22x03 - Indy Steering Wheels; Mixed Salad; Wind Turbine

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
the indy steering wheel
isn't just for steering.

It's the control center
for the racecar,

Replacing the dashboard.

This incredible steering wheel
is also detachable

To allow the driver
to enter and exit the c*ck

Quickly and easily.

It's, quite simply,
designed for speed.

The indy steering wheel is
a complex piece of equipment

That puts everything
at the driver's fingertips.

It starts
with a full-scale design,

Customized to the driver's
racing style and preferences.

The technician aligns

The traditional racing
steering wheel with the drawing,

And marks it
for a complete remodel.

He cuts out
the leather and foam wrap

Within the marked lines

And saws off a chunk
of the aluminum frame.

He then activates
a computerized cutter

That carves away a big section
of the steering wheel hub.

It also cuts holes for switches.

With these changes,

The steering wheel is ready
to accommodate a panel

With over two dozen controls
and gauges.

Next, more computerized tooling

Transforms a sheet
of carbon fiber

Into the steering wheel's
switch plate.

It cuts out holes
for screws and switches,

And it creates slots
for the shift and clutch panels.

The tool then zigzags
around the perimeter

To trim the switch plate to fit
the modified steering wheel.

With the trimmings removed,

The switch plate is ready
for the working parts.

The next technician plugs
the color-coded switches

Into the holes
and locks them in place

With nuts
and anti-vibration washers.

The yellow one
is a pit-lane speed limiter.

As the name suggests,

It will limit the car's speed
in the pit lane.

Once all the switches
have been installed,

He runs wires to them
and solders the connections.

This completes the circuitry.

He coats each connection
with silicone sealant.

This weather-proofs them
and further dampens vibrations.

And for additional protection,

He applies glue to the plastic
sheathing around the wires.

He adds a rubber boot
to each connection.

The boot fits loosely
around it at first,

But, using a heat g*n,

He shrinks
the specially formulated rubber

To the connection.

This makes the boot fit
like it was made for it.

The indy-steering-wheel
switch plate

Is now ready
for the shift paddles.

So next, the technician screws
a spacer plate into the slot.

This metal spacer slightly
elevates the paddle mechanism

To give it the right amount
of clearance.

He screws the paddle assembly
to the spacer.

He installs the second shift
paddle and two clutch paddles.

Then he inserts the rotary
switch for fuel mapping

And secures it
with a washer and nut.

This fuel-mapping system
will adjust the fuel-air mix

To boost or decrease
power output.

He adds little decals with icons
to the color-coded switches.

A radio-transmission icon marks
the communication switch.

He returns
to the steering wheel now.

He attaches a unit
that displays rpm

And other information
that a normal dash would have.

He screws it
to the exposed aluminum frame.

He's now ready to mount
the completed switch plate

To the steering wheel.

Three bolts to the hub
secure the assembly.

He installs
a spring-loaded mechanism

At the back
of the steering wheel

That will allow
the steering wheel

To be installed or removed
in half a second.

He tests the two shift paddles
and the two clutch paddles

And confirms
they operate smoothly.

Finally,
he attached dense padding

To the steering-wheel hub

For a soft landing
for the driver's head

In the even of a crash.

This indy steering wheel costs
as much as a small compact car.

But for the driver and crew,

It's worth the investment
if it helps win the prize.

Narrator: people have been
dining on edible greens

For thousands of years.

Traditionally collected
in the wild,

Today, there's no need
to forage for them

Because field greens
are cultivated commercially.

They're mixed, washed,
and packaged

For the consumer's convenience.

It's an easy dish
to toss together.

Packaged mixed greens combine
mild-tasting leaves

With stronger-tasting ones

And crunchy greens
with more tender ones.

So when it comes
to texture and flavor,

It's truly a mixed bag.

They cultivate up to 20
different kinds of greens

On this california farm,
and they aren't all green.

Some are red.

They plant the various lettuces

According to the recipes
for different packaged salads

So they'll have
just the right combination.

With regular irrigation
and fertilization,

The leaves flourish.

It makes for a stunning
red-and-green display

In the field.

After 30 to 45 days,

These baby greens
are ready for harvest.

A machine with a long blade
moves across the field

And literally mows
the field greens.

The greens flow
onto one conveyor

And transfer to another.

The belt is a metal-mesh one

To sift out contaminants
like small rocks and twigs.

At the end
of the sifting conveyor,

The salad greens fly off
and onto another belt.

