14x06 - Ski Goggles/Tower Cranes/Porcelain Figurines/Diesel Engines

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: a sail is essentially
a vertical wing

That provides forward thrust
and lift

To propel a boat over water.

It's impossible to know
who came up with the concept

Because boats with sails
have been plying waterways

For thousands of years.

But there's no doubt

That when it comes to their
design and construction,

Today's sails have come
a long way.

For thousands of years,
sails were square,

But in the 3rd century,

Triangular sails appeared
on the mediterranean.

The shape enabled boats
to sail into the wind,

As well as with it.

Modern racing sails are made
of laminated synthetics.

They start
with a plastic membrane.

Rollers apply
a hot liquid adhesive

To one side in measured amounts,

Because even a couple of extra
grams would weigh down the sail.

They press a scrim
onto the hot adhesive.

It's a superstrength synthetic
called aramid,

Which will keep the sail
from tearing.

Then it's over
to a computerized laser

That cuts patterns out of
the scrim-reinforced plastic.

A worker rolls up each panel

To transport it
to the next worktable.

Here, they tape 10 to 20
of the panels together,

Using heavy-duty p.e.t. Plastic
with an acrylic adhesive.

Now hundreds of small jacks
stretch aluminized plastic

Around a framework,

Pulling material into a curved
aerodynamic shape.

This mold will be used
to shape the sail.

The team stretches
clear plastic film over it.

Then they drape
the joined panels over top.

They use ropes and clamps
to pull it to the contours

Of the mold.

And now they're ready for some
supertough synthetics --

Aramid and carbon fiber yarns.

The yarns have been coated
with adhesive

So they'll stick
to the plastic film.

A robot rolls the yarns
onto the film,

While a worker follows
in a harness overhead

To keep an eye on the job.

The robot applies the yarns in
a pattern plotted by an engineer

To anticipate the wind load
on this sail.

The robot now switches
from a vertical path

To a horizontal one,

Applying yarns
in a transverse pattern.

The team installs a long, narrow
pocket over that section.

A batten will later be inserted
in this pocket

To control the sail's shape.

They pull another layer of
scrim-enhanced plastic on top.

And now all the layers of
this sail cloth are in place.

A worker hovers overhead to
inspect the surface for defects.

They now seal the assembled sail
in a vacuum bag

And attach hoses.

The hoses suck out the air,

Pressing the layers
of the sail together.

Now the robot applies heat
to the sail.

It activates the adhesives
and the plastics

To laminate the layers together.

And it also sets
the three-dimensional shape

Of the sail.

A worker inspects the job
with a magnifying glass.

Then it's over
to a revolving sewing turret.

As the sewing machine turns,
it pulls the sail forward,

Allowing the operator to stitch
hems, grommets,

And reinforcements onto it.

They apply the corporate logo.

Next, a worker walks the length
of this enormous sail

To inspect it.

No imperfections
will be tolerated.

After all,
this is a big-ticket item.

Large racing sails can retail

For hundreds of thousands
of dollars.

Sophisticated engineering
and high-tech materials

Have produced a racing sail

That's lightweight
yet incredibly strong.

There may be rough water ahead,

But with technology
on their side,

This crew should be able
to sail right through it.

Narrator:
the walnut has been cultivated
for thousands of years,

But its actual discovery
remains a mystery.

Some of the earliest evidence
of the walnut

Comes from the region of persia
in 7th century b.c.

Back then,
royalty had dibs on this nut,

And commoners were forbidden
to eat it.

Thankfully,
that's ancient history.

Today, the walnut
is mass-produced

To meet a global demand.

It starts in an orchard
like this one in california.

Walnuts take five years to grow,

And they emerge shrouded
in protective husks.

Using mechanical shakers
and sweepers,

Workers harvest the walnuts.

Once the husks
have been peeled off,

It's over to the receiving pit
at the processing plant.

This machine separates out
any rocks or sticks,

Then drops the walnuts
into a conveyer.

