31x05 - Mountain Bike Tires; Leaf and Debris Vacuums; Canned Meat

[bunniefuu]

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: mountain bike tires
are true trailblazers,

Specifically designed
for off-road riding.

Wider than regular road tires,

Mountain bike tires
have raised knobs or lugs

That add stability
on uneven terrain.

Built to withstand the trail,
these tires can handle it all.

When the rubber hits the dirt,
it's all about control.

Mountain bike tires are designed
to grip the ground

And provide traction off-road.

First, designers use
a computer model of a tire

To simulate the effects
of different rubber compounds.

Construction begins with
rubber compounds

Being mixed together
to create parts of the tire.

Ingredients include synthetic
and natural rubbers,

Sulfur,
and other chemicals.

Rotating spiral blades
break down the materials.

Friction from the mixing
heats and softens them.

This transforms the ingredients

Into a dough-like
rubber compound.

Powerful rollers squeeze the
compound into thick long sheets

And blades cut the rolled rubber
into narrow strips.

Then the rubber travels
through more rollers

That squeeze it down
to the desired thickness.

The rubber sheets land
on a cart, ready for use.

♪♪

Technicians incase
steel bead wire

With one of these compounds.

The bead wire is the part
of the tire

That connects
to the wheel's rim.

As steel wire travels
through an aperture,

The rubber is extruded
to form the casing.

The machine delivers
the bead wire

To a spinning disk.

The disk winds the bead wire,

Shaping it into rings
which fit to a wheel rim.

♪♪

To maintain the diameter
of the wire,

The technician tapes
the ends together,

Holding the shape until
the next stage of production.

Next, rubber sheets with
varying characteristics

Enter an extruder.

Using heat and pressure,

The extruder forces
the rubber through dies.

This process merges
their characteristics

Into a single sheet.

The sheet will be used
to make the bicycle's tread.

The tread rubber travels
through a channel of cool water.

Meanwhile, rollers coat fabric
with rubber

To make plies
for the tire casing.

A moving blade cuts it
into strips.

This rubber is naturally tacky,

So the pieces
can be easily spliced.

The system feeds the strips
to tire-building machine.

A skilled assembler wraps
the strips to the machine drum

To form the tire casing

And splices
the rubber where the ends meet.

Next, robots slide two
wire beads around the casing.

The ends of the drum fold
the sides of the casing

Over the bead wires.

The technician applies
rubber-coated fabric

To the bead wires,
strengthening the area.

The tread rubber is placed
in the center.

A roller applies pressure
as the drum spins

To wind the tread
around the casing.

Then the ends are
pressed together manually.

And one more turn of the drum
secures the tread rubber

To the casing.

Once vent holes have been
cut in the rubber,

It's over to an expanding mold,
where the tire takes shape.

The technician inserts a rubber
curing bladder

To maintain
the shape of the tire.

Then he places the mountain bike
tires in curing molds.

These individual molds

Will steam-cook the tires
under pressure

To further shape them.

This process forms knobs
and other protrusions

On the tire surface

That are designed to grip
a rugged terrain.

Like a big waffle iron,
this mold has cooked

And formed
the mountain bike tire.

The tire is then placed
on a rack to cool.

Next, the bike tire undergoes
a durability test

While a computer measures
rolling resistance.

That's the energy lost
when the tire rotates

And an indication of
how easily the tire will roll.

This mountain bike tire

Is now cleared
to travel off the beaten path.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
a leaf and debris vacuum

Automatically collects
all types of fallen debris.

Instead of spending hours
raking,

This device quickly
does it all,

Making yard work
easier than ever.

A leaf and debris vacuum

Is powered by
a gas or diesel engine.

The engine spins an impeller,

Which creates the suction
and also shreds the leaves.

The machine is comprised
of about 100 different parts,

All cut from 0.11-inch-thick
sheets of steel

Using this computer-guided
punch press.

This part is the rear flange
for the impeller housing.

To make the side wall
of the housing, called the wrap,

A technician bends
this steel strip

With a pinch roller.

Another technician positions
the wrap on the rear flange

And tack welds them together.

♪♪

The craftsman places
the housing's front flange

On top of the wrap,

Aligns its notches
with the wrap's tabs,

And tack welds
the parts together.

