Page:Popular Mechanics 1928 01.pdf/8

 



An electrical machine that answers the telephone, starts and stops machinery, reads the water gauges at reservoirs and can be made to perform an infinite number of other tasks, has been constructed by Dewey M. Radcliffe, a government engineer, and R. J. Wensley, of the Westinghouse laboratory staff. Three of the automatons have been installed in the war department at Washington, taking the place of nine watchmen who patrolled three water reservoirs. When the official in charge wishes to know the depth of water in any of the reservoirs, he calls central on the telephone, gives the proper number, and the mechanical man answers, reads the gauge and reports back the depth. A similar machine, demonstrated at the Westinghouse offices recently, turned lights off and on, started and stopped an electric fan, operated a searchlight and an automatic sweeper, and even opened and closed a door. A laboratory model was worked by the human voice speaking into a telephone transmitter, delicate selectors and relays responding to certain tones and syllables. For practical installation, the human voice has been replaced by electrically operated tuning forks, which transmit the desired note. The mechanical man grew out of the need for a device to control distant machinery without the prohibitive expense of maintaining special private wires over long distances. At the control office in the war department, the telephone stands on a small box, which has on it three push buttons. When the waterworks official wants 