A NEW COUNTRY SERVICE

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22466, 29 July 1938, Page 16

A NEW COUNTRY SERVICE

MOBILE CONSULTING ROOM SYDNEY OPTICAL FIRM'S PLAN A Sydney firm of opticians has had built an extremely interesting vehicle, said to be the first of its kind in the World. , t- u On a standard long wheel-base bus chassis is mounted a special body which holds a completely-equipped consulting room. The vehicle will travel at regular intervals over a set route in the west and north-west, visiting about G5 towns every three months. If the plan is successful, a similar vehicle will be put into service to cover other parts of the state. The body and its fittings have been ingeniously designed. There is only one wide door, which is on the near side and opens into a small waitingroom, equipped with settees and racks for periodicals. In the bulkhead separating this compartment from the driving compartment, there is another door, providing the only means of access to the controls. Very wide windows are fitted alongside the driver, however, so that in the event of an accident he can easily extricate himself. In the other, partition of the wait-ing-room, another door leads into the consulting-room. This is easily the most interesting part of the vehicle, and certain problems which have arisen owing to the confined space have been cleverly overcome. One of the difficulties which had to be faced was that of arranging the usual eye-testing letter charts at the proper distance from the patient. It was overcome by printing the charts with the letters reversed on frosted glass illuminated from behind, and reflecting into a large mirror on the rear wall. To the left of the mirror is a large cabinet which contains specially-fitted cases for some of the equipment, a radio set, and space for the driver's personal effects. On the other side is another cabinet with table top and drawers containing stocks of spectacle frames, mailing boxes, and other small, necessary items. On the same side as the radio cabinet is a long settee with bedding and cooking utensils stowed beneath it, so that the driver can camp very comfortably for the night in the vehicle if necessary. On the other side is a swivelled seat, which can be adjusted to help the travelling optician use certain of the special testing equipment. Other features are a ship's chronometer, chosen for its ability to stand up to vibration, a thermometer, an electric fan, and a swivelled, shaded Kach light on the whole vehicle, and there are many, is equipped with its own fuse, clearly marked in a special fuse box; a spare battery is carried, and the vehicle is fitted with a transformer so that hotel current may be tapped in a country town, to save the vehicle's batteries'. The whole outfit has been constructed almost regardless of expense. The equipment is exactly the same as that used in the city rooms of its owners. The experiment of running it in the country will be watched with interest, because it suggests the possibility of bringing other special services to people in sparsely-settled country areas. _____

CHASSIS WITH BODY Increased attention is being paid overseas to the principle of building the motor-car body in one unit with the chassis, and the opinion has been expressed freely that this method of construction will be adopted within the near future by the manufacturers of mass produced cars. The principle has a great many points to recommend it, though its adoption would certainly disorganise colonial manufacturing industries. The most important features of the principle are that it allows an extremely rigid construction to be built which yet is of fairly light weight. A supplementary advantage is that at one stroke it eliminates a prolific source of squeaks and rattles, the joint between body and chassis. It is, too, the logical method of construction. A boat has a hull in a single unit with all the necessary "auxiliaries attached to it. In the motorcar the engine, springs, and axles would be attached in the appropriate places to one frame. The simplification of design which would result is greatly to be desired, and it is almost certain that important developments will be witnessed in the near future. Already one fairly expensive American car uses it, and there are quite a number of European cars built in this fashion. FOR NEW DRIVERS There is a simple little thing connected with the driving of a car which new owners often fail to realise, until a few dented mudguards have driven the lesson home. This is that the rear wheels do not follow the front ones when a car is being cornered, but take an inside path across that of the front wheels. This means that if the car is cut across the bows of another vehicle, there is an excellent chance of dragging the rear near side mudguard across the offside front guard of that other car. Most people.are rather careful in this respect when both cars are moving, but the greatest danger arises when the new owner is attempting to park his car in front of a stationary vehicle. The principle should be remembered also, however, when taking a fairly abrupt curve. If cut too fine with the near side front wheel, the rear one is almost certain to hit the kerb fairly hard and a badly bruised tyre may be the result.