Showing 14 items
matching adaptive devices
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Vision Australia
Photograph - Image, John Wilson looks at an adaptive computer
... Adaptive devices... 300 Data Modem attached, on display. John Wilson Adaptive ...John Wilson looks at a computer monitor and keyboard, with a Shuttle 300 Data Modem attached, on display.B/W photograph of John Wilson viewing a computerjohn wilson, adaptive devices -
Vision Australia
Equipment - Object, Mayhew music indicator, c. 1968
... Adaptive devices.... Adaptive devices Music teaching 'The Mayhew Music Indicator ...This device assists blind music teachers to teach music notation to the sighted, by using a braille dial. Created by Percival Mayhew in the 1920-1930's, it consists of a wooden frame with a window, behind which is a sliding list of 63 staff notations and 17 sol-fa tones. To use, the teacher sits behind the indicator (to align the Braille scale of signs) whilst the student sits in front of the window and views the printed version. Black vinyl carry case has been created for transporting device.Wooden board with window for visual display and two double-sided paper cards and black vinyl carry case'The Mayhew Music Indicator' on front.adaptive devices, music teaching -
Orbost & District Historical Society
ratchet brace, first half 20th century
... . It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted.... It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted ...This carpenter's clamp would have been used in confined spaces where a full turn of the brace cannot be achieved. It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted to fit into a notch of a ratchet wheel to impart forward motion or prevent backward motion. This item would have been used on a rural property in constructing or maintaining infrastructure.This item is an example of a woodworking tool used in the first half of the 20th century prior to the widespread use of power tools.A metal ratchet brace with a wooden handle grip. It has a hinged mechanism device which fits into the notches of the ratchet wheel - a pawl.woodwork tools brace-ratchet -
Orbost & District Historical Society
brace and bit, first half 20th century
... . It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted.... It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted ...This carpenter's clamp would have been used in confined spaces where a full turn of the brace cannot be achieved. It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted to fit into a notch of a ratchet wheel to impart forward motion or prevent backward motion. This item would have been used on a rural property in constructing or maintaining infrastructure.This item is an example of a woodworking tool used in the first half of the 20th century prior to the widespread use of power tools.A metal ratchet brace with a wooden handle grip. It has a hinged mechanism device which fits into the notches of the ratchet wheel - a pawl. The drill bit is jammed and the chuck is rusted.woodworking tool brace-and-bit carpentry -
Orbost & District Historical Society
ratchet brace, first half 20th century
... . It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted.... It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted ...This carpenter's clamp would have been used in confined spaces where a full turn of the brace cannot be achieved. It is fitted with a pawl mechanism - a hinged or pivoted device adapted to fit into a notch of a ratchet wheel to impart forward motion or prevent backward motion. This item would have been used on a rural property in constructing or maintaining infrastructure. This item is an example of a woodworking tool used in the first half of the 20th century prior to the widespread use of power tools. A metal ratchet brace with a wooden handle grip. It has a hinged mechanism device which fits into the notches of the ratchet wheel - a pawl -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Functional object - Thermometer, Late 19th - early 20th century
