10 YEARS AGO — 2000 — Wake up! System alerts sleepy drivers: The AutoVue lane-departure warning system notices an unintended lane change and sounds an alarm. The system uses a computerized camera, sophisticated lane and image-recognition software, and other hardware to track lane markings on the road. It’s compact enough to sit inside the vehicle on the windshield. When a vehicle begins to veer out of a lane, the system emits a distinctive rumble-strip sound, giving drivers time to easily correct the situation. AutoVue, from Iteris Inc., a subsidiary of Odetics Inc., Anaheim, Calif., is said to work effectively both day and night and in most weather where the lane markings are visible. Hitting the turn signal tells the system that a lane departure is intended and the alarm does not sound.
30 YEARS AGO — 1980 — Melt a penny in your hand?: The picture demonstrates a new material’s ability to provide a barrier against heat transmission in welding or brazing operations. The new material, called Flamehold by Nassau Research Corp., North Brunswick, N. J., can be molded in a jig to securely hold an irregularly shaped or hard-to-position workpiece. It also can be used to protect heat-sensitive areas. When the job is done, water can be mixed into the heat-barrier material and it can be reshaped.
50 YEARS AGO — 1960 — Inboard-driven outboard: Advantages of inboard and outboard power are combined in the latest marine drive that brings the shaft through the transom above the water line. Designed by Eaton Manufacturing Co., Cleveland, the “Powernaut” can be rotated (upward) 180° or removed for maintenance and trailerizing. It also permits the engine to be mounted in the stern of the boat, giving inboards increased usable “living” area. The drive can be adapted to a variety of inboard marine engines.