Leonardo da Vinci designed water pumps that used the principle of the Archimedean screw to move water upward.
An Archimedean screw is a helical surface inside a tube or trough. When the screw rotates, pockets of water travel along the spiral from a lower level to a higher one. Leonardo studied and drew screw-based hydraulic devices as part of his extensive investigations of water.
Such pumps could support drainage, irrigation, canal work, and construction. Leonardo’s notebooks show that he explored how screw angle, rotation, and water flow affected machine performance. The design reflects his practice of combining ancient principles with detailed mechanical analysis.
Leonardo did not invent the Archimedean screw; it is traditionally associated with Archimedes of Syracuse. His importance lies in adapting and documenting related mechanisms during Renaissance engineering. A water pump moves liquid, whereas a water wheel primarily extracts power from flowing water.