The Thermoscope The thermometer dates back to the early 1600s, with Galileo’s invention of the “thermoscope.” Galileo’s device could determine whether temperature was rising or falling, but was not able to detect the actual scale of the temperature. In 1612, Italian inventor and physician Sanctorius was the first to put a numerical scale on the thermoscope. His product was also designed for taking temperature from a patient’s mouth. However, neither Galileo’s nor Sanctorius’ thermoscopes were very accurate. Standardized Scales In 1709, Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit invented his first thermometer using alcohol. He later introduced the mercury thermometer in 1714, which was more accurate and predictable. The Fahrenheit temperature scale was standardized in 1724 with a freezing point of 32 degrees and a boiling point of 212 degrees. Fahrenheit’s mercury thermometer is recognized as the first modern thermometer with a standardized scale. The Celsius scale was invented in 1742 by Anders Celsius, with a freezing point of 0 degrees and a boiling point of 100 degrees. This scale was accepted into the international conference on weights and measurements in 1948. The Kelvin Scale, measuring extreme temperatures, was developed by Lord Kelvin in 1848. Registering Thermometers Early versions of the thermometer were not able to hold the temperature after they were moved. You can imagine how this made it hard for doctors to correctly read a patient’s temperature. The first thermometer that could register and hold onto temperature was built by James Six in 1782. Today, it is known as Six’s thermometer. Since then, the mercury thermometer was adapted to read a patients temperature after leaving the body. Registering thermometers are still used today and are reset by shaking down the mercury to the bottom of the tube. The Modern Devices Modern Day Thermometers This brings us to the first practical clinical thermometer, which was invented in 1867 by Sir Thomas Allbutt. The device was portable, about 6 inches long and was capable of recording a patient’s temperature in 5 minutes. Now, there are a few options for clinical and home use. Liquid filled thermometers have been adapted based on the designs of inventors like Fahrenheight and Six are still used today. Digital thermometers, like the Omron Compact Digital Thermometer, are capable of finding a temperature and producing an electronic number within a minute of use. Digital ear thermometers also produce a quick and accurate temperature. Dr. Jacob Fraden invented an infared thermometer called the Thermoscan Human Ear Thermometer in 1984. These thermometers use an infared light to scan the heat radiation in a patient’s ear or forehead. The thermometer, like many medical devices, has made strides in efficiency and accuracy. As medical technology continues to advance, businesses in the medical device industry must be prepared to move with it. This thermometer was donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village by the family of Doctor William Roy Angus, Surgeon and Oculist. It is part of the “W.R. Angus Collection” that includes historical medical equipment, surgical instruments, and material once belonging to Dr. Edward Ryan and Dr. Thomas Francis Ryan, (both of Nhill, Victoria) as well as Dr. Angus’ own belongings. The Collection’s history spans the medical practices of the two Doctors Ryan, from 1885-1926 plus that of Dr. Angus, up until 1969. ABOUT THE “W.R.ANGUS COLLECTION” Doctor William Roy Angus M.B., B.S., Adel., 1923, F.R.C.S. Edin.,1928 (also known as Dr. Roy Angus) was born in Murrumbeena, Victoria in 1901 and lived until 1970. He qualified as a doctor in 1923 at the University of Adelaide, was Resident Medical Officer at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 1924 and for a period was house surgeon to Sir (then Mr.) Henry Simpson Newland. Dr. Angus was briefly an Assistant to Dr. Riddell of Kapunda, then commenced private practice at Curramulka, Yorke Peninsula, SA, where he was a physician, surgeon, and chemist. In 1926, he was appointed as a new Medical Assistant to Dr. Thomas Francis Ryan (T.F. Ryan, or Tom), in Nhill, Victoria, where his experiences included radiology and pharmacy. In 1927 he was Acting House Surgeon in Dr. Tom Ryan’s absence. Dr. Angus had become engaged to Gladys Forsyth and they decided he would take time to further his studies overseas in the UK in 1927. He studied at London University College Hospital and at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and in 1928, was awarded FRCS (Fellow from the Royal College of Surgeons), Edinburgh. He worked his passage back to Australia as a Ship’s Surgeon on the Australian Commonwealth Line’s SS Largs Bay. Dr. Angus married Gladys in 1929, in Ballarat. (They went on to have one son (Graham 1932, born in SA) and two daughters (Helen (died 12/07/1996) and Berenice (Berry), both born at Mira, Nhill ) Dr. Angus was a ‘flying doctor’ for the A.I.M. (Australian Inland Ministry) Aerial Medical Service in 1928. The organisation began in South Australia through the Presbyterian Church that year, with its first station being in the remote town of Oodnadatta, where Dr. Angus was stationed. He was locum tenens there on North-South Railway at 21 Mile Camp. He took up this ‘flying doctor’ position in response to a call from Dr. John Flynn; the