This belt serves them up to bins
on a flatbed trailer,

Creating an enormous salad
in each one.

Workers cover the bins
with plastic

And haul them
to a nearby processing plant.

On arrival,
the salad greens transfer

To a vacuum-cooling chamber
to chill.

The vacuum causes moisture
on the greens to evaporate.

As the water evaporates,

It absorbs heat
to lower the temperature

And cool the greens.

The salad greens then head
into an optical sorter.

Here,
computerized cameras and lasers

Scan the greens for flaws,

Like discoloration
and foreign material.

The operator has programmed
the system

To detect flaws or contaminants.

When the computer finds one,

It sends a signal to an air jet
that expels it.

Some good leaves get lost
along the way -- about 3%.

It's considered
an acceptable loss.

The rejects will be composted.

Out of the optical sorter,

An employee tosses in
the bitter greens,

Like radicchio and frisã©e.

This moving salad now heads
into a three-part wash system.

The first wash tank
has rolling perforated cylinders

That keep the greens submerged
for washing.

They also pick up
unwanted tiny leaves

And remove them from the mix.

The salad greens transfer
to a vibrating conveyor

That shakes out the water.

Then they travel
through a second wash tank

And finally receive a third wash
from overhead sprayers.

The washed salad greens

Fall into plastic containers
with perforations.

They're essentially
very large colanders.

They transfer each colander
to a centrifuge and power up.

It spins the colander,

And this causes the moisture
on the greens

To drain
through there perforations.

This leaves them dry and crisp.

It is a large-scale version
of the salad spinner

Many people have
in their kitchens.

These field greens are now ready
for the packaging line.

It's an entirely mechanized
system with an endless appetite.

The greens funnel through
a hopper and land in buckets.

This is a weighing operation.

There's a scale
under each bucket.

When the target weight
is reached,

The bucket releases the greens.

They slide down chutes
into the bagging machine.

These salad greens are
still living, breathing plants.

The packaging
will slow their respiration

And put the aging process
on hold.

Machinery hermetically seals
them in plastic

To give them a shelf life
of 14 days to 19 days.

And with that availability,

There's no excuse
not to eat your greens.

Narrator: wind turbines use
an unlimited natural resource,

The wind, to produce electricity

Without polluting
the environment.

A turbine consists of a rotor
and a massive propeller

That spins in the wind
on top of a high tower.

It drives a built-in generator
that produces electricity.

The higher up you go,
the windier it is.

So the taller the turbine,

The more wind power
it harnesses.

They may not look it
from a distance,

But wind turbines can be
as high as a 20-story building

With rotor blades
half a football field long.

To begin constructing
those massive blades,

Workers prepare
fiberglass sheets,

Each one numbered according
to a detailed engineering plan.

Then, following the plan,

Workers lay down specific sheets
in designated locations

In the bottom half
of a blade-shaped mold.

For a blade
to be free of defects,

Each sheet
must lie perfectly flat.

So, using a smoothing tool,

Workers remove air bubbles
and creases.

The surface of the mold cavity

Is treated
with a non-stick coating.

This will prevent the blade
from adhering to the mold

When they extract it.

After placing all the sheets
in the bottom half of the mold,

Workers construct
the upper part of the blade

By laying fiberglass sheets on
the top half of the blade mold.

Again, every single sheet
is numbered and positioned

According
to the blade-design plan.

An area of the mold can have
from for to 120 layered sheets

Of varying thickness, weights,
and weaves,

Depending
on how structurally strong

That part of the blade
has to be.

To make specific areas
more rigid,

Between layers of fiberglass
they install balsa,

An extremely lightweight wood.

Cut channels enable
the balsa panels

To flex to the shape
of the blade.

The channels
are also the pathways

Through which the bonding agent
epoxy will flow

To saturate the wood
and surrounding fiberglass.

Precision in the setup of
fiberglass and wood is critical.

The process takes
a team of six workers 16 hours.

They close up the mold

By lowering the top half
onto the bottom half.

Then they inject the epoxy.

Simultaneously, workers heat the
mold to 158 degrees fahrenheit.

This A*DS the chemical reaction

Between
the epoxy's two components --

A resin and a hardener.

After 9â½ hours,
the epoxy is fully cured.

With overhead cranes,

They lift away
the top half of the mold,

Revealing a turbine blade
measuring up to 60 yards long,

Weighing in at about 10 tons.

Using lifting devices positioned
at specific locations,

They slowly extract the blade
from the bottom half of the mold

And lay it onto a stand
to cool for 4â½ hours.

