Life Casting Downdraft Cooktops Compression Hosiery Electric Motorcycles
Egyptian pharaohs were likely the first to have molds made of their bodies and the images cast. Today, anyone can have this done. The experts have it down to a fine art. It's called life casting, or body molding, and it's in demand because every body is different. Need a body double? Life casting creates replicas of body parts that can be used as personal mementos or movie props. They start by applying cold cream to the body part. The cream will serve as a release agent, allowing the mold to be removed whole. This orange goop is the molding material. It's a seaweed-based substance called alginate. It's the same stuff the dentist uses to take molds of teeth, but it's formulated to set more slowly. The life caster spreads the alginate liberally onto this young actor's clenched fist and arm. Alginate cures in five or six minutes, so there's no time to waste. He works at a steady pace. He applies wet plaster bandages to the alginate. The bandages adhere and form a stiff shell similar to a cast for a broken limb. The cast-like shell supports the alginate as it cures to the shape of the boy's fist to produce a mold of it. When cured, the alginate has a firm yet rubbery consistency. It takes a few tugs to pull off the mold, but the rubbery nature of the alginate means it can be done without cracking or crumpling. The casting material is durable dental plaster. He pours it into the mold. He tips out a bit to get rid of bubbles that have accumulated on the surface. It's hands off now as the plaster cures because a chemical reaction makes it dangerously hot. A half-hour later, the plaster is cooled and hardened into the shape of the boy's fist. The plaster has picked up all the little details, including the tiniest of creases. He picks out bits of alginate lodged in the creases. He defines the fingernails and cleans up a few pits and bubbles. This is the actor's real hand, and this is the replica. Next, they make a mold of the actor's face. They apply cream to his hair to prevent it from becoming stuck in the alginate. The team completely coats his face, ears, and upper chest with blue alginate. It must be hard not to wince, but he can't budge in order to create a good impression. They leave the back of his head uncovered for an open mold and create two small holes for breathing. They layer the plaster bandages over the alginate to give structure to the mold. It also makes him look mummified. After several minutes, the mold has solidified. The team removes it from the subject. Now that his features have been successfully transferred to the alginate, he can breathe easy. The life caster trims excess alginate, then wraps fabric around the mold to build a kind of wall to contain spills as he fills it with plaster. The plaster casting may not be the final one. Depending on the client's wishes, they may make a mold from this bust and then cast the image in a more flesh-like material like silicone, foam, or rubber. The plaster is cured and the wait is over. It's time to peel off the layers and find the face within. It's a bit like he's removing an intricate mask. The face behind it is instantly recognizable. He cleans out the eyes and nose... And scrubs the entire plaster face. Here's the actor and his plaster doppelganger. They'll use it to create a silicone version, and once it's painted and given hair, it will be ready for the movies. In contrast to a big, traditional hood, which is separate from the stove, a downdraft system vents smoke, steam, and cooking odors without being conspicuous. The ventilation unit is actually part of the cooktop, and that opens up a lot of kitchen-design possibilities. Invented in the 1960s, the downdraft cooktop can solve some design dilemmas. Installed in a center island, it offers a clear line of view where a traditional hood would block it. Production starts with the burner box. They'll make three from this steel sheet. A computer guides tools as they cut holes and notches in the steel. It also roughs out the shape of the boxes and makes slots for the downdraft ventilation intake. After the sheets have been cut into individual units, a worker serves them up to a computerized brake press. The computer controls the stops that position the sheet to be bent at the correct angle. This transforms the steel sheet into a box. They're now ready to build the downdraft ventilation system. The worker inserts the fan blower and motor into an assembly fixture. He then places a metal part, known as the plenum, over it. The plenum is the intake duct. He places a mesh guard over the opening through which steam and cooking fumes will flow. He secures everything with four nuts and studs. He caps the nuts with rubber plugs to seal the gaps. He now transfers the fan and duct assembly to another fixture. It allows him to correctly position the burner box on the ventilation system. He plugs the blower motor into a junction box. He places a metal