organisation was later known as the Flying Doctor Service, then the Royal Flying Doctor Service. A lot of his work during this time involved dental surgery also. Between 1928-1932 he was a surgeon at the Curramulka Hospital, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia. In 1933 Dr. Angus returned to Nhill where he’d previously worked as Medical Assistant and purchased a share of the Nelson Street practice and Mira hospital from Dr. Les Middleton one of the Middleton Brothers, the current owners of what was once Dr. Tom Ryan’s practice. Dr. L Middleton was House Surgeon at the Nhill Hospital from 1926-1933 when he resigned. [Dr. Tom Ryan’s practice had originally belonged to his older brother Dr. Edward Ryan, who came to Nhill in 1885. Dr. Edward saw patients in his rooms, firstly in Victoria Street and in 1886 in Nelson Street, until 1901. The Nelson Street practice also had a 2-bed ward, called Mira Private Hospital ). Dr. Edward Ryan was House Surgeon at the Nhill Hospital from 1884-1902. He also had occasions where he successfully performed veterinary surgery for the local farmers too. Dr. Tom Ryan then purchased the practice from his brother in 1901. Both Dr. Edward and Dr. Tom Ryan work as surgeons including in eye surgery. Dr. Tom Ryan performed many of his operations in the Mira private hospital on his premises. He too was House Surgeon at the Nhill Hospital from 1902-1926. Dr. Tom Ryan had one of the only two pieces of radiology equipment in Victoria during his practicing years – The Royal Melbourne Hospital had the other one. Over the years Dr. Tom Ryan gradually set up what was effectively a training school for country general-practitioner-surgeons. Each patient was carefully examined, including using the X-ray machine, and any surgery was discussed and planned with Dr. Ryan’s assistants several days in advance. Dr. Angus gained experience in using the X-ray machine there during his time as assistant to Dr. Ryan. Dr. Tom Ryan moved from Nhill in 1926. He became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in 1927, soon after its formation, a rare accolade for a doctor outside any of the major cities. He remained a bachelor and died suddenly on 7th Dec 1955, aged 91, at his home in Ararat. Scholarships and prizes are still awarded to medical students in the honour of Dr. T.F. Ryan and his father, Dr. Michael Ryan, and brother, John Patrick Ryan. ] When Dr. Angus bought into the Nelson Street premises in Nhill he was also appointed as the Nhill Hospital’s Honorary House Surgeon from 1933-1938. His practitioner’s plate from his Nhill surgery states “HOURS Daily, except Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturday afternoons, 9-10 am, 2-4 pm, 7-8 pm. Sundays by appointment”. This plate is now mounted on the doorway to the Port Medical Office at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village, Warrnambool. Dr. Edward Ryan and Dr. Tom Ryan had an extensive collection of historical medical equipment and materials spanning 1884-1926 and when Dr. Angus took up practice in their old premises he obtained this collection, a large part of which is now on display at the Port Medical Office at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village in Warrnambool. During his time in Nhill Dr. Angus was involved in the merging of the Mira Hospital and Nhill Public Hospital into one public hospital and the property titles were passed on to Nhill Hospital in 1939. In 1939 Dr Angus and his family moved to Warrnambool where he purchased “Birchwood,” the 1852 home and medical practice of Dr. John Hunter Henderson, at 214 Koroit Street. (This property was sold in1965 to the State Government and is now the site of the Warrnambool Police Station. ). The Angus family was able to afford gardeners, cooks, and maids; their home was a popular place for visiting dignitaries to stay whilst visiting Warrnambool. Dr. Angus had his own silkworm farm at home in a Mulberry tree. His young daughter used his centrifuge for spinning the silk. Dr. Angus was appointed on a part-time basis as Port Medical Officer (Health Officer) in Warrnambool and held this position until the 1940’s when the government no longer required the service of a Port Medical Officer in Warrnambool; he was thus Warrnambool’s last serving Port Medical Officer. (The duties of a Port Medical Officer were outlined by the Colonial Secretary on 21st June 1839 under the terms of the Quarantine Act. Masters of immigrant ships arriving in port reported incidents of diseases, illness, and death and the Port Medical Officer made a decision on whether the ship required Quarantine and for how long, in this way preventing contagious illness from spreading from