Inside A Vintage Black Box Recorder

If you are one of those who appreciates interesting old technology, this video should be right up your alley. I always actually wondered how black box recorders worked before the digital age (indeed, I still wonder how many survive crashes), and this great explanation from the Engineer Guy makes a lot of sense.

The way it records is reminiscent of a seismograph, as it is direct analog sensor to analog medium, via a single arm for amplitude and steady rate of advance. I only wish the video could have shown what the data looks like on the Inconel magazine — and how it’s read off.

[via Make]