frame around the plenum and screws it in place to secure the plenum to the burner box. Next, he assembles the knob switches that turn the burners on and off. He adds rubber insulators to keep water out of the switches. He covers them with a metal plate with holes for the knob shafts to protrude. He installs the lighting system that indicates whether the burners are on or off. Next, an employee slots the switch system into the ceramic cooktop through the back. He inserts the radiant heating elements into the holes in the cooktop. The elements are different sizes to accommodate different pots, and they have different heating capacities. He wires the switches to the elements, and he ties them to the main power cord. Another worker screws the elements to a metal bracket that's glued to the underside of the ceramic cooktop, and he completes the wiring work. The ceramic cooktop is complete and ready to be joined to the downdraft ventilation unit. He aligns the hole in the center with the intake duct. He feeds the wires from the cooktop through holes in the burner box to the junction box. He screws the junction box to the bottom of the burner box. He pulls the main power harness through a hole in the burner box and secures it to the box with a metal bracket and screws. He adjusts the ceramic cooktop, which moved out of alignment a bit during the wiring, and then equips the cooktop with knobs which fit snugly to the protruding pins. And it's over to a test station. The operator connects a computer to the downdraft cooktop. She turns the knobs, and the computer measures the power consumed by the elements. Some elements are the same size but different wattages. The test confirms that the elements are in the correct slots and that all burners are operational. It's taken 25 minutes to assemble this downdraft cooktop. The downdraft ventilation unit will get rid of moisture and odors discreetly. It's now time to turn up the heat with no worries about the fallout. If you've got varicose veins, leg fatigue, ankle swelling, or other circulation disorders, your doctor may prescribe compression hosiery, pressured stockings that squeeze your legs primarily at the ankle and, to a lesser extent, in other areas to help the blood in your veins travel back to the heart. They don't look like ugly old-lady stockings anymore. Today's compression hosiery comes in a range of colors and pantyhose, thigh-high, and knee-high versions. The doctor prescribes the compression strength you need. That's the pressure at the ankle in millimeters mercury, the same measuring unit used in blood-pressure readings. The hosiery is knitted out of stretchy spandex and nylon yarns. The computerized knitting machine interlocks yarn strands vertically and horizontally. This two-direction knit gives the stocking a two-way stretch. However, it's the horizontal yarn in the knit that provides the doctor's strength prescription. They program the knitting machine to produce a run of a specific size and prescription. It automatically varies the stitch and yarn tension to apply 100% of the prescribed pressure at the ankle, 65% at the calf, and 30% at the thigh. Stronger pressure at the bottom point forces blood upward toward the heart. The machine outputs stocking-length tubes, which sewers skillfully transform into the final shape. The first sewer turns the tube inside out and stitches the toe closed. Then she stretches those stitches to flatten the seam so it'll be comfortable on the foot. If they're making pantyhose, another sewer slits that tube partway down the inside of the leg so it can be joined to another leg. The next sewer takes a leg and stitches it to a triangular cotton gusset, which forms the crotch of the pantyhose. These are maternity hose, so she also sews in a stretchy stomach panel. Then she sews a big u-shaped seam at the front, joining the second leg to the other parts. Whether it's a multiple-component pantyhose or a simple single thigh-high or knee-high stocking, the production steps from this point on are the same. Workers slide each stocking onto a heated aluminum leg form in the size they're producing in this run. Laser lines show exactly where to align the heel and other parts on the form. Then, one by one, the forms enter a pressurized steam chamber for about four seconds. This quick steam treatment is enough to permanently lock the form's shape into the nylon. The form then enters a dryer, where it stops for about 15 seconds. The hot forced air evaporates the steam-infused moisture. When the stocking finally comes off the form, it's dry and leg-shaped. Workers now group the stockings into 10-pair stacks, put each stack inside a specific color bag to identify its style and size, then load the bags in this high-tech dye machine. They key in the program which automatically controls every aspect of dyeing the stockings from water levels and temperature to dye injection. For one hour, the machine washes the stockings. Then, over the next five hours, it