new immigrants to the residents already in the colony.) Dr. Angus was a member of the Australian Medical Association, for 35 years and a surgeon at the Warrnambool Base Hospital from 1939-1942, He served as a Surgeon Captain during WWII1942-45, in Ballarat, Victoria, and in Bonegilla, N.S.W., completing his service just before the end of the war due to suffering from a heart attack. During his convalescence, he carved an intricate and ‘most artistic’ chess set from the material that dentures were made from. He then studied ophthalmology at the Royal Melbourne Eye and Ear Hospital and created cosmetically superior artificial eyes by pioneering using the intrascleral cartilage. Angus received accolades from the Ophthalmological Society of Australasia for this work. He returned to Warrnambool to commence practice as an ophthalmologist, pioneering artificial eye improvements. He was Honorary Consultant Ophthalmologist at Warrnambool Base Hospital for 31 years. He made monthly visits to Portland as a visiting surgeon, to perform eye surgery. He represented the Victorian South-West subdivision of the Australian Medical Association as its secretary between 1949 and 1956 and as chairman from 1956 to 1958. In 1968 Dr. Angus was elected a member of Spain’s Barraquer Institute of Barcelona after his research work in Intrasclearal cartilage grafting, becoming one of the few Australian ophthalmologists to receive this honour, and in the following year presented his final paper on Living Intrasclearal Cartilage Implants at the Inaugural Meeting of the Australian College of Ophthalmologists in Melbourne In his personal life, Dr. Angus was a Presbyterian and treated Sunday as a Sabbath, a day of rest. He would visit 3 or 4 country patients on a Sunday, taking his children along ‘for the ride’ and to visit with him. Sunday evenings he would play the pianola and sing Scottish songs to his family. One of Dr. Angus’ patients was Margaret MacKenzie, author of a book on local shipwrecks that she’d seen as an eyewitness from the late 1880s in Peterborough, Victoria. In the early 1950’s Dr. Angus, painted a picture of a shipwreck for the cover jacket of Margaret’s book, Shipwrecks, and More Shipwrecks. She was blind in later life and her daughter wrote the actual book for her. Dr. Angus and his wife Gladys were very involved in Warrnambool’s society with a strong interest in civic affairs. Their interests included organisations such as the Red Cross, Rostrum, Warrnambool and District Historical Society (founding members), Wine and Food Society, Steering Committee for Tertiary Education in Warrnambool, Local National Trust, Good Neighbour Council, Housing Commission Advisory Board, United Services Institute, Legion of Ex-Servicemen, Olympic Pool Committee, Food for Britain Organisation, Warrnambool Hospital, Anti-Cancer Council, Boys’ Club, Charitable Council, National Fitness Council, and Air Raid Precautions Group. He was also a member of the Steam Preservation Society and derived much pleasure from a steam traction engine on his farm. He had an interest in people and the community He and his wife Gladys were both involved in the creation of Flagstaff Hill, including the layout of the gardens. After his death (28th March 1970) his family requested his practitioner’s plate, medical instruments, and some personal belongings be displayed in the Port Medical Office surgery at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village, and be called the “W. R. Angus Collection”. The W.R. Angus Collection is significant for still being located at the site it is connected with, Doctor Angus being the last Port Medical Officer in Warrnambool. The collection of medical instruments and other equipment is culturally significant, being an historical example of medicine from late 19th to mid-20th century. Dr Angus assisted Dr Tom Ryan, a pioneer in the use of X-rays and in ocular surgery. Long cylindrical glass thermometer with mercury bulb, inside a light weight wooden cylinder with top, (W.R. Angus Collection) Temperature scale in fahrenheit. flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, thermometer, dr w r angus, medical equipment, surgical instrument, dr ryan, ophthalmology, s.s. largs bay, warrnambool base hospital, nhill base hospital, flying doctor, medical history, medical treatment, mira hospital, medical education, medical text book -
Greensborough Historical Society
Article, Hutchinson Caravan Dolly, 24/09/1954
