What self-moving vehicle did Leonardo da Vinci sketch, often described as an early programmable robot?

Leonardo da Vinci’s self-moving machine was a self-propelled cart.

Leonardo designed the cart around 1478–1480, making it one of his earliest known mechanical projects. Springs wound on drums supplied power, while mechanisms involving gears and cams controlled movement. The cart could travel forward and was apparently intended for theatrical or ceremonial use, such as appearing on a stage without a visible human driver.

It is sometimes called Leonardo’s robot, but it was not a robot in the modern electronic sense. It had no computer, sensors, or independent decision-making. Its programmed behavior came from physical mechanical parts arranged in advance.

The original machine has not survived, and the design was reconstructed from Leonardo’s drawings. In 2006, engineers built a working replica in Florence. The cart is important because it demonstrates early programmable motion through mechanical timing rather than modern software.