and internal combustion engine
The invention of the steam engine in the 1700s gave humans a new source of power other than manpower or horses, and Quiño used it to invent the automobile, a vehicle that ran on power rather than manpower or horses and had a radius of travel not limited by rails. The car is called a steam car because it uses a steam engine, but when we talk about the history of the automobile, we don’t usually start with the steam car. This is because the steam engine used an engine that burned fuel outside of the car, i.e. an external combustion engine, which was not practical due to its inefficiency due to heat leakage. However, in 1886, Benz developed the internal combustion engine, which burns fuel inside the engine, and applied it to automobiles. This was the beginning of the development of gasoline-powered cars. From this point on, three types of cars coexisted and competed for quite some time: steam, gasoline, and later, electric vehicles. However, the inefficiency of steam cars and the short range of electric cars gradually led to their demise, and the introduction of the conveyor belt system developed by Ford in the 20th century made production more efficient and price competitive, making gasoline cars affordable and widely available, and today, gasoline cars and diesel cars based on similar principles dominate the market.
How the internal combustion engine works
As mentioned above, most cars run on gasoline and diesel, but how does a gasoline engine power a car? As mentioned above, gasoline engines are internal combustion engines, meaning they get their power by burning fuel in a cylinder. Inside these cylinders are pistons that move in four stages: intake, compression, expansion, and exhaust. First, in the intake stroke, the piston moves downward, increasing the space in the cylinder and allowing air and fuel to enter the cylinder. Then, in the compression stroke, the piston moves upward, narrowing the space and compressing the air and fuel. At this point, a component called a plug in the cylinder creates an electrical spark, which causes the piston to fall during the detonation stroke, and then the piston rises again, pushing the byproducts of the explosion out of the cylinder. Gasoline cars typically have four to as many as 16 of these cylinders. Diesel cars use much the same principle, but because they use diesel oil as fuel, which is prone to explosion, there is no plug in the detonation stroke. These cylinders periodically combust to provide power, which is then transmitted to the wheels to move the car forward.
Components of a car
However, a car doesn’t just have an engine to make it move. To harness the power, a component called a transmission is used to convert the power into rotation, and then the skeleton of the car, called the chassis, is used to transfer the power to the wheels. In addition to this direct energy generation and transfer, the car also needs a steering wheel and brakes to control the car so it can move forward. However, there is a lot more equipment needed for a human to ride in, from suspension for comfort to airbags and headlights for safety. In recent years, as cars have become more comfortable and their controls have become more electronic, they have also started to include electronic components such as computers and liquid crystals.
Streamlining and democratizing car production
As you can see, a car requires components from many different areas to keep it moving. Even though early cars had a simpler structure than today’s cars, the production time and cost to make one car was very expensive. However, the conveyor belt production method mentioned above reduced the production cost per unit, which accelerated the popularization of cars. The characteristic of mass production using this method is that the initial cost is very high because the production equipment and development costs are very high, but as the number of units produced increases, the production unit cost per unit continues to decrease. Therefore, most automobile companies remain companies with large capital. In addition, over time, as the number of parts required and the specialization of each part increased, even the largest companies sourced and assembled parts from multiple suppliers. The development and production of these many parts requires a high level of mechanical engineering and a large number of research and production personnel. In fact, the world’s top five automobile exporters typically employ around 10% of their workforce in the automotive industry. Especially in recent years, as many parts and production facilities have become electronic, there has been a lot of research in the field of electronics as well as mechanical engineering. For example, conveyor belts, which were first applied to automobiles, are now used in many production facilities. Conversely, the role of the automobile has also evolved as a result of technology. Nowadays, cars are used for more than just transportation; they have specialized roles. From transporting cargo, to transporting emergency patients, to specialized purposes such as construction, to racing or off-roading, cars have become a part of our society.
The prevalence and problems of cars
Thanks to the efficiency of production, there are now over a billion cars in the world, and the market is still growing every year. While this has made traveling very convenient for most people and has increased the efficiency of cargo transportation, it has also created many problems. The most prominent problem is environmental pollution, as gasoline and diesel engines cause air pollution by burning fuel, and they also destroy ecosystems by exploiting oil fields for fuel. In addition, areas with a high concentration of cars suffer from traffic congestion and noise, and the risk of traffic accidents is always present.
Cars of the future and solutions
Solutions to these problems are being researched, and in some areas, we’re already seeing results. Advances in electrical engineering have led to the introduction of hybrid vehicles, which combine a traditional gasoline engine with an electric motor to achieve extreme fuel efficiency, and electric cars, which were almost extinct in the 20th century, are making a comeback. Electric vehicles, in particular, have been plagued by short range and high cost due to battery limitations, but advances in battery technology and the widespread adoption of electric grids have solved these problems, and there is even a successful company in the United States that makes only electric vehicles.
To solve the problem of overcrowding of cars, driverless cars and road optimization are being used to disperse traffic and increase efficiency, and to protect people from the dangers of traffic accidents, airbags and other equipment are being researched and applied to actual cars, including active safety systems that predict and prevent accidents in advance.
The future of the automotive industry and sustainability
As you can see, cars started out as simple machines that used fuel to transport goods and people, but have evolved to become a huge part of the industry. In addition, the advancement of technology in automobiles has led to advancements in other sectors, and automobile-related technologies have been used elsewhere. This process has had some side effects, but there are also technologies to solve them, and it is a field that creates a lot of room for research. In the future, the automotive industry will continue to develop further through technological development and innovation that considers sustainability. For example, the development and widespread use of cleaner-fueled vehicles, the commercialization of autonomous driving technology, and vehicle-to-vehicle communication systems are just a few of the technologies that will brighten the future of the automotive industry. Furthermore, these developments will not be limited to the automotive industry alone, but will be linked to various fields such as urban planning, energy industry, and information and communication technology, making our lives more convenient and safer.
Conclusion
The history of the automobile is short, but its impact has been profound. From the early steam engine, cars were popularized with the development of the internal combustion engine, and are now evolving into various forms such as electric vehicles and autonomous vehicles. These changes and developments have had a profound impact not only on the automotive industry, but also on our society as a whole. In the future, automobiles will continue to change our lives and evolve for the better.
