An inclined plane is a type of cable railway used on some canals for raising boats between different water levels. Boats may be conveyed afloat, in caissons, or may be carried in cradles or slings.
Inclined planes have evolved over the centuries. Some of the first were used by the Egyptians to bypass waterfalls on the Nile.[1] These consisted of wooden slides covered with silt which reduced friction.[1]
The electric inclined plane at the Krasnoyarsk Dam in Divnogorsk, Russia[12][13] The ship capacity is up to 1500 tons[which?], maximum ship size is 80 by 17 by 2 metres (262.5 ft × 55.8 ft × 6.6 ft) and elevation is 104 metres (341 ft). This is an electric rack railway. The track gauge of the railway is 9,000 mm (29 ft 6+5⁄16 in), making it the widest gauge railway of any type in the world.[14]
1788 -- An inclined plane is used for the first time to raise canal boats, on England's Ketley Canal.