The Hutchinson Caravan Dolly was a device for stopping the rear of a towing vehicle from being drawn down by the weight of the caravan and having a detrimental effect on the steering of the vehicle and vision of the driver.The Hutchinson Caravan Dolly was adapted from a towing dolly used for cars with damaged wheels and manufactured in Greensborough in the 1950's and 1960's. A 6 page document featuring many colour photographs and reproductions of period advertising on the Hutchinson Caravan Dolly. Nilhutchinson caravan dolly, 165 para rd, 175 henry st, towing dollies -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Functional object - Barrel Spigot, H Gage, Early 20th century
Ancient Greek and Roman first used spigots in their bathhouses for obtaining water from aqueducts, routing it into pipes and buildings, and finally into their tubs or baths. The subject spigot or tap in Flagstaff collection was used in wine, beer, or spirits barrels to dispense the liquid contained within. A spigot definition is a device that controls the flow of liquid from a container. As mentioned earlier the Greeks and Romans created theirs for use in plumbing water later spigots were adapted to use in barrels or casks. An item still in use today in wine and beer barrels to dispense liquid and although spigots today are made from differing materials other than wood their function has not changed over the centuries.Wooden barrel spigotMarked "H Gage Maker Melbourne" on the side & 2B marked in black flagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, barrel spigot, cask tap, h gage melbourne, coopering accessories -
The Ed Muirhead Physics Museum
Meldometer, Joly
Joly Meldometer The Joly meldometer was created to determine the melting point of minerals. W.E. Wilson, an astronomer and author, stated in 1900 that the Joly meldometer consisted of a ‘a strip of platinum on which minute fragments of any mineral can be placed, while any alteration in its length can be determined by means of a micrometer screw which touches a lever connected with one end of the strip. The strip can be heated by an electric current, and is calibrated by observing the micrometer readings corresponding to the temperatures at which some substances of known melting-points melt’i . One reason why the Joly meldometer was seen as a successful addition to science was the small amount of any substance that it required for testing. Only a minute sample was needed for the instrument to work and so a tiny part could be taken from a delicate item without destroying itii . The instrument was originally manufactured by the Irish company Yeates & Son of Dublin. The Yeates family business was established in the early 1790’s and is thought to have operated until approximately 1922iii . Their business slogan was recorded as ‘Instrument makers to the University’, a slogan which proudly exhibited their relationship with Trinity College, Dublin. The company was located directly opposite Trinity College, the place where the Joly meldometer was created. Working in such close proximity must have assisted this business relationship. The inventor of this meldometer was Irishman John Joly. Joly was born in 1857 at the Church of Ireland Rectory, Hollywood House. His education led him to Trinity College Dublin where, by 1891, he had obtained a Bachelor of Engineering degree as well as a Doctorate of Science. The entirety of his working life appears to have taken place at Trinity College although he is known to have travelled in order to consult with other scientists such as the world renowned Sir Ernest Rutherford. The Joly meldometer was used for a variety of different purposes, with scientists often adapting the instrument to suit their own needs. For instance, the previously mentioned astronomer W.E. Wilson adapted the meldometer to assist him in measuring the radiation of the suniv . Joly used his device in an attempt to ascertain the age of the earth. In 1913, along with Sir Rutherford, Joly came to the conclusion that the earth was approximately 400 million years old. They did this by analysing the decay of radioactivity in minerals. According to our present knowledge of the earth this was a much more accurate date than the dates Joly had previously derived. He had first thought that the earth was 97 million years old due to the volume of sodium in the oceans. Joly’s second analysis of the topic had resulted in the age of 80 million years. This figure was based on the accumulation of sediment. Apart from designing his meldometer, Joly is also remembered for his work with colour photography. In 1894 Joly discovered a method for creating colour photographs from a single platev . He also studied the use of radiation as a treatment for cancer and persuaded the Royal Dublin Society to establish the Radium Institute to assist hospitals. In 1933 Joly passed away at the age of seventy-six. Jacqueline Eager Student Projects Placement, Cultural