♪♪

He completes the housing
with this rectangular piece.

The shredded leaves
exit the housing

Through this opening.

♪♪

Next, the parts are placed
on a rotary welding table,

And the tacked joints
are welded together.

The fused seams ensure
the housing is airtight.

A computer guides
this fiber-optic laser cutter,

Slicing out the impeller blades

From a sheet
of abrasion-resistance steel.

This steel is four times thicker

Than the steel used
for the body parts.

Each impeller has four blades
with sharp edges

That help shred the leaves.

The welder mounts the impeller
components onto a fixture.

Each blade has alignment tabs

Which fit into notches
on a backing plate.

After clamping each blade
in position,

He fuses them
to the backing plate.

♪♪

Next, he welds steel
reinforcement straps

Between each
of the four blades.

The straps add strength
and stability,

Thereby increasing
the life-span of the impeller.

The technician
completes the assembly

By bolting a compression hub
to the center.

The hub holds the engine
crankshaft together,

Which rotates the impeller.

Then he inserts
a simulated crankshaft

And tightens
the compression hub.

He places the impeller
on this machine to balance it.

Since the impeller
can spin at a speed

Of more than 3,000 revolutions
per minute,

This step is critical
for the machine to run smoothly.

To maintain stability,
the welder adds beads of weld

To the lighter side
until the impeller balances.

Then he removes the simulated
crankshaft.

Meanwhile an assembler mounts
the 29-horsepower gas engine

To the engine deck
of the trailer frame.

The crankshaft pokes through
a hole in the frame's faceplate.

He bolts the impeller housing,
which has been painted,

To the faceplate.

♪♪

The technician installs
the impeller on the crankshaft

With a shear key.

Then he bolts
a protective steel cover plate

And attaches everything
with a central bolt.

Next, he applies a brand decal
on the housing's front cover...

♪♪

...and bolts the cover
to the housing.

When ready for use,
the debris chute, the hose,

And the intake hose
are attached to the front end.

As this demonstration shows,
the impeller can shred leaves

Into particles small enough
to be used as compost.

♪♪

Narrator:
with so much on their plates,

Busy people rely on shortcuts
to help prepare meals.

Nowadays,
you can stock your pantry

With cans of precooked meat

So there's always something
on hand to use in sandwiches,

Stews, stir-fries,
and other tasty dishes.

This canned meat is
meticulously hand produced

By a craft cannery
and made in small batches.

It contains no artificial
ingredients or preservatives,

Just meat and sea salt.

When a shipment of meat
arrives at the cannery,

The quality control manager
records its lot code

For tracking purposes.

As a food-safety precaution,

He confirms the temperature
of the meat,

Which must come in between


A skilled butcher
then inspects the meat

And trims off the excess fat.

♪♪

If it's a large piece,

The butcher slices
it into smaller pieces

So that it can pass through
the dicing machine.

The dicer cuts the meat
into one-inch cubes.

♪♪

At the filling station,

Aluminum cans circulate
around a rotating table.

As one worker shovels cubed meat
onto the center of the table,

Others manually fill cans

While simultaneously performing
a quality inspection.

Workers will discard any cubes
that are discolored

Or too fatty.

Next, technicians place
a single cube of sea salt

In each can filled with meat.

This is the only
added ingredient.

♪♪

At the next station, workers
weigh each can individually

And either add or remove meat
to reach the required weight.

The filled cans
now travel on a conveyer belt

To the cook room.

There, they enter
the pre-heater,

Which blasts them with steam
for 20 seconds.

This expels air that's trapped
between the cubes of meat.

Next, the cans move
into the closing machine.

The machine compresses the meat
to provide sufficient clearance

At the top of the can.

This head space
creates a vacuum on the can

To draw out
the remaining air.

Then a device attaches the lid

By a process
known as double seaming.

The process rolls the edges
of the lid and can together,

Forming a rim
that provides an airtight seal.

It's time to get cooking.

A worker lowers the cans

Into a commercial-sized
pressure cooker.

Cooking under steam pressure

Produces the tenderizing effects
of slow cooking

In a fraction of the time.

The meat cooks
in its own juices.

The cooking temperature varies
depending on the type of meat

And the can size.