At the end of the line,

The nuts spiral off and land
softly in cooling bays below --




The walnuts are funneled
into these sealed chambers

For fumigation
to eliminate insects.

After 28 hours,
they're on the move once again.

They fall between rollers.

The gaps between these rollers
are tapered

To allow the small, medium,
and large nuts

To fall into separate lanes.

This sorting system will allow
them to be cracked by machines

Geared to specific nut sizes.

These large walnuts
head up a conveyer

Called the cr*cker belt.

At the top,
they enter the cr*cker.

It's a revolving machine
with pistons,

One for each walnut.

The technician
activates the pistons

To press against the nuts.

The pistons apply a precise
amount of pressure

To crack the shells without
damaging the nuts inside.

The nut cracking has been slowed
for our camera,

But in reality, this is
a high-speed operation.

The nuts, shells and all,
fall onto a conveyer.

The pistons have cracked between


To capture the rest,

The whole pile shakes its way
toward a second group

Of sizing rollers.

The smaller pieces
drop through the gaps

And go for further processing.

The larger ones continue on to
a machine called a re-cr*cker.

There, the nuts travel through
slats in a revolving cylinder.

Inside those slats
are little knives

That break up the whole nuts.

After some of the larger shells
have been removed,

It's on to a giant sifter.

The nuts and shells bounce
on a shaking screen.

The smaller bits fall through,

And the larger ones
remain on top.

The holes in the screen
become progressively larger

To sort the pieces
into eight sizes

Which differ by a fraction
of an inch.

The bigger, choicest walnuts
fall into a separate chute.

The smaller pieces will be used
in baking, among other things.

A high-speed belt
sends nuts and shells

Flying through the air

To allow a computerized camera
to detect shell fragments

And activate a system to blast
them off the production line,

Leaving the prized kernel,
the walnut half.

An inspector removes
any remaining shells

Or unacceptable nuts.

Then the walnuts enter
a vacuum chamber,

Which suctions away
any last crumbs.

They exit on a spiraling slide
and land in a box.

This packer portions out bulk
product for the food industry.

He removes nuts from the box

Until it reaches
the correct weight.

These walnuts are on their way

To adding crunch and flavor
to cookies, cakes,

And other good stuff.

The walnuts in this box
have taken years to grow

And a couple hours to process,

But in the end, the wait should
be more than worth it.

Narrator: on the street,
it's known as "the boot."

Accumulate a few
unpaid parking tickets,

And you may very well
find your car wearing one.

Municipalities use
wheel immobilizers

To clamp down on offenders,

While universities use them to
deter ill*gal parking on campus.

The boot's dome
goes over the rim.

On the other side,

Its inner arm hooks
in between the rim and brake.

A secure bolt clamps those outer
and inner parts together,

Immobilizing the wheel.

Boots must be strong
and tamper-proof,

So the main components
are made of steel.

This steel tube will become
the boot's outer arm.

This steel bar
will become the stand

That props up the boot
during installation.

This flat steel bar
will become the inner arm

That hooks between the rim
and brake.

They bend it lengthwise
to give it strength.

Then they bend it
into the final shape.

Now back to the tube they cut
for the outer arm.

After bending it in two spots,

They drill two holes
for the tube

That will house the secure bolt.

They bend a flat steel bar
to make a stiffener

That reinforces the inner arm.

Meanwhile, that steel bar
they cut to make the stand

Goes onto a machine called
a rod bender.

A welder now fuses the tube
to the outer arm...

...then welds that assembly
to a part called the body box.

After welding the stiffener
to the inner arm,

He welds a pin through holes
in both the arm

And the other end
of the body box.

So now the inner arm
hinges on the box.

After a coat of baked-on enamel,
the boot's body is complete.

The dome measures 12 inches
in diameter.

First,
they weld a bracket to it.

Next, they fit a sleeve
into the bracket

And thread a pin
through them both.