Collections 2005 iMollan, Charles, Irish National Inventory of Scientific Instruments, Samton Limited, 1995, p. 302. iiJoly, John, 'On the determination of the melting points of minerals, Part 1. Uses of the meldometer', Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, Vol. 2., 1891. iiiInstitute for Learning Technologies, "Stephan Mitchell Yeates' http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/projects/bluetelephone/html/yeates.html, accessed on 04.10.2005 ivMollan, Charles, Irish National Inventory of Historic Scientific Instruments, op cit. vMollan, Charles, The Mind and the Hand: Instruments of Science 1685-1932, Samton Limited, Dublin, 1995, p. 34.The following from #2975 in UDE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN ENGINEERING list in the “Irish National Inventory of Historical Scientific Instruments” by Charles Mellon (P/C in file for Cat no 272. “....meldometer as an instrument ‘for the purpose of finding the melting-points of minerals, hence its name. As used by him (Joly), it consists of a strip of platinum,on which minute fragments of any mineral can be placed, while any alteration in its length can be determined by means of a micrometer screw which touches a lever connected with one end of the strip. The strip can be heated by an electric current, and is calibrated by observing the micrometer readings corresponding to the temperatures at which some substances of known melting-points melt’.” Ref. : J. Joly, Proc. Roy. Irish Acad. 3rd series vol 2 (1891),38-64. -
The Ed Muirhead Physics Museum
Meldometer, Joly
The Joly meldometer was created to determine the melting point of minerals. W.E. Wilson, an astronomer and author, stated in 1900 that the Joly meldometer consisted of a ‘a strip of platinum on which minute fragments of any mineral can be placed, while any alteration in its length can be determined by means of a micrometer screw which touches a lever connected with one end of the strip. The strip can be heated by an electric current, and is calibrated by observing the micrometer readings corresponding to the temperatures at which some substances of known melting-points melt’i . One reason why the Joly meldometer was seen as a successful addition to science was the small amount of any substance that it required for testing. Only a minute sample was needed for the instrument to work and so a tiny part could be taken from a delicate item without destroying itii . The instrument was originally manufactured by the Irish company Yeates & Son of Dublin. The Yeates family business was established in the early 1790’s and is thought to have operated until approximately 1922iii . Their business slogan was recorded as ‘Instrument makers to the University’, a slogan which proudly exhibited their relationship with Trinity College, Dublin. The company was located directly opposite Trinity College, the place where the Joly meldometer was created. Working in such close proximity must have assisted this business relationship. The inventor of this meldometer was Irishman John Joly. Joly was born in 1857 at the Church of Ireland Rectory, Hollywood House. His education led him to Trinity College Dublin where, by 1891, he had obtained a Bachelor of Engineering degree as well as a Doctorate of Science. The entirety of his working life appears to have taken place at Trinity College although he is known to have travelled in order to consult with other scientists such as the world renowned Sir Ernest Rutherford. The Joly meldometer was used for a variety of different purposes, with scientists often adapting the instrument to suit their own needs. For instance, the previously mentioned astronomer W.E. Wilson adapted the meldometer to assist him in measuring the radiation of the suniv . Joly used his device in an attempt to ascertain the age of the earth. In 1913, along with Sir Rutherford, Joly came to the conclusion that the earth was approximately 400 million years old. They did this by analysing the decay of radioactivity in minerals. According to our present knowledge of the earth this was a much more accurate date than the dates Joly had previously derived. He had first thought that the earth was 97 million years old due to the volume of sodium in the oceans. Joly’s second analysis of the topic had resulted in the age of 80 million years. This figure was based on the accumulation of sediment. Apart from designing his meldometer, Joly is also remembered for his work with colour photography. In 1894 Joly discovered a method for creating colour photographs from a single platev . He also studied the use of radiation as a treatment for cancer and persuaded the Royal Dublin Society to establish the Radium Institute to assist hospitals. In 1933 Joly passed away at the age of seventy-six. -
