NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Pneumatic tube

Pneumatic tubes, also known as capsule pipelines or Lamson tubes, are systems in which cylindrical containers are propelled through a network of tubes by compressed air or by vacuum. They are used for transporting physical objects. A right circular cylinder An elliptic cylinder In mathematics, a cylinder is a quadric surface, with the following equation in Cartesian coordinates: This equation is for an elliptic cylinder, a generalization of the ordinary, circular cylinder (a = b). ... Look up container in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Tubing refers to a flexible hose or pipe used in plumbing, irrigation, and other industries. ... A gas compressor is a mechanical device that increases the pressure of a gas by reducing its volume. ... Look up Vacuum in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

History

Pneumatics can be traced back to Hero of Alexandria in the 1st century AD, though there was as of then no thought of using them to move objects through pipes. The Victorians were the first to use capsule pipelines to transmit telegraph messages, or telegrams, to nearby buildings from telegraph stations. Table of Pneumaticks, 1728 Cyclopaedia This article is about the tool. ... Heros aeolipile Hero (or Heron) of Alexandria (Greek: Î‰ÏÏ‰Î½ Î¿ Î‘Î»ÎµÎ¾Î±Î½Î´ÏÎµÏÏ‚) (c. ... The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 100 according the Gregorian calendar. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her accession to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... Optical Telegraf of Claude Chappe on the Litermont near Nalbach, Germany Telegraphy (from the Greek words tele (Ï„Î·Î»Îµ) = far and graphein (Î³ÏÎ±Ï†ÎµÎ¹Î½) = write) is the long-distance transmission of written messages without physical transport of letters, originally by changing something that could be observed from a distance (optical telegraphy). ... Telegraphy (from the Greek words tele = far away and grapho = write) is the long distance transmission of written messages without physical transport of letters, originally over wire. ...

While they are commonly used for small parcels and documents—now most often used at banks or supermarkets—they were originally proposed in the early 1800s for transport of heavy freight. It was once envisioned that networks of these massive tubes might be used to transport people. â€œBankerâ€ redirects here. ... Exterior of a typical British supermarket (a Tesco Extra) Exterior of typical North American supermarket (a Safeway) This Flagship Randalls store in Houston, Texas is an example of an upscale supermarket. ... // Invention of the Jacquard loom in 1801. ...

Pneumatic Post

Pneumatic post or pneumatic mail is a system to deliver letters through pressurized air tubes. It was invented by the Scottish engineer William Murdoch in the 1800s and was later developed by the London Pneumatic Dispatch Company. Pneumatic post systems were used in several large cities starting in the second half of the 19th century, but were largely abandoned during the 20th century. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x1356, 154 KB) Description: Postal stationary - Pneumatic tube letter from Berlin, Michel-No. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x1356, 154 KB) Description: Postal stationary - Pneumatic tube letter from Berlin, Michel-No. ... Image File history File links Posta_Pneumatic_Italy_D18. ... Image File history File links Posta_Pneumatic_Italy_D18. ... William Murdoch. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

It was also speculated that a system of tubes might deliver mail to every home in the US. A major network of tubes in Paris was in use until 1984, when it was finally abandoned in favor of computers and fax machines. In Prague, Czech Republic, a network of approximately 60 kilometers for delivering mail and parcels still exists. However, due to damage sustained during the 2002 European floods the service has been put on indefinite hold. City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) The Eiffel Tower in Paris, as seen from the esplanade du TrocadÃ©ro. ... Year 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar). ... Nickname: Motto: Praga Caput Rei publicae Location within the Czech Republic Coordinates: , Country Czech Republic Region Capital City of Prague Founded 9th century Government - Mayor Pavel BÃ©m Area - City 496 kmÂ² (191. ... Floods in Dresden In August of 2002 a 100-year flood caused by over a week of continuous heavy rains ravaged Europe, killing dozens, dispossessing thousands, and causing damage of billions of euros in the Czech Republic, Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania and Croatia. ...

