From the late 1890s Swedish inventor Carl Nyberg (1858-1939) was interested in solving the problem of manned flight. His numerous experiments with his Flugan (The Fly) flying machine generally proved unsuccessful, much to the amusement of local onlookers. Nyberg may not have suceeded in achieving his ambition of flight, but his flying machine was powered by a steam engine heated by four blowtorches, and it was the latter—a handy tool still widely used today—that he gave to the world.
Nyberg, a prolific inventor who also worked on cookers, steam engines, and boat propellers, invented the blowtorch in 1881, although the actual patent application was made by business entrepreneur Max Sievert who showed an interest in Nyberg's invention and began selling it from about 1886.
The blowtorch consists of a cylinder filled with fuel, usually propane, butane, or liquid petrol gas. This is vaporized and then mixed with oxygen (from the
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