What self-moving vehicle did Leonardo da Vinci design without pedals or horses?

Leonardo da Vinci designed a self-propelled cart powered by wound springs.

The machine appears in sketches from the late fifteenth century and is often described as an early programmable or robotic vehicle. Springs hidden inside the cart supplied the force, while a system of gears controlled its movement. A steering mechanism based on removable blocks could set a planned path.

Leonardo may have intended the cart for theatrical performances or court spectacles rather than transportation. It could move without a person pushing it, pulling it, or sitting inside it, which made it especially striking in Renaissance demonstrations.

The cart is sometimes called Leonardo’s robot, but it was not an autonomous modern robot. Its motion was mechanically prearranged and limited. A 2006 reconstruction by the Institute and Museum of the History of Science in Florence showed that the design could work when built according to Leonardo’s drawings.