Typical current applications are in banks and hospitals. Many large retailers (such as Home Depot or CostCo in the US) use pneumatic tubes to transport cheques or other documents from cashiers to the accounting office. One system lists a speed of 10 meters per second. [1] â€œBankerâ€ redirects here. ... For the record label, see Hospital Records. ...

Pneumatic post stations usually connected post offices, stock exchanges, banks and ministries. Italy was the only country to issue postage stamps (between 1913 and 1966) specifically for pneumatic post. Austria, France, and Germany issued postal stationery for pneumatic use. A selection of Hong Kong postage stamps A postage stamp is evidence of pre-paying a fee for postal services. ... Postal stationery: Postcard of 1895 A piece of postal stationery is an envelope, letter sheet, or postal card with an amount of postage preprinted on it, at the postcard rate for postcards, and (usually) at the domestic first-class rate for letter sheets and envelopes. ...

Historical uses of pneumatic post

Pneumatic transportation

(Pneumatic Transportation here refers to the transporting of people inside pneumatic tubes; other forms of transportation that use pneumatics for propulsion are not considered.)

In 1812, George Medhurst first proposed, but never implemented, blowing passenger carriages through a tunnel. For the overture by Tchaikovsky, see 1812 Overture; For the wars, see War of 1812 (USA - United Kingdom) or Patriotic War of 1812 (France - Russia) For the Siberia Airlines plane crashed over the Black Sea on October 4, 2001, see Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 1812 was a leap year starting...

Brunel built an atmospheric railway on an 83.7-kilometre section of the South Devon Railway between Exeter and Plymouth, England in the 19th century It was also tried on the London & Croydon Railway in 1845, but was soon abandoned. Brunel before the launching of the Great Eastern. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... km redirects here. ... The South Devon Railway Company built and operated the railway from Exeter to Plymouth and Torquay in Devon, England. ... The city of Exeter is the county town of Devon, in the southwest of England, also known as the Westcountry. ... Plymouth is a city of 243,795 inhabitants (2001 census) in the south-west of England, or alternatively the West Country, and is situated within the traditional and ceremonial county of Devon at the mouths of the rivers Plym and Tamar and at the head of one of the world... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() â€“ on the European continent() â€“ in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified - by Athelstan 927 AD Area - Total 130... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The London & Croydon Railway (L&C) was incorporated in 1835, and the line to West Croydon was opened June 5 1839. ...

In 1861, the London Pneumatic Despatch Company built a system large enough to move a person, although it was intended for parcels. The October 10, 1865 inauguration of the new Holborn Station was marked by having the Duke of Buckingham, the chairman, and some of the directors of the company blown through the tube to Euston (a five minute trip). 1861 (MDCCCLXI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link with display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar) // January 1 - Benito JuÃ¡rez captures Mexico City January 2 - Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia dies and is succeeded by... October 10 is the 283rd day of the year (284th in leap years). ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... Holborn (pronounced ho-bun or ho-burn) is a place in London, named after a tributary to the river Fleet that flowed through the area, the Hole-bourne (the stream in the hollow). ... The titles Marquess and Duke of Buckingham, named after Buckingham, have been created several times in the peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. ... Euston Underground Station is on the Bank branch of the Northern Line, this is between Camden Town and Kings Cross St Pancras. ...

A 550 metre (m) pneumatic passenger railway was exhibited at the Crystal Palace in 1864. This was a prototype for a proposed Whitehall Pneumatic Railway that would have run under the River Thames linking Waterloo and Charing Cross. Digging was started in 1865 but was stopped in 1868 due to financial problems. The metre or meter is a measure of length. ... The 1851 Great Exhibition in Hyde Park . ... 1864 (MDCCCLXIV) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... The Thames is a river flowing through southern England, and one of the major waterways in England. ... For the former name of a MTR station in Hong Kong, see Yau Ma Tei (MTR) London Waterloo is a major railway station and transport interchange complex in London, England. ... The Victorian Eleanor Cross at Charing Cross The name Charing Cross, now given to a district of central London in the City of Westminster, comes from the original hamlet of Charing, where King Edward I placed a memorial to his wife, Eleanor of Castile. ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... Media:Example. ...