Workers then transfer the blade
to a mill-and-drill machine,

Which shapes the open end
to align with the rotor hub.

The machine also drills holes
for the 54 pin bolts

That will fasten the blade
to the hub.

Next, workers grind away
the seam of hardened epoxy

That formed where the two halves
of the mold met

And sand the surface
perfectly smooth.

Then they spray the blade
with a coat of primer,

Which they let cure
for six hours.

Then a coat
of epoxy-based paint,

Letting that cure
for about eight hours.

Then workers insert
those 54 pin bolts

Made of a particularly strong
grade of steel

And tighten them
with a torque wrench.

After this, they weigh
each blade on a floor scale

And group three blades
of similar weight per turbine

To ensure the rotation
will be balanced.

The install a cover
over the opened end of the blade

To prevent debris
from falling inside

During transport
to the wind farm.

Upon arrival, crews bolt
three blades to a rotor hub,

Then hoist the rotor
to the top of the turbine tower

And connect it to the nacelle.

Narrator: the nacelle
is the part of a wind turbine

Which transforms wind power
into electricity.

With the rotor mounted to it,

The nacelle houses
a giant drivetrain.

It multiplies the rotational
speed of the spinning blades

Then transfers it
to a massive generator,

Which produces electricity.

A wind turbine's rotor
is made of three blades

Attached to a hub.

The hub alone weighs
more than 30 tons.

It's cast from ductile iron,
a strong grade of cast iron.

At the factory, they use a crane
to hoist and affix

The hub casting
to an assembly fixture.

This fixture holds the hub
securely in a suspended position

While workers mount components
to it,

Starting
with three blade bearings.

A blade bearing
is a giant ball bearing

To which the blade is attached.

When it rotates,
the blade pitches,

Meaning it changes angle.

Blades need to be pitched
to better catch the wind

And to spin at optimal speed.

Each bearing attaches to the hub
with 54 huge bolts.

The next hub components --
three accumulators --

One for each blade bearing.

An accumulator stores
hydraulic oil under pressure.

This oil moves
hydraulic cylinders,

Which rotate the blade bearing
to pitch the blade.

Workers assemble
each accumulator,

Mount its cover,

Then install it
on a blade bearing.

Once all three accumulators

And other components
are installed,

The hub is finished.

They remove it
from the assembly fixture

And put a fiberglass cover
over each bearing

To protect the workings inside.

Meanwhile, in the same factory,

Workers assemble
the wind turbine's nacelle.

First, they lay out

The bottom section
of its steel housing,

Then they assemble
the yaw system,

The key component that enables
the nacelle and rotor

To rotate 360 degrees.

They mount
a large stationary gear

In the center
of the system's mainframe.

Then, on the reverse side
of the mainframe,

They install eight yaw gears.

These smaller gears engage the
large gear on the other side.

Fully assembled, the mainframe
weighs more than 22 tons.

Workers hoist it with a crane,
then install it

Into the bottom section
of the nacelle's steel housing.

They connect the gearbox

To the rest
of the nacelle's drivetrain.

It works like a car transmission
in reverse.

While the car transmission
takes combustion-produced energy

And turns it into rotation --
the car wheel's turning --

The nacelle drivetrain
takes rotation --

The blades spinning
in the wind --

And turns it
into electrical energy.

Those spinning blades rotate

The drivetrain's
massive steel shaft.

The opposite end of that shaft
connects to the gearbox.

The gear's multiply
the speed of rotation,

Rotating the second shaft,

Which they now connect
to a generator,

Installed inside
the nacelle housing.

The second shaft
powers the generator,

Which produces electricity.

After connecting the drivetrain
to the generator,

Workers install
the top section of the housing,

As well as access doors
for maintenance work.

Technicians
conduct various tests

To make sure
everything runs properly.

Here, they are verifying the fan
that cools the generator.

The finished nacelle looks like
a mammoth aa battery.

It weighs 85 tons.

Nearly half of that
is the drivetrain.

The plant ships
both the nacelle and the hub

Separately to the wind farm
by either truck or rail.

The blades are shipped
to the farm

From another factory
and the tower from yet another.

Once all the parts arrive
on site, assembly can begin.

Crews first direct the tower.

Then they hoist the nacelle all
the way to the top and mount it.

On the ground,
they assemble the rotor

By installing the blades
in the hub.

Then they hoist the rotor
to the top of the tower

And mount it to the nacelle.

And from that point on,
the wind does all the work.

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