[spiralx]

The use of a continuous roll of paper with punched perforations to control a loom was invented in 1725 by Basile Bouchon. Then in 1745 Jacques de Vaucanson invented the first fully automated loom using punch cards which unfortunately was not well received at the time - perhaps due to pushback over the automation making the draw boy role redundant - and it wasn't until after his death that Jacquard reintroduced the idea alongside other improvements and was a success. de Vaucanson also invented the chain drive and slide lathe apparently, he was all about automation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_de_Vaucanson

Funnily enough the Smithsonian doesn't mention his invention in their article on him:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/eighteenth-century...