Then they weld the pin
to the bracket.

So now the sleeve pivots.

This, too, receives
a baked-on coat of enamel.

Now they glue a rubber trim
over the dome's edge

So that booting a car
doesn't damage the rim.

It's time to assemble
all the parts.

First, the mechanism that clamps
the boot's inner and outer arms

Around the tire.

Using a special key,

They screw into
a stainless-steel nut

Inside the bolt tube.

This spring holds the inner arm
in the correct position.

The stand goes on with a bolt.

The stand elevates the boot
off the ground,

Enabling the installer
to turn the secure bolt key.

In this cutaway,

You can see how turning the key
moves the secure bolt forward,

Pushing the inner and outer arms
together to clamp the tire.

Next, they slide the dome sleeve
over the body's outer arm.

They align the hole
in the sleeve

With the hole in the arm,
then bolt the parts together.

The arm has several holes

So the boot can accommodate
wheels of different sizes.

Every boot gets a metal plate

Bearing the model
and serial number.

The boot manufacturer
records who owns the boot

And won't issue
a new secure bolt key

Without proper identification.

Narrator:
from the mechanics to the cabin,

Aircraft are made
with the most lightweight,

High-strength materials,

Such as honeycomb
structural panels.

These make up
the support structure

Hidden beneath the flooring
and behind the walls of,

Among other areas,

The lavatories, galleys,
and stow bins.

The cells at the center
of the structural panel

Are hexagonal in those designed
to lie flat

And rectangular
in curved panels.

Producing the core begins
with giant printing cylinders.

Etched into their surface
is a pattern of lines.

They rotate
in heat-activated adhesive,

Printing the line pattern
onto paper

That passes between them.

This paper is made
of thermoplastic,

But depending on the type
of panel,

It can be another kind of paper
or even aluminum foil.

This machine cuts the paper
into sheets --

Anywhere from 500
to 2,000 sheets,

Depending on how thick
the cores will be.

The machine then stacks the
sheets in a specific sequence.

Every other sheet is offset
by half a line.

This back-and-forth pattern

Is what forms the core's
honeycomb cells.

The stack now goes
into a heated press,

Which activates and cures
the lines of adhesive,

Bonding the sheets.

After an hour,
they remove the stack

And attach aluminum-foil loops
along its perimeter.

Then they stand the stack
on its side

And hook those loops
onto the steel pins

Of a device
called an expansion frame.

It slowly pulls apart
the sheets,

Opening the honeycomb cells

That the special
stacking sequence formed.

To ease the expansion process,

They soften the paper
with water.

This is a time-lapse shot.

The full expansion
takes about 15 minutes.

Next, the block
goes into an oven,

Where it bakes
for about a half-hour

At 527 degrees fahrenheit.

That heats sets
the thermoplastic paper,

Locking in the honeycomb shapes.

Now they repeatedly submerge
the block in a vat of resin,

Baking it after each dip.

Here, an aspirator sucks out
the excess resin.

Then, after a final baking,

An automated saw slices
the block horizontally

Into several cores.

Then it's over
to the assembly table.

They construct a structural
panel like a sandwich --

The honeycomb core
in the center.

This one's made
of aluminum foil.

Then on either side of
the panel's outer sheets,

In this case,
made of carbon fiber.

On the top and bottom,

Workers position a sheet
of release paper

To prevent the panel
from sticking

To the metal sheets that hold
everything in position for now.

Workers load the assembly
into a press.

The heat and pressure combined
bond all the layers.

About an hour later,

They take the sandwich
out of the press

And remove the metal sheets.

Workers slap on labels

Identifying the product
and manufacturer.

Then they shear off
the panel's rough edges.

The factory subjects
some samples

To a series
of quality-control checks.

This load test, for example,

Assesses how much
the panel can flex

And how much weight it can
withstand before snapping.

Whatever the materials,
thickness, or density,

These structural panels
all deliver maximum strength

With minimal weight.

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