A spline consists of a long strip of wood (a lath, not to be confused with lathe) fixed in position at a number of points. In older days shipwrights often used splines to mark the curve of a hull. The lath will take the shape which minimizes the energy required for bending it between the fixed points, and thus adopt the smoothest possible shape. This article is about building materials. ... Conventional metalworking lathe Lathe exercise In woodturning, metalworking, metal spinning, and glassworking, a lathe is a machine tool which spins a block of material so that when abrasive, cutting, or deformation tools are applied to the block, it can be shaped to produce an object which has symmetry about an... Men from Francisco de Orellanas expedition building a small brigantine, the San Pedro, to be used in the search for food Shipbuilding is the construction of ships. ... A hull is the body or frame of a ship or boat. ...

The origins of the spline in wood-working may show in the conjectured etymology which connects the word spline to the word splinter. Later craftsmen have made splines out of rubber, steel, and other elastomeric materials. Look up Elastic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Spline devices help bend the wood for pianos, violins, violas, etc. The Wright brothers used one to shape the wings of their aircraft. Orville Wright Wilbur Wright The Wright Brothers, Orville Wright (August 19, 1871 - January 30, 1948) and Wilbur Wright (April 16, 1867 - May 30, 1912), are generally credited with making the first controlled, powered, heavier-than-air flight on December 17, 1903. ...

In 1946 mathematicians started studying the spline shape, and derived the piecewise polynomial formula known as the spline curve or function. This has led to the widespread use of such functions in computer-aided design, especially in the surface designs of vehicles. 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... In mathematics, a polynomial is an expression in which constants and powers of variables are combined using (only) addition, subtraction, and multiplication. ... In the mathematical subfield of numerical analysis a spline is a special function defined piecewise by polynomials. ... ECAD redirects here. ...

The word spline can also denote one of a series of serrations or other shapes on a driveshaft which mesh with and equalize the rotation speed of a mating piece. For instance, a gear mounted on a shaft might use a male spline on the shaft that matches the female spline on the gear. Manufacturers typically cut such splines with a broach. Cardan driveshaft with universal joints A driveshaft or driving shaft or Cardan shaft is a mechanical device for transferring power from the engine or motor to the point where useful work is applied. ... Spur gears found on a piece of farm equipment. ... A push style 5/16 keyway broach A broach is a series of chisel points mounted on one piece of steel. ...

Splines on the end of a driveshaft.