Mechanical Engineering, RAN-SNE
Mechanical engineering, the branch of engineering concerned with the design, manufacture, installation, and operation of engines and machines and with manufacturing processes. It is particularly concerned with forces and motion.
Mechanical Engineering Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Rankine temperature scale, scale established in 1859 by Scottish engineer and physicist William John Macquorn Rankine......
ratchet, mechanical device that transmits intermittent rotary motion or permits a shaft to rotate in one direction......
Raytheon Company, major American industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in defense and aerospace......
razor, keen-edged cutting implement for shaving or cutting hair. Prehistoric cave drawings show that clam shells,......
reactance, in electricity, measure of the opposition that a circuit or a part of a circuit presents to electric......
Nathan Read was an American engineer and inventor. Read attended and taught at Harvard University, and soon thereafter......
reamer, rotary cutting tool of cylindrical or conical shape used for enlarging and finishing to accurate dimensions......
recoilless rifle, any of several antitank weapons developed during World War II. They are lightweight and can be......
rectifier, device that converts alternating electric current into direct current. It may be an electron tube (either......
reflection, abrupt change in the direction of propagation of a wave that strikes the boundary between different......
refraction, in physics, the change in direction of a wave passing from one medium to another caused by its change......
rehabilitation robot, any automatically operated machine that is designed to improve movement in persons with impaired......
Georg von Reichenbach was a German maker of astronomical instruments who introduced the meridian, or transit, circle,......
relative aperture, the measure of the light-gathering power of an optical system. It is expressed in different......
rem, unit of radiation dosage (such as from X rays) applied to humans. Derived from the phrase Roentgen equivalent......
repeating rifle, rifled shoulder arm typically designed with a spring-loaded tubular or box magazine holding metallic......
resistance, in electricity, property of an electric circuit or part of a circuit that transforms electric energy......
resistor, electrical component that opposes the flow of either direct or alternating current, employed to protect,......
responsive environments, the use of sensory technology and computer equipment to create a collaborative relationship......
reversing thermometer, oceanographic device for measuring underwater temperature and pressure. It consists of two......
revolver, typically, a repeating pistol that utilizes a multichambered revolving cylinder behind one barrel. Some......
rheostat, adjustable resistor used in applications that require the adjustment of current or the varying of resistance......
Jean Richer was a French astronomer whose observations of the planet Mars from Cayenne, French Guiana, in 1671–73......
Richter scale (ML), quantitative measure of an earthquake’s magnitude (size), devised in 1935 by American seismologists......
ricochet, in gunnery, rebound of a projectile that strikes a hard surface, or the rebounding projectile itself.......
rifle, firearm with a rifled bore—i.e., having shallow spiral grooves cut inside the barrel to impart a spin to......
Richard Roberts was a British inventor known for his great versatility. Roberts began his career as an uneducated......
Sir William Chandler Roberts-Austen was an English metallurgist noted for his research on the physical properties......
Roberval balance, linked mechanism invented in 1669 by the French mathematician Gilles Personne de Roberval and......
robot, any automatically operated machine that replaces human effort, though it may not resemble human beings in......
rod, old English measure of distance equal to 16.5 feet (5.029 metres), with variations from 9 to 28 feet (2.743......
roentgen, unit of X-radiation or gamma radiation, the amount that will produce, under normal conditions of pressure,......
Rolamite, mechanical roller-band device that functions as an almost frictionless suspension system for rollers;......
roller, farm implement used to break up lumps left by harrows and to compact the soil, eliminating large air spaces.......
roller bearing, one of the two members of the class of rolling, or so-called antifriction, bearings (the other......
Rolls-Royce PLC, major British manufacturer of aircraft engines, marine propulsion systems, and power-generation......
Roman republican calendar, dating system that evolved in Rome prior to the Christian era. According to legend,......
root-mean-square voltage, equivalent direct current (DC) voltage of an alternating current (AC) source. Certain......
Elmo Roper was an American pollster, the first to develop the scientific poll for political forecasting. Three......
rotary engine, internal-combustion engine in which the combustion chambers and cylinders rotate with the driven......
router, portable electric power tool used in carpentry and furniture making that consists of an electric motor,......
Royal Armouries, in the United Kingdom, a collection of weapons and armour that was originally situated in the......
Sir Henry Royce, Baronet was an English industrialist who was one of the founders of Rolls-Royce Ltd., manufacturer......
Réaumur temperature scale, scale established in 1730 by the French naturalist René-Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur......
sabre, heavy military sword with a long cutting edge and, often, a curved blade. Most commonly a cavalry weapon,......
SAE number, code for specifying the viscosity of lubricating oil, established by the U.S. Society of Automotive......
salinometer, device used to measure the salinity of a solution. It is frequently a hydrometer that is specially......
Samsung specializes in producing a range of consumer and industrial electronics, including appliances, televisions,......
sarin, synthetic organophosphate compound that is highly toxic to the nervous system. Exposure to sarin—which is......
