What Leonardo da Vinci device used a spring-powered mechanism to move without an animal pulling it?

Leonardo da Vinci’s self-propelled cart was a spring-powered vehicle designed to move without an animal pulling it.

Leonardo drew the cart in the late fifteenth century. Large coiled springs supplied the stored energy, while a system of gears transferred that energy to the wheels. Adjustable mechanisms could determine how far the cart traveled and helped control its direction.

The machine is frequently described as an early ancestor of the automobile, but it was not powered by an engine. It was closer to a wound-up mechanical vehicle. Leonardo may have intended it for theatrical performances, ceremonies, or stage effects rather than transport.

A working reconstruction was built in the twentieth century by Carlo Pedretti and others. Reconstructions show that the basic mechanism can operate, although the exact original performance and purpose remain uncertain. The cart is also called Leonardo’s automobile or robotic cart.