10 YEARS AGO — JULY 8, 1999
Reels on wheels: A mobile film theater which travels the countryside under the guise of “Reels on Wheels” and “Screen Machine” is bringing blockbuster films to rural areas of the Scottish highlands and Islands. At show time, a 12-m-long truck converts to a luxury theater with a 100-person capacity. Padded chairs are hydraulically folded flat in the air-conditioned theater with a 4.5- m-wide screen and a stereo sound system. The trailer also includes a box office, a sleeping area for the projectionist, and a projection booth. One person can set up the unit in about an hour.
30 YEARS AGO — JULY 12, 1979
Microprocessor steers missile: A technician is checking four electronically controlled jet vanes, which deflect rocketmotor exhaust. They’re part of a new control unit developed at Raytheon Co. The unit has its own microprocessor to determine independent vane angles and steer a Sparrow missile from a vertical launch. The jet-vane control unit will be used in conjunction with the vertically launched Seasparrow Lightweight Missile System.
50 YEARS AGO — JULY 9, 1959
Ventilated centerplate cools highspeed clutch: Cooling-air ducts are provided between ribs on mating faces of a split centerplate in the clutch of this power takeoff. Twin Disc Clutch Co., Racine, Wis., says the added cooling dissipates starting- load head, which often damages conventional centerplates. The tapered roller bearing in the power takeoff uses oil rather than grease for safe operating temperatures at high speeds. Bearing oil is provided by a slinger dipping into the sump. In normal operation (10 engagements or less per day) the unit needs lubrication only twice a year.