Dobrivoje Božić (, 23 December 1885 – 13 November 1967) was a Serbian

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations of ...

, inventor and constructor of the first air brakes for trains.

Early life

Dobrivoje Božić was born in Raška in the Kingdom of Serbia. He studied in Germany at the Technical University of

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

and

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

. While at Karlsruhe, he was a student of

Rudolf Diesel Rudolf Christian Karl Diesel (, ; 18 March 1858 – 29 September 1913) was a German inventor and mechanical engineer who is famous for having invented the diesel engine, which burns diesel fuel; both are named after him. Early life and educat ...

, the inventor of diesel engines. After graduation in 1911, Božić returned to Serbia.

Career

His engineering work began immediately upon his return to the railway workshop in

Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names in other languages) is the third largest city in Serbia and the administrative center of the Nišava District. It is located in southern part of Serbia. , the city proper has a population of 183,164, while ...

. He simultaneously started his research in the field of railway braking. Božić learned that the brake system that rail vehicles used was one of the most problematic parts of vehicle development, due to trains' increasing speed and mass. In 1869,

George Westinghouse George Westinghouse Jr. (October 6, 1846 – March 12, 1914) was an American entrepreneur and engineer based in Pennsylvania who created the railway air brake and was a pioneer of the electrical industry, receiving his first patent at the age ...

designed a brake on compressed air with direct action and improved it in 1872, producing a single-chamber, automatic brake with indirect effects. Božić's research was interrupted during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. After the war, he worked in

Kraljevo Kraljevo ( sr-cyr, Краљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Raška District in central Serbia. It is situated on the confluence of West Morava and Ibar River, Ibar, in the geographical region of � ...

, Belgrade and

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

. He applied to the International Union of Railways for a patent for the Božić brake through the Yugoslav railway in 1925. His patent was approved in 1928. Božić sold his design to the Czech conglomerate

Škoda Works The Škoda Works ( cs, Škodovy závody, ) was one of the largest European industrial conglomerates of the 20th century, founded by Czech engineer Emil Škoda in 1859 in Plzeň, then in the Kingdom of Bohemia, Austrian Empire. It is the predece ...

and over time, his brake was copied and adapted by most European railways. Božić's invention resolved then unsolvable problems, such as solutions distributor (main braking device). Three working pressures increased air velocity stab in the main air pipe (along the train) from . He invented solutions to the problem of gradual release brake, non-exhaustion during braking, an overfull working chamber, load-adaptive braking. He first proposed braking of passenger trains as a function of speed (brakes with two working pressure). He also constructed an efficient brake controller for

locomotives A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the German occupying forces took over the Božić residence. Dobrivoje reportedly hid from them in a special shelter as they sought his services in order to develop a rocket engine. At the end of the war, Božić was imprisoned; accused of collaboration and assisting in the design of the V-2 rocket. He was released thanks to an intervention from the Soviets who expressed interest in his work and knowledge. Upon his release, he fled with his wife Radmila and son Dragan, and eventually settled in

Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the southe ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Božić's daughter Vesna, died in 1943 at the age of five from complications of appendicitis. Dobrivoje eventually divorced his wife, who gave birth in exile to another son named

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, and moved to the United States where he lived until 1964 when he returned to Belgrade.

References

External links

Compressed air continuous brake system for passenger or freight trains, US patented 1,420,237. June 20, 1922.

Distributor for fluid-pressure brakes, US patented 1,679,348 Aug. 7, 1928.

Life and work of Dobrivoje Božić
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobrivoje Bozic Serbian inventors People from Raška, Serbia 1885 births 1967 deaths Yugoslav inventors Serbian engineers