In 1916, a Manhattan chauffeur George Boyden patented a new way to navigate. Installing a phonograph
In 1916, a Manhattan chauffeur George Boyden patented a new way to navigate. Installing a phonograph in the car, which would play audio recordings through a megaphone in front of the steering column. “The talking machine at the proper times will announce the directions whereby the driver will be enabled to follow a predetermined route.”So that the phonograph knows exactly where the car is, it was to be connected to the car’s wheels. It would announce instructions only after the car has traveled certain predetermined distances. “For example, if it is desired to make a record to guide the driver from Chevy Chase to the Treasury Department [in Washington, DC], the record among other things would contain the directions ‘U street turn to the left,’ and knowing the distance between Chevy Chase and the corner of 18th and U, for example, [a record of this distance would be registered with the mechanism] and the desired direction spoken into the machine. From a cylinder prepared in this manner a matrix would be made for the production of permanent records.” Boyden called his invention a “Chart for Vehicles.” -- source link
#history#inventions#invention#american history