Massive Machines: Pushing Boundaries and Redefining Industries
The world’s largest machines are being used to test and develop new aircraft, pushing the boundaries of performance and safety. These massive machines, including wind tunnels and flight simulators, play a crucial role in making air travel safe and improving aircraft design. Engineers and scientists are creating new machines to take humans farther and faster than ever before.
Wind Tunnels: The Heart of Aircraft Development
A massive wind tunnel, larger than an airplane hangar, tests full-scale models of various aircraft, including 737-sized planes. The wind tunnel utilizes a fan system with six fan motors to drive air and enable scientific study of flight. Each fan has 15 blades with graphite windings and hydum wood to withstand high loads. The wind tunnel’s design ensures superior airflow quality, and its development is credited to the Wright brothers, who pioneered the use of wind tunnels to study the essentials of flight.
- The wind tunnel generates high wind speeds by necking down the air flow, reaching over 100 mph.
- The model support system secures the aircraft model and measures lift, drag, and forces at different angles of attack and yaw.
- A 60 ft diameter turntable enables rotation of the models to test different yaw angles, with measurements logged and analyzed in the balance room underneath.
Flight Simulators: Refining Aeronautic Capability
Large and intricate machines, such as wind tunnels and flight simulators, are used to refine and maximize aeronautic capability. The NASA Ames vertical motion simulator, weighing 70 tons, is a notable example, with a 10-story building housing and a maximum acceleration of 22 ft/s per second. The simulator provides six degrees of freedom, with a carriage offering five of them: roll, pitch, yaw, lateral, and longitudinal directions.
- The simulator’s mechanics are complex, similar to those of an aircraft, and include various actuators that enable movement in different axes.
- The NASA vertical motion simulator has five interchangeable cabs with cockpits and controls that mimic aircraft, allowing for a wide range of motion and realistic sensations.
- Flight simulators are crucial in aeronautics, used to test new vehicles and systems before they are built, providing a safe and efficient way to simulate and refine designs.
Continuous Mining Machines: Revolutionizing the Industry
Machines like the 12HM36 continuous miner, weighing 300,000 lb, are used for underground mining, digging, and tunneling. The machine is 45 ft long, 15 ft wide, and 10 ft high, and was designed to be assembled underground in pieces that fit through a 5-ft square shaft. The process of cutting steel parts begins with seven large machines that use torches to cut individual pieces of steel with high temperatures.
- The finished parts include critical units such as electrical box encasements, which are precisely machine-tooled to prevent methane gas ignition and ensure miner safety.
- The parts undergo visual inspections and precision measuring using giant machines to guarantee accuracy and quality.
- The continuous miner has revolutionized the industry, making it faster and safer, replacing manual labor with machines to reduce inherent dangers.
Giant Machines as City Landmarks
The British Airways London Eye is the world’s largest observation wheel, with a diameter of 442.9 ft and weighing 1,874 tons. It has 32 glass-enclosed passenger capsules, each holding up to 25 people, and is supported by an A-frame from one side. The wheel was originally built for the millennium celebrations but has become London’s most popular attraction, offering a unique 360° view of the city from its capsules positioned on the outside of the wheel.
- The London Eye is a unique Ferris wheel that required innovative engineering to build, essentially reinventing the wheel.
- The wheel rotates continuously at 6 mph, completing a revolution in 30 minutes, and is designed to safely accommodate a wide range of visitors, from agile to infirmed, without being a thrilling ride.
- The London Eye is constructed from a series of straight edges that create the illusion of a circle, with each section being 5 meters long and having a weld at either end.
IMAX Technology: A Massive Film Experience
IMAX technology provides a massive experience with a much bigger image than typical 35mm film, using 70mm film that runs horizontally to increase the height dimension and allow for greater resolution and clarity. The IMAX 3D format is even more complex, using two rolls of 70 mm film and two lenses to create a 3D effect, with the camera weighing 350 lb on land and 1,300 lb in an underwater housing.
- Polarized glasses and polarizers in front of projector lenses allow each eye to see a separate image, creating a single 3D image.
- IMAX requires a unique viewing method and features massive screens, projectors, and film frames, defying the trend of smaller media devices by providing a large-scale experience made possible by massive machines.
- The IMAX technology ensures a rock steady image by securing the lens against an aperture block of glass, resulting in a perfectly focused image.
