07x09 - Carbon Fibre Masts/Fortune Cookies/IMAX Projectors/Roller Chains

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
today, on "how it's made"...

Carbon-fiber masts...

...fortune cookies...

...imax projectors...

...and roller chains.

In the world of sailing,

Lightweight ideas
are the best kind.

This carbon-fiber mast
is a good example.

At the half the weight
of aluminum or wood,

It allows the boat
to move faster,

And it's a pillar of strength,
easily holding up a full sail.

Whether you're a sailor
or passenger,

It's nice to know
you can count on its support.

They launch production
of a sailboat mast

With a strip of carbon fiber.

They wrap it
around a long mast form,

Which will serve as a mold.

They trim the material
and peel away the paper backing.

Between 20 and 100 layers
will be wound around the mold,

Depending on the size
of the mast.

They apply some layers
in a crisscross manner

To give the mast
more structural integrity

And help it hold its shape.

They cut away the overlap so
that the edges meet perfectly.

The material is a bit creased
and bulky at this point,

So they wrap it with plastic
pull tape to compress it.

Then they remove it.

This temporary taping
is done after each layer,

But they leave it on
after the final one

And tape a breather cloth
around it.

Then they pull
a long plastic vacuum bag

Over the entire thing.

They seal the ends with tape.

They attach the vacuum connector
and hose and turn it on.

It sucks air from
between the carbon layers,

Compressing them further.

Next, it all heads
into an autoclave

To be baked under pressure.

This will squeeze more air
from the layers.

At the same time,

The heat will activate glue
impregnated into the material,

Permanently fusing the layers.

They make this fitting
in a similar fashion.

It's called a gooseneck plate,

And it will connect a boom
or spinnaker pole to the mast.

Back to the mast.

They pull the big aluminum mold
out of the mast tube.

Using a disk sander,

They rough up the surface
so paint will stick.

They drill two holes.

And using a jigsaw
with a special blade,

They connect them,
making one wide slot.

And remember
the gooseneck plate?

They trim it using the jigsaw

So that it will fit snugly
on the mast.

Next, a worker
maneuvers a plastic pipe

With a string on the end.

He threads the string
through the mast tube,

Then hooks it and pulls it out
of the slot made earlier.

It's a messenger line,
and it will be used to install

The rope halyard
that will raise the sail.

They also use messenger strings
to install electrical wiring,

Connecting such things
as radar, horns, and lights.

They're all funneled
through the inside of the mast.

The mast has now been painted,

And a worker installs the
upper end of the pulley system

For the halyard.

He slides in a pin
that holds the halyard pulley

And bolts on a guard
to keep the rope from fraying.

Next, they screw on a device
that will let the captain know

Which way the wind is blowing --
the wind indicator.

He twist-locks a signal light
to the top of the mast.

It will indicate the boat's
direction to passing vessels.

Now they attach
a piece called the toggle.

It's a connector piece

Between the gooseneck plate
and the boom.

This carbon-fiber mast
is now seaworthy

And will soon make
its debut on the water.

Narrator: the fortune cookie
is a snack with a message,

And the message is usually
as sweet as the sugary shell.

But there is
one surprising thing

About the fortune cookie.

It wasn't invented in china,

But in california in the
early part of the 20th century,

And people in china have never
really developed a taste for it.

Yes, the fortune cookie is
about as american as apple pie.

But more than pie, it gives you
something to think about.

To make a batch
of fortune cookies,

They start with a sack of sugar.

They empty the whole thing
into a big steel mixer.

Fortune cookies
are about 20% sugar.

They add some food coloring,

Just enough to turn the cookies
that distinctive gold shade,

Then some melted
vegetable shortening.

They pour in some starch
as a thickener.

Pipes spray water into the mix.

And then they add pastry flour.

This soft wheat flour will
give the cookies their texture.

They add a bit more water,

Because too little of it
would make for a crumbly batch.

Then it's time to mix it all up.

After a few minutes,
they check the consistency.

Then they pour in
more melted shortening

And a soy-based lecithin.

Once that's blended in, the
cookie mix ebbs from the bowl

As a hose pumps it out
from the bottom.

Next, ejector nozzles squirt the
batter onto hot moving trays,

Making precise little patties
that look like regular cookies.

You could call this
"the wheel of fortune cookies."

Hot molding plates revolve.

Each one descends

And presses onto
four fortune-cookie patties,

Fl*ttening and shaping them.

They travel through an oven
that's almost 30 feet in length

And bake for about a minute.

They come out
of the oven piping hot

And are given no time
to cool down,

Because these
fortune-cookie patties

Need to stay soft

So they can be easily
manipulated in the next step.

Steel prongs push little
paper fortunes into each cookie

As they fold it into that
distinctive butterfly shape.

There are about 5,000
different fortunes in the mix

At this factory,

So it would be rare
to get the same fortune twice.

This plant makes
a truly astounding number

Of fortune cookies every day --
about 4 million.

The folding molds open
as the track descends.

The fortune cookies,
now cooled and crispy,

Drop to a conveyor below.

It takes each fortune cookie
through a wrapping mechanism,

Which envelopes it in plastic.

Then a hot blade cuts and seals
the package in one fell swoop.

The packaged fortune cookies
transfer to another conveyor,

Which transports them
to an inspection station

Where many
production lines converge.

A worker checks to make sure

There are no breaks
in the package or the cookie.

He tosses out any rejects.

After all, a broken fortune
cookie could be bad luck.

A box moves into position,

And hundreds
of cookies fall into it --



They're portioned out
by a scale overhead.