When the meat is ready,
the technician removes the cans

And sets them aside
for about an hour

To cool and dry.

The cans are then moved
to the packaging area.

As a worker loads
the labeling machine,

He inspects each can
for dents or damaged seals.

One by one, the cans roll over
a glue applicator,

Then a stack of labels,

Wrapping themselves
and the top seal.

At the same time, the machine
counts the number of cans.

After rolling off
the labeling machine,

The cans pass through
an ink-jet printer

Which applies
the best-used-by date.

♪♪

That date is next
to the lot code,

Which the closing machine
printed while attaching the lid.

This can of meat
has a five-year shelf life

Due to two crucial factors --

It is cooked properly,
and the can's seal is airtight.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator:
have fish to fry?

If it's fresh and whole,

A fillet knife
will come in handy.

This is no ordinary
kitchen knife,

Equipped with a thin,
flexible blade and a sharp tip.

This design allows the user to
move easily along the backbone

And under the skin of the meat.

A fillet knife
is a precision cutting tool.

It makes the work

Of removing bones and skin
from fish possible.

Making a fillet knife

Starts with a sheet of thin
and pliable stainless steel.

A computer-guided laser cuts
the steel into blade blanks.

A craftsman clamps the blank
in a fixture.

The fixture moves the blank
across a grinding wheel,

Beveling it from the spine to
the cutting edge on both sides.

Then sanding belts are used
to shape the blade blank.

A craftsman rounds
the spine of the blank

Using a rough-grit sanding belt,

Eventually graduating
to a finer one.

With a rounder spine, the blade
will be safer to handle.

At the next station,
a craftsman drills a hole

Into a solid block
of composite material

That contains resin.

The material is cut
into smaller chunks.

Each one will be formed
into a handle end cap or pommel.

The center hole will house
the tang.

He slices other pieces of
the material almost wafer thin.

They'll become spacers
for the handle's other end.

These compound parts will
support the center material

For the cork handle.

The craftsman stacks the parts
of the handle on a stand.

He brushes waterproof glue
onto the spacer

And slides eight pieces of cork
onto the prong.

He applies glue
between each one.

He places the pommel
piece on the end.

Since cork is buoyant,

If the knife
is dropped in water,

It will float
and can be easily retrieved.

Once the glue dries, the handles
are transferred,

Two at a time, to a fixture.

The fixture moves back and forth
as a rotor rounds the spacer,

Carving the cork and the pommel.

At the next station,
a worker places

One of the fillet
knife blades in a rubber holder.

He clamps the holder
in a fixture,

Stabilizing the blade for
the installation of the bolster.

The bolster is the steel ring
that acts as a transition piece

Between the blade and handle.

Then the craftsman applies glue

To the composite spacer
on the handle.

He slides the handle
onto the tang of the knife.

He inserts a hexagonal nut
into the hole and the pommel

As well as some epoxy.

He screws the nut onto the tang,

Securing the blade
to the handle.

The epoxy provides
reinforcement.

The craftsman unclamps the knife
and works on shaping the handle.

He sculpts it with rough-grit
sandpaper.

He angles the outside
of the pommel,

Making it smoother
and more attractive.

Switching to a finer abrasive,

He sands the cork
to blend the layers together

So they appear to be
one uniform piece.

Next, a worker drills
into the pommel

To widen and slope the opening.

He pipes more epoxy
into the recess.

He inserts a snap

That will be used
to retain the knife in a sheath

And drives it further
into the recess using a press.

Once the epoxy cures,

He submerges
the knives into water.

This step is a test to confirm
the knives can float.

After the handle dries,

The knife undergoes
a final sanding

For the user's gripping comfort.

You can see the difference
the sanding makes

In the knife on the right.

Next, the craftsman works on
the fillet knife's cutting edge,

Sharpening it against
a sanding belt.

The blade slices a sheet of
paper cleanly without snagging,

Proving that it's been
well-honed.

Finally, another worker cleans
and lubricates the fillet knife.

She slides it
into a leather sheath

And snaps the tab of the sheath
to the end of the pommel.

With all the work that's gone
into this fillet knife,

The customer will be in
for one tasty, well-cut meal.

♪♪