Vision Australia
Photograph - Image, John Cook with adaptive equipment
... clients using assistive devices. John Cook with adaptive equipment ...Photograph of John Cook with two clients, one holding a large button telephone and the other writing on a notepad using an overhead light. One black and white photograph has been altered to create a portrait of John Cook.B/W photographs, and b/w and col. transparencies of John Cook and two clients using assistive devices. association for the blind, john cook -
Vision Australia
Pamphlet - Text, Apparatus and Games for the Blind - overseas price list January 1972, 1972
As Australia had not yet commenced production of adaptive items for the low vision and blindness community, many were purchased directly from the Royal National Institute for the Blind in London. This price list shows the variety of products on offer and the costs involved for each. Bankers cheques or money orders were required to send payment to the UK, and there was a range of games, tools and living aids as well as Braille equipment on offer.12 page booklet of items and prices assistive devices, royal national institute for the blind -
Vision Australia
Functional object - Object, Wooden ruler
A wooden ruler with raised metal dots marking the spacings on the ruler. Made prior to 1971, when metric measurements were introduced, this 18-inch ruler is a demonstration of how easily a simple visual measuring tool could be adapted for varying degrees of sight by the use of tactile markings. 1 wooden ruler with metal pins as measurement pointsassistive devices, royal national institute for the blind -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Domestic object - Corkscrew, 1930s or after
The design of the corkscrew may have been derived from the gun worm, which was a device from at least the early 1630s, used by men to remove unspent charges from a musket's barrel in a similar fashion. The corkscrew is possibly an English invention, due to the tradition of beer and cider, and the 'Treatise on Cider' by John Worlidge in 1676 describes "binning of tightly corked cider bottles on their sides", although the earliest reference to a corkscrew is, "steel worm used for the drawing of Corks out of Bottles" from 1681. In 1795, the first corkscrew patent was granted to the Reverend Samuel Henshall, in England. The clergyman affixed a simple disc, now known as the Henshall Button, between the worm and the shank. The disc prevents the worm from going too deep into the cork, forces the cork to turn with the turning of the crosspiece, and thus breaks the adhesion between the cork and the neck of the bottle. The disc is designed and manufactured slightly concave on the underside, which compresses the top of the cork and helps keep it from breaking apart. The winged corkscrew, sometimes called a cork extractor, butterfly corkscrew, owl corkscrew, Indian corkscrew, or angel corkscrew, has two levers, one on either side of the worm. As the worm is twisted into the cork, the levers are raised. Pushing down the levers draws the cork from the bottle in one smooth motion. The most common design has a rack and pinion connecting the levers to the body. The head of the central shaft is frequently modified to form a bottle opener, or foil cutter, increasing the utility of the device. Corkscrews of this design are particularly popular in household use. In 1880, William Burton Baker was issued British Patent No. 2950 for his double lever corkscrew, with both levers sliding onto the upper end of the shank. The first American patent was in 1930 granted to the Italian Domenico Rosati who emigrated to Chicago, Illinois, to work as bartender before prohibition. Rosati's design had an exposed rack and pinion mechanism. Such design was adapted by other brands as the wine-market grew in popularity. The winged owl version, with two side-plates covering the rack and pinion mechanism, was first designed and manufactured in 1932 by the Spanish industrial designer David Olañeta for his brand BOJ and was later adopted by others, such as the 1936 US Patent No. 98,968 by Richard Smythe marked HOOTCH-OWL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CorkscrewThis object is significant as an example of an item in common use in the 19th and early 20th centuries, and that was developed further in the 1930s.Winged corkscrew with a T-shaped wooden handle, metal spring and worm-wheel screw section.None.flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, warrnambool, maritime museum, maritime village, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, corkscrew, beverages, kitchen equipment, bottle opener