Then a plastic ram
gently presses the cookies

Into the box to reduce the bulk.

A conveyor belt
moves the box full of cookies

Under a metal bar, which pushes
the flaps down to close it.

And now the time has come
to crack open the cookie

In the proverbial ritual.

Hope our fortune is a good one.

Narrator: so, you want to be
on the big screen.

You won't get there
without a movie projector.

It was invented
over a century ago,

And the concept
is the same today.

Film revolves
in front of a light

Which projects
an image onto a screen.

But the latest
technological advancements

Allow for much bigger screens.

Its film is 10 times
larger than normal,

And the projector
magnifies it 400 times

As it moves
in a sideways-rolling loop,

Rather than
the traditional vertical feed.

And instead
of the usual sprockets,

Registration pins
retract as the film loads

And then reach out
to steady it as it rolls.

A vacuum sucks
the film to the aperture lens.

This is how they keep the
gigantic image perfectly steady.

To make an imax projector,
they bolt two prisms together

And mount them on a part called
the lower illumination module.

The prisms and a mirror will
reflect the projector's light

To a similar part called
the upper illumination module,

Which will relay the light
to the lens.

It's a fly's-eye lens,

A collection of many lenses
on one glass.

Each will focus
to a single point,

Ensuring an even
distribution of light.

A technician screws
two fly's-eye lenses together

And then places them in a
fixture to align the two halves.

He switches on a light

And places an alignment guide
over the lenses.

There are red and green filters
on this guide,

And he brings them into focus.

He adjusts them until
the red and green lines merge.

It means the two fly's-eye
lenses are now aligned.

Next, they install
the upper illumination module

In the projector frame,
and then they flip it.

They remove the protective cap
from the back.

Then they attach it
to the lower illumination module

Which we saw assembled earlier.

Here, they bolt together
the rotor support and motor.

The rotor is this big wheel.
It's the heart of the projector.

It drives the film forward

In that distinctive
wavelike action.

This piece, called a stader,

Will act as a guide
for the film.

He fits the aperture block
on the front of the frame.

Using a crane,
they lower it onto the base.

They screw in spacer bars

And install
the second projector assembly.

These two assemblies
will enable the system

To run three-dimensional movies.

Now it's time
to position the main lens

At the front of the projector.

They remove the lens cap,
and it's time for the film.

The film wave happens


We've slowed down this footage
so you can see it all happen.

The film of a test chart ripples
in front of the aperture,

And then vacuums pull it down
for a 1/24 of a second.

This eliminates any shakiness
in the projected image.

Now we're showing it
in real time.

You get the picture.

There's also nothing ordinary

About the lamps
the imax projector uses.

They're very powerful, but they
use the light very efficiently.

And now it's time
to enjoy the show.

Narrator:
roller chains are used all over.

We're all familiar with them
as the chains

That move energy
to the wheels of our bikes.

But roller chains
also transfer energy

In industrial
and agricultural machinery.

They really keep things moving,
and without them,

A lot of important equipment
would be powerless.

To make a roller chain,

A punch press pulls steel
from a giant spool.

Using 500 tons of force,
it cuts shapes out of the steel.

These shapes are the link plates

That will join all the parts
of the roller chain.

The plates travel
on a series of conveyors.

An arm positions them

As they head towards
the next punch press

That makes two holes
in each link plate.

A worker
then pours them onto a tray

And spreads them
evenly across it.

A vibratory mechanism shuffles
them into a blazing furnace.

This heat treatment
toughens the steel.

Then they cool down slowly
in a tank of oil.

After that, they go
for a tumble in the washer,

To get rid of the oily residue.

Meanwhile, another machine

Uncoils some steel
to make bushings, or sleeves,

For the chain pins.

The blade slices the material
to the correct length.

Then mechanical arms
fold the steel around a mandrel.

Here's the action
in slow motion.

In real time,

It all happens faster
than you can blink an eye.

The bushings fall into a bin,

And now they're
ready to be heat-treated.

They open the furnace
and stand away from the blast.

A railcar takes the bushings
into the flames.

This may look destructive,

But the bushings
will come out stronger.

Now it's time to make the pin

That will hold
everything together.

This machine shoves
a steel rod into a jig,

And a saw cuts it to size,
which varies,

Depending on the chain
it will be used for.

A mechanical arm
then picks up the pin

And transports it
to rotating heads,

Which machine down the ends.

The pins then travel
across a grinding wheel,

Which reduces them
to a specific diameter.

Next, they go through
a wash cycle.

A special mix
of lubricant and solvents

Rinses away the residue
from the grinding.

These are the pins before
and after grinding.

Now it's time
to put the pieces together.

This is a breakdown
of what happens

At a blurring pace
on the assembly line.

The link plates and bushings
go into an assembly device.

A ram presses them together.

They remove them and place two
more link plates in the device.

They position rollers on top
of them and slide the bushings

And link-plate assembly
into place.

They press-fit it all together.

And now they have links
for the roller chain.

The next step is to fit
the roller links together.

They clamp them into a fixture
and slide in pins.

A hydraulic ram presses the pins
to the base of the assembly.

Then they connect the pins
with another link plate

And press it in place.

This is repeated as they
lengthen the roller chain.

They can also widen it to enable
it to handle more horsepower.

To do this, they stack
single strands of roller chain.

They use longer pins to hold
all the layers together.

Again, a fixture
holds it in place

While the ram does its work.

This produces
heavy-duty roller chain.

The one shown
can handle 400 horsepower.

Finally,
they lower the roller chain

Into a vat of hot grease
to lubricate the joints.

And that's the end
of the production process

For the roller chain.

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