Saturday, seventh day of the week...
Horace Bénédict de Saussure was a Swiss physicist, geologist, and early Alpine explorer who developed an improved......
Thomas Savery was an English engineer and inventor who built the first steam engine. (Read James Watt’s 1819 Britannica......
saw, tool for cutting solid materials to prescribed lengths or shapes. Most saws take the form of a thin metal......
sawing machine, device for cutting up bars of material or for cutting out shapes in plates of raw material. The......
scanning electron microscope (SEM), type of electron microscope, designed for directly studying the surfaces of......
scanning tunneling microscope (STM), type of microscope whose principle of operation is based on the quantum mechanical......
Wilhelm Schickard was a German astronomer, mathematician, and cartographer. In 1623, he invented one of the first......
Eugène Schneider was one of the great industrialists of the 19th century and a prominent figure in French politics.......
Schwarzlose machine gun, early Austrian water-cooled machine gun (q.v.) operating on the blowback principle. A......
scissors, cutting instrument consisting of a pair of opposed metal blades that meet and cut when the handles at......
screw, in machine construction, a usually circular cylindrical member with a continuous helical rib, used either......
screwdriver, tool, usually hand-operated, for turning screws with slotted heads. For screws with one straight diametral......
scruple, unit of weight in the apothecaries’ system, equal to 20 grains, or one-third dram, and equivalent to 1.296......
Robert C. Seamans, Jr. was an American aeronautical engineer who pioneered in the development of advanced systems......
Secchi disk, in oceanography, circular plate about 30 centimetres (one foot) in diameter, painted a flat white......
second, fundamental unit of time, now defined in terms of the radiation frequency at which atoms of the element......
selenium cell, photoelectric device used to generate or control an electric current. Selenium photocells are commonly......
semiautomatic pistol, handgun that utilizes either recoil or blowback to discharge the empty cartridge, reload,......
semiconductor device, electronic circuit component made from a material that is neither a good conductor nor a......
September, ninth month of the Gregorian calendar. Its name is derived from septem, Latin for “seven,” an indication......
series circuit, any electrically conducting pathway comprising an electric circuit along which the whole current......
servomechanism, automatic device used to correct the performance of a mechanism by means of an error-sensing feedback.......
sewing machine, any of various machines for stitching material (such as cloth or leather), usually having a needle......
shaft coupling, in machinery, a device for providing a connection, readily broken and restored, between two adjacent......
shaft seal, in machinery, a device that prevents the passage of fluids along a rotating shaft. Seals are necessary......
shaper, metal-cutting machine in which the workpiece is usually held in a vise or similar device that is clamped......
shears, any of numerous large or large-bladed scissors, usually designed for cutting specific materials. See...
shell, variously, an artillery projectile, a cartridge case, or a shotgun cartridge. The artillery shell was in......
Sherman tank, main battle tank designed and built by the United States for the conduct of World War II. The M4......
shi, the basic unit of weight in ancient China. The shi was created by Shi Huang Di, who became the first emperor......
Shimazu Nariakira was a mid-19th century Japanese daimyo (lord) of the Satsuma han, or feudal fief. His adoption......
ship’s bell, bell used as early as the 15th century to sound the time on board ship by striking each half hour......
James Short was a British optician and astronomer who produced the first truly parabolic—hence nearly distortionless—mirrors......
shotgun, smoothbore shoulder weapon designed to fire a number of pellets, or shot, that spread in a diverging pattern......
shrapnel, originally a type of antipersonnel projectile named for its inventor, Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842), an......
sidereal time, time as measured by the apparent motion about the Earth of the distant, so-called fixed, stars,......
siemens (S), unit of electrical conductance. In the case of direct current (DC), the conductance in siemens is......
Siemens AG, German energy technology and manufacturing company formed in 1966 through the merger of Siemens & Halske......
sievert (Sv), unit of radiation absorption in the International System of Units (SI). The sievert takes into account......
simple machine, any of several devices with few or no moving parts that are used to modify motion and the magnitude......
Isaac Singer was an American inventor who developed and brought into general use the first practical domestic sewing......
siphon, instrument, usually in the form of a tube bent to form two legs of unequal length, for conveying liquid......
slide rule, a device consisting of graduated scales capable of relative movement, by means of which simple calculations......
slider-crank mechanism, arrangement of mechanical parts designed to convert straight-line motion to rotary motion,......
sling, implement for propelling missiles, one of the first missile weapons used in warfare. It consisted of a small......
small arm, any handheld firearm. Since the introduction of the flintlock musket in the 17th century, military small......
smart bomb, type of precision-guided munition. Like a regular bomb, a smart bomb falls to the target solely by......
Smith & Wesson, American firearms manufacturer based in Springfield, Massachusetts. It is one of the most famous......
Dick Smith is an Australian aviator, filmmaker, explorer, businessman, and publisher, renowned for his aviation......
Snellen chart, chart used to measure visual acuity by determining the level of visual detail that a person can......