dyes them, adding chemicals to make the water acidic, which draws the dye like a sponge permanently into the yarn fibers. The compression stockings knit, sewn, shaped, and dyed are now ready to be inspected and packaged. The factory pulls a set number of random samples per day from the production line and tests them on this extension machine. It stretches the hose to test the tensile strength, and it measures the compression at the different points of the leg. Every single pair of stockings undergoes a visual inspection prior to packaging. Then the packager neatly folds it around a cardboard insert, slips it inside an adhesive-sealed plastic bag, and inserts it into the retail box. Compression stockings are classified as a medical device. The sealed bag assures the customer that the stockings are a brand-new, unused pair, and therefore, hygienic. Looking to drive motorcycle without ever having to stop for a fill-up, change the oil, top off the fluids, or repair a transmission, clutch, and cooling system? And do you want a quiet motor that doesn't contribute to air pollution? Then an electric motorcycle may be just the set of wheels you're looking for. An electric motorcycle lends a whole new meaning to the term "plug and play". You charge the bike's battery by plugging in to a standard 120-volt household electrical outlet. A full charge takes eight hours, but you can buy an add-on device to cut that charging time in half. The bike's journey begins on a sketch pad. An industrial designer draws an artistic conception, creating the aesthetics such as lines and colors as well as the ergonomics, such as seat and mirror positioning. The designer transforms the sketches into a computer model to which engineers then add the mechanics. The motorcycle's battery contains four cell boxes. To link all the cell boxes, they install two interconnect boards. Then, into each board, they plug the connectors from two cell boxes. They use lots of grease to waterproof the battery and protect it against corrosion caused by road salt or sea air. Next, they plug wires coming from the two interconnect boards into a circuit board. This circuit board is the battery's brain. It regulates the voltages of the individual cells to prevent overheating. Then the charging components. Technicians now close up the fully assembled battery with protective covers and run it through a function test. The test simulates the discharge of the battery that happens when you ride the bike, then the recharge that occurs when you plug in. All the cell voltages must balance in the process. The motorcycle frame is made of high-strength, lightweight, aircraft-grade aluminum. At the tail end, they install the controller, the link between the battery and the throttle, which controls the electricity flow to the motor. They mount the suspension system, an aluminum swingarm that attaches to the rear wheel on one end and to the frame on the other via a spring-shaped shock absorber, which expands and contracts to dampen bounce as the wheel moves up and down over bumps in the road. They mount the motor. The battery's electrical current rotates the motor via the controller, which turns the drive belt, spinning the bike's rear wheel. This belt's maintenance-free because it's made of high-strength rubber, further reinforced with the material used to make bulletproof vests. They install the upper triple clamp, which carries the dash, horn, turn signals, and ignition switch. Then the handlebars. There are several components already mounted to them, including the front brake lever, the throttle, and control switches. Then technicians slide the battery into the frame and connect it to the motor and controller. This motorcycle has no transmission, no gears, no clutch, no cooling system to maintain or repair. The motor's fins adequately dissipate heat buildup. Next, two aluminum forks to hold the front wheel axle. Workers position them inside the upper triple clamp and a second triple clamp lower down. But they don't install the front wheel just yet. They first mount the rear wheel. It has a rubber tire, hydraulic brakes activated by a foot lever, and a sprocket for the drive belt. They place the drive belt around the sprocket. Now, when the motor runs, the rear wheel turns. After mounting the front wheel, they install the bike's plastic body parts. There's a storage area where gas motorcycles would have their fuel tank. There are four chargers located underneath the battery. Their wiring culminates in a single port in which you plug a cable to recharge. Every motorcycle this factory produces undergoes an extensive indoor road test on a dynamometer, a driving simulator that assesses the performance of every component. Although very quiet, the bike's as powerful as a midsize, gasoline-run motorcycle and can reach speeds of up to 100 miles per hour. When the battery needs a quick recharge, you can pull over at a roadside electric-vehicle charging station and fill her up in less than an hour.