In 1867 at the American Institute exhibition in New York, Alfred Ely Beach demonstrated a 32.6 m long, 1.8 m diameter pipe that was capable of moving 12 passengers plus conductor. In 1869, the Beach Pneumatic Transit Company of New York constructed in secret a 95 m long, 2.7 m diameter pneumatic subway line under Broadway. The line only operated for a few months, closing after Beach was unsuccessful in getting permission to extend it. Alfred Beachs first pneumatic tube demonstration line, built at a fairground in 1867. ... Alfred Beachs first pneumatic tube demonstration line, built at a fairground in 1867. ... Cunt BAg Twat Fuk suck my penis ring 0778851865!!!!!!Year 1867 (MDCCCLXVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... NY redirects here. ... Alfred Ely Beach (September 1, 1826_January 1, 1896) was an inventor, publisher and patent lawyer. ... 1869 (MDCCCLXIX) is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Sketch of the train car and tunnel. ... A view of Broadway in 1909 Broadway, as the name implies, is a wide avenue in New York City. ...

In the 1960s, Lockheed and MIT with the United States Department of Commerce did feasibility studies on a vactrain system powered by ambient atmospheric pressure and "gravitational pendulum assist" to connect cities on the East Coast of the US. They calculated that the run between Philadelphia and New York City would average 174 metres per second. The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... The Lockheed SR-71 was remarkably advanced for its time and remains unsurpassed in many areas of performance. ... The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private, coeducational research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. ... The United States Department of Commerce is a Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with promoting economic growth. ... A vactrain is an exotic, as-yet-unbuilt proposal for future high-speed railroad transportation. ... Nickname: City of Brotherly Love, Philly, the Quaker City Motto: Philadelphia maneto (Let brotherly love continue) Location in Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States State Pennsylvania County Philadelphia Founded October 27, 1682 Incorporated October 25, 1701 Mayor John F. Street (D) Area - City 369. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Metre per second (U.S. spelling: meter per second) is an SI derived unit of both speed (scalar) and velocity (vector), defined by distance in metres divided by time in seconds. ...

When those plans were abandoned as too expensive, Lockheed engineer L.K. Edwards founded Tube Transit, Inc. to develop technology based on "gravity-vacuum transportation". In 1967 he proposed a Bay Area Gravity-Vacuum Transit for California that would run along side the then-under-construction BART system. It was never built. Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area Ranked 3rd - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 kmÂ²) - Width 250 miles (400 km) - Length 770 miles (1,240 km) - % water 4. ... A westbound BART train with aerodynamic design A car in downtown San Francisco. ...

Current usage

The technology is still used on a smaller scale. In North America, a large number of drive-up banks use pneumatic tubes to transport cash and documents between cars and tellers. Most hospitals have a system to deliver drugs, documents and specimens to and from laboratories and nurses' stations. Many factories use them to deliver parts quickly across large campuses. Many larger stores use systems to securely transport excess cash from checkout stands to back offices, and to send change back to cashiers. NASA's original Mission Control Center in Houston, Texas had pneumatic tubes connecting controller consoles with staff support rooms. Denver International Airport is noteworthy for the large number of pneumatic tube systems, including a 10-inch diameter system for moving aircraft parts to remote concourses, a 4-inch system for United Airlines ticketing, and a robust system in the parking toll collection system with an outlet at every booth. Mission Control Center (MCC) is a unit that manages aerospace flights. ... Denver International Airport (IATA: DEN, ICAO: KDEN, FAA LID: DEN), often called DIA, is, by land size, the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world, after only King Fahd International Airport[1], and MontrÃ©al-Mirabel International Airport. ...

