0 a device used to control and change the flow of electric current through a machine such as an electric light --
The current supplied to the device, and hence the temperature achieved, is regulated by a rheostat.
The control console can be nothing more than a simple rheostat allowing the current supplied to the model to be varied.
The driver's console on all models housed an array of warning lights, a rheostat and a lambda sensor monitor.
Projectionists could also change the frame rate in the theater by adjusting a rheostat controlling the voltage powering the film-carrying mechanism in the projector.
Most early examples had vertical, thumb-operated plungers with the rheostat in the grip.
Digital slot cars generally use a controller that is trigger operated, though the rheostat housing is replaced by a slim bulge containing the electronics.
In the 1970s, electronic additions to the rheostat controllers became popular, which allowed them to be tuned to the particular car being raced.
The vehicle braking logic checks if these conditions are met and then decides to send the current to the line or to the rheostat.