Other Massive Machines
The world’s largest lawn mower, the Class Cougar 1400, has a 45 ft mowing width and can mow over 40 acres per hour, making it ideal for large-scale grass maintenance. The machine has a steering wheel that can pivot from the bottom, middle, or telescopic, and its operation is easy, allowing for forward and backward movement and raising or lowering the mowers with a tap of a button.
- The machine has a 360° glass view and windshield wipers for visibility.
- Its efficiency comes from a 45 ft mowing width, utilizing five 9 ft 10-in mowing segments with conditioner cutter bars that help with faster and more uniform drying of the grass.
- The machine has large tires, 70 in tall and 34 in wide, which reduce compaction and provide a smoother ride.
Key Vocabulary
| Term | Definition | Example Usage |
|---|---|---|
| Wind Tunnel | A large, enclosed space where air flows over an object to test its aerodynamic properties. | The wind tunnel was used to test the aerodynamics of the new aircraft design. |
| Flight Simulator | A machine that mimics the experience of flying an aircraft, used for training and testing purposes. | The flight simulator was used to train pilots on the new aircraft before its maiden voyage. |
| Continuous Mining Machine | A large machine used for underground mining, capable of digging and tunneling through rock and soil. | The continuous mining machine was used to extract coal from the underground mine. |
| IMAX Technology | A film projection system that uses large-format film and specialized cameras to produce high-resolution images. | The IMAX technology was used to create a immersive and engaging cinematic experience. |
| Aeronautic Capability | The ability of an aircraft or spacecraft to perform specific tasks or missions. | The new aircraft’s aeronautic capability was enhanced through the use of advanced materials and design. |
| Observation Wheel | A large, rotating wheel with enclosed capsules that provide a panoramic view of the surrounding area. | The observation wheel offered a stunning view of the city skyline. |
| Lawn Mower | A machine used to cut and maintain grass and other vegetation. | The large lawn mower was used to maintain the grass on the golf course. |
| Aerodynamics | The study of the interaction between air and solid objects, such as aircraft and vehicles. | The aerodynamics of the new car design were tested in a wind tunnel to improve its performance. |
| Actuators | Mechanical devices that convert energy into motion or force, used in machines and systems. | The actuators in the flight simulator provided a realistic and immersive experience for the pilots. |
| Polarized Glasses | Specialized glasses that use polarized lenses to filter out certain types of light, used in 3D viewing technology. | The polarized glasses were used to view the 3D movie in the IMAX theater. |
Watch The Video
Vocabulary Quiz
1. Which term refers to the movement of an aircraft around its vertical axis?
A) Pitch
B) Roll
C) Yaw
D) Longitudinal
2. What is the primary purpose of a wind tunnel in aircraft development?
A) To test the durability of aircraft materials
B) To study the essentials of flight and improve aircraft design
C) To train pilots for emergency situations
D) To develop new types of aircraft engines
3. What is the name of the large observation wheel in London that is supported by an A-frame?
A) The London Eye
B) The British Airways Wheel
C) The Millennium Wheel
D) The Giant Ferris Wheel
4. What is the main difference between IMAX film and typical 35mm film?
A) IMAX film is smaller and more portable
B) IMAX film runs vertically to increase the width dimension
C) IMAX film runs horizontally to increase the height dimension
D) IMAX film is only used for 3D movies
5. What is the term for the movement of an aircraft from side to side, as opposed to up and down or forward and backward?
A) Lateral movement
B) Longitudinal movement
C) Vertical movement
D) Horizontal movement
Answer Key:
1. C
2. B
3. A
4. C
5. A
Grammar Focus
Grammar Focus: The Use of Passive Voice in Technical Descriptions
Grammar Quiz:
1. The massive wind tunnel ____________________ to test full-scale models of various aircraft.
- is designing
- is utilized
- utilizes
- was designed
2. The London Eye ____________________ for the millennium celebrations but has become a popular attraction.
- was originally building
- is originally built
- was originally built
- has originally been built
3. The IMAX 3D format ____________________ using two rolls of 70 mm film and two lenses.
- is created
- creates
- is being created
- has been created
4. The continuous miner ____________________ to be assembled underground in pieces that fit through a 5-ft square shaft.
- was designed
- is designing
- has been designed
- designs
5. The parts of the continuous miner ____________________ to prevent methane gas ignition and ensure miner safety.
- are precisely machine-tooled
- were precisely machine-tooled
- have been precisely machine-tooled
- precisely machine-tool
Answer Key:
- 1. is utilized
- 2. was originally built
- 3. is created
- 4. was designed
- 5. are precisely machine-tooled