Pneumatic tubes in fiction

When pneumatic tubes first came into use in the 19th century, they symbolized technological progress and it was imagined that they would be common in the future. Jules Verne's Paris in the 20th Century (1863) includes suspended pneumatic tube trains that stretch across the oceans. Albert Robida's The Twentieth Century (1882) describes a 1950s Paris where tube trains have replaced railways, pneumatic mail is ubiquitous, and catering companies compete to deliver meals on tap to people's homes through pneumatic tubes. Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward (1888) envisions the world of 2000 as interlinked with tubes for delivering goods. Michel Verne's An Express of the Future (1888) questions the sensibility of a transatlantic pneumatic subway. In Michel & Jules Verne's The Day of an American Journalist in 2889 (1889) submarine tubes carry people faster than aero-trains and the Society for Supplying Food to the Home allows subscribers to receive meals pneumatically. Image File history File links Albert_Robida_-_The_Twentieth_Century_-_Pneumatic_Tube_Train. ... Image File history File links Albert_Robida_-_The_Twentieth_Century_-_Pneumatic_Tube_Train. ... Jules Gabriel Verne (February 8, 1828â€“March 24, 1905) was a French author who pioneered the science-fiction genre. ... Paris in the 20th Century (Paris au XXÃ¨me siÃ¨cle) is a science fiction novel by Jules Verne. ... Year 1863 (MDCCCLXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Albert Robida (1848 - 1926) was an illustrator, etcher, lithographer, caricaturist, and novelist. ... Year 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... Edward Bellamy, circa 1889. ... Looking Backward: 2000-1887 is a utopian novel by Edward Bellamy, a lawyer and writer from western Massachusetts, and was first published in 1888. ... Year 1888 (MDCCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Michel Jean Pierre Verne (August 3, 1861 â€“ March 5, 1925) was a writer and the son of Jules Verne. ... Year 1888 (MDCCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... The term transatlantic refers to something occurring all the way across the Atlantic Ocean. ... A rapid transit, underground, subway, tube, elevated, or metro(politan) system is a railwayâ€”usually in an urban areaâ€”with a high capacity and frequency of service, and grade separation from other traffic. ... Year 1889 (MDCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...

Later, because of their use by governments and large businesses, tubes began to symbolize bureaucracy. In George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, pneumatic tubes in the Ministry of Truth deliver newspapers to Winston's desk containing articles to be "rectified". The movie Brazil, which has similar themes, also used tubes (as well as other anachronistic technology) to evoke the stagnation of bureaucracy. At the start of each episode of the 1999 television series Fantasy Island, a darker version of the original, bookings for would-be visitors to the Island were sent to the devilish Mr. Roarke via a pneumatic tube from a dusty old travel agency, making the tube seem not so much bureaucratic as sinister. Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903[1][2] â€“ 21 January 1950), better known by the pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist. ... This article is about the Orwell novel. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... Fantasy Island refers to two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network. ...

The failure of pneumatic tubes to live up to their potential as envisioned in previous centuries has placed them in the company of flying cars and dirigibles as ripe for ironic retro-futurism. The 1960s cartoon series The Jetsons featured pneumatic tubes that people could step into and be sucked up and swiftly spit out at their destination. In the animated television series Futurama, set in the 31st century, large pneumatic tubes are used in cities for transporting people, whilst smaller ones are used to transport mail. The tubes in Futurama are also used to depict the endless confusion of bureaucracy: an immense network of pneumatic tubes connects all offices in New New York City to the "Central Bureaucracy", with all the capsules being deposited directly into a huge pile in the main filing room, with no sorting or organisation. The Flying Car The Waterman Aerobile at the Smithsonian. ... USS Akron (ZRS-4) in flight, November 2, 1931 An airship or dirigible is a buoyant lighter-than-air aircraft that can be steered and propelled through the air. ... Buck Rogers, an icon of the future, first appeared in August 1928 in this magazine (image is not of Rogers). ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... The Jetsons was a prime-time animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, and aired on Sunday nights on ABC from September 23, 1962 to March 3, 1963. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... Futurama is an Emmy Award-winning animated American sitcom created by Matt Groening (creator of The Simpsons) and David X. Cohen for the Fox network. ... The 31st century of the anno Domini (common) era will span the years 3001â€“3100 of the Gregorian calendar. ... Futurama is an Emmy Award-winning animated American sitcom created by Matt Groening (creator of The Simpsons) and David X. Cohen for the Fox network. ...

