Evening star., 1925-06-14
RADIO EYE SERVICE
USEDBY AMATEURS
Drawings, Written Messages
and Checks May Be Sent
by New Device.
BY CARL III. BATMAN.

There seems no limit to the pract1-
cal purpose to which the new radio
eye service as 1t is called by it's
inventor, DR.. C. Francis Jenkins, can
De put. Its possibilities range from
The transmission of written messages
and sketches between amateurs to the
rapid exchange of checks between
bank cashiers, the transmission of de-
tailed plans and specifications and
even the distribution of illustrated
page copy to local publishers by press
syndicateS.
So far only the amateurs are max.
ing any practical use of the Jenkins
apparatus, although commercial in
'erests are investigating its value in
several quarters.
At the request of DR.. Jenkins, the
Department of Commerce has advised
licensed amateurs that they transmit
and receive pictures, drawings,
sketches and maps or combinations
of sketches and messages by radio.
The apparatus offered to amateurs by
Mr.. Jenkins, in d sort of cooperative
arrangement so that they may aid
in developing this new radio art, may
be used in conjunction with amateur
radio transmitting apparatus under
existing licenses and on the amateur
wave lengths only, the department
points out. 1t is understood that the
S0-meter wave length is a Serviceable
one; fortunately it is so low that 1t
will not interfere with broadcast re-
ception In any way.
Secretary X. B. Warner of the
American Radio Relay League is CO.
operating with DR.. Jenkins in his ef-
forts to aid amateurs, as he foresees
q great future in this application OF
radio. Amateurs who are always
carrying on communications with
brother operators in distant sections
of the country, he says, may now
exchange ''hook-ups' by this method.
which has long been one of their IA
vorite pastimes. Today, however,
with the new machines, they can ex
change diagrams in six or seven min
utes instead of waiting about week
for the mails to carry them.
Can Send Check.
If one amateur happens to owe an
other a dollar or two, he could write
out and transmit a check with fac
simile signature payable to the ad-
dressee. Whether a bank would &C
cept this with proper identification is
not yet known, but it seems probable.
This is believed to have great COM
mercial and banking possibilities,
once suitable mediums and means of
Identification are perfected. Even
though a dozen stations picked up
the radio check, it would only be
valid in the hands of the payee.
The amateurs are working out the
details of practical transmission of
radio pictures and manuscripts for
DIR. Jenkins, who is offering them
prizes for original ideas and applica-
tions of this EYE" service. DR.. Jen-
kins believes that great advances
will be made by these embryo radio
engineers.
He foresees other uses of his pic
ture transmitter than just for the
pictorial press. Pages of features,
editorials and cartoons might be
transmitted to a string of papers from
a central distributing source. If this
Is accomplished with success and COM
bined with photolithographic
process a great amount of type
setting, cut-making and many present
publication methods might be elimi-
mated. 1t will be recalled that during
the printers strike Literary Digest
photographed typewritten copy, with
out type. Similarly whole pages or
even papers could be transmitted
throughout the country by radio for
this method of publication simul-
taneously in several cities-headlines,
text, illustration, cartoons and all.
Another application would be trans
mitting sets Of engineering plans and
specifications or corrections to such
plans by radio for bids, or to engineers
located some distance apart. When
time is the essential element this
process would he unique.
Other possibilities are radio letters
In ones own handwriting, legal de-
cisions and official papers, including
executive pardons, which might save
many lives when days would be re-
quired for the transmission of the
original documents. 1t is foreseen,
even, that wills, properly witnessed,
might be sent by this radio process 50
as to meet legal requirements, but
courts would have to pass on the fac
smile documents as received.