But, sometimes a tube is just a tube, and not all pneumatic tubes in fiction are symbolic or meaningful beyond simply being interesting technology. In the James Bond film The Living Daylights, a supposed Soviet defector was smuggled across the Iron Curtain in an oil pipe-line via a modified pipeline inspection gauge. While not technically a pneumatic tube, the design of the transportation system in Logan's Run, in which cars traveled in elevated clear tubes, seems influenced by pneumatic tube aesthetics. Flemings image of James Bond; commissioned to aid the Daily Express comic strip artists. ... The Living Daylights is the fifteenth James Bond film made by EON Productions. ... Warsaw Pact countries to the east of the Iron Curtain are shaded red; NATO members to the west of it â€” blue. ... A pig used in natural gas pipelines A Pipeline inspection gauge or pig in the pipeline industry is a tool that is sent down a pipeline and propelled by the pressure of the product in the pipeline itself. ... Logans Run is a 1976 science fiction film based on the novel of the same name by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson. ...

A sophisticated network of pneumatic tubes in 1940s Manhattan is seen in the film adaptation of The Shadow. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Manhattan is a borough of New York City, New York, USA, coterminous with New York County. ... The Shadow is a fictional character created by Walter B. Gibson in 1931 with the first story title The Living Shadow. The character is one of the most famous of the pulp heroes of the 1930s and 1940s -- made even more famous through a popular radio series originally played by...

In the story of ABC's series Lost, Locke and Eko discover a functioning pneumatic tube system inside one of the Dharma Initiative stations, named "The Pearl." The tubes empty into a large pile in the middle of the jungle. â€œLOSTâ€ redirects here. ... Title card from a DHARMA Initiative orientation film featured in the Lost episode Orientation Screenshot from the Sri Lanka Video, released as part of the Lost Experience, showing the DHARMA acronym The DHARMA Initiative (Department of Heuristics And Research on Material Applications Initiative)[1] is a fictional research project featured...

The Parisian pneumatic postal system is shown working in some detail in a montage from Truffaut's Stolen Kisses (1968). City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) The Eiffel Tower in Paris, as seen from the esplanade du TrocadÃ©ro. ... François Roland Truffaut (February 6, 1932–October 21, 1984) was one of the founders of the French New Wave in filmmaking, and remains an icon of the French film industry. ... Stolen Kisses (Baisers volÃ©s) is a French film directed by FranÃ§ois Truffaut, released in 1968. ...

In the 1997 Nickelodeon cartoon, "The Angry Beavers", pneumatic tubes are used by the beavers in their dam to send and receive letters and packages of various sizes. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Computer games Grim Fandango and Bioshock both feature a pneumatic tube messaging systems, as well as the "Succ-U-Bus" system in the Starship Titanic video game. Grim Fandango is a graphical adventure computer game released by LucasArts in 1998, the title derived from a line of a mournful poem read by one of the characters in the game. ... BioShock is a video game in development by Irrational Games, for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360. ... Front cover of the box from the original US Windows 95 CD-ROM release of Starship Titanic, by Simon & Schuster Interactive. ...

Contents

History

Pneumatic Post

Historical uses of pneumatic post

Pneumatic transportation

Current usage

Pneumatic tubes in fiction

See also

External links

Contents

History GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

Pneumatic Post

Historical uses of pneumatic post

Pneumatic transportation

Current usage

Pneumatic tubes in fiction

See also

External links

History