Phone panels

[dave1]

I am doing some research into phone panels and just wondering if someone can clear a few things.

1. Night alarms I take this means as it says but the panel concerned was manned 24. Found on all panels I have come across.
2. Main pilot and standby pilot what is this. Only found on certain panels.

Look forward to any suggestions as to what they are for.

[GentlemanJim]

Jan 10, 2014 11:56:59 GMT dave1 said:

I am doing some research into phone panels and just wondering if someone can clear a few things.

1. Night alarms I take this means as it says but the panel concerned was manned 24. Found on all panels I have come across.
2. Main pilot and standby pilot what is this. Only found on certain panels.

Look forward to any suggestions as to what they are for.

I haven't got a clue but I'm sure when Railtechnician next logs on he'll be the man to answer this.

[drico]

Jan 10, 2014 11:56:59 GMT dave1 said:

I am doing some research into phone panels and just wondering if someone can clear a few things.

1. Night alarms I take this means as it says but the panel concerned was manned 24. Found on all panels I have come across.
2. Main pilot and standby pilot what is this. Only found on certain panels.

Look forward to any suggestions as to what they are for.

Do you have photos of the panels, would help if you gave some more details of where these panels were in use, were they in stations, signal boxes, offices etc.

[hellocontrol]

Jan 10, 2014 11:56:59 GMT dave1 said:

I am doing some research into phone panels and just wondering if someone can clear a few things.

1. Night alarms I take this means as it says but the panel concerned was manned 24. Found on all panels I have come across.
2. Main pilot and standby pilot what is this. Only found on certain panels.

Look forward to any suggestions as to what they are for.

If my memory serves me correct the panels you are talking about well some of them used to be the regulators panel and the line controllers? Don't know what they were for though.

[dave1]

Jan 10, 2014 15:42:08 GMT GentlemanJim said:

Jan 10, 2014 11:56:59 GMT dave1 said:

I am doing some research into phone panels and just wondering if someone can clear a few things.

1. Night alarms I take this means as it says but the panel concerned was manned 24. Found on all panels I have come across.
2. Main pilot and standby pilot what is this. Only found on certain panels.

Look forward to any suggestions as to what they are for.

I haven't got a clue but I'm sure when Railtechnician next logs on he'll be the man to answer this.

I hope he can help.

[dave1]

Jan 10, 2014 16:30:19 GMT drico said:

Jan 10, 2014 11:56:59 GMT dave1 said:

I am doing some research into phone panels and just wondering if someone can clear a few things.

1. Night alarms I take this means as it says but the panel concerned was manned 24. Found on all panels I have come across.
2. Main pilot and standby pilot what is this. Only found on certain panels.

Look forward to any suggestions as to what they are for.

Do you have photos of the panels, would help if you gave some more details of where these panels were in use, were they in stations, signal boxes, offices etc.

I don't have any photos but it was the control rooms at Cobourg St and Earls Court.

[railtechnician]

Jan 11, 2014 8:44:12 GMT dave1 said:

Jan 10, 2014 16:30:19 GMT drico said:

Do you have photos of the panels, would help if you gave some more details of where these panels were in use, were they in stations, signal boxes, offices etc.

I don't have any photos but it was the control rooms at Cobourg St and Earls Court.

I'm wondering why you want to know as all that kit is well out of date these days. As it happens I designed and built a couple of the regulators direct line panels at Earls Court as well as the ones in Farringdon signal cabin, the old Central line power control room and several others. At Cobourg Street I moved all the controllers desk equipment into the grey/blue metal desks when GRP desks were deemed to be hazardous. I worked on telephone panels all over the railway, shifted all the TAS panels at Earls Court, installed the shift supply engineers panels, local TAS panels all down the Met/Jub etc, over the years there were many types and varieties to be found but the functions were/are much of a muchness and generally conformed to the accepted standard of the British Post Office.
 
The night alarm is exactly that! It is an industry term for an indication that is acceptable in what are regarded by most people as unsocial hours. Thus during the day the incoming call and fault alarms will be audible noisy bells or buzzers with visual lamps but at night they are more usually lamps only. Some panels would have had a common call lamp that illuminated for any incoming call along with the individual line visual and that lamp would be known as a pilot and operated by the pilot really as incoming calls were 'steered' to it. For emergency circuits such a call pilot would usually be red, otherwise it would be yellow or white. There would also be pilots to indicate the power supply was on and that the ringing supply was working (like the gas pilot on your gas cooker, fire or boiler indicating the gas is available), these would normally be blue or red lamps.

Main pilot would be the main power supply visual and Standby pilot would be the standby power supply visual, generally the main supply was the LEB supply and the standby was the LTE supply from the early 1980s but prior to that the LTE supply was regarded as the main and the LEB the standby. Similarly there was usually a main and a standby ringing generator/converter supply although there might only be one ringing pilot, both supplies having to fail for it to be extinguished.

Pilot lamps tended to be found separate to panels on old installations but part of the panel for more modern work like the Victoria line type station agent/ops room panels that were used all over including the Earls Court District and Picc controllers desks which had not only power supply and ringing supply indications but also sump alarms, low negative shoe indication etc.

[dave1]

Jan 11, 2014 11:34:39 GMT railtechnician said:

Jan 11, 2014 8:44:12 GMT dave1 said:

I don't have any photos but it was the control rooms at Cobourg St and Earls Court.

I'm wondering why you want to know as all that kit is well out of date these days. As it happens I designed and built a couple of the regulators direct line panels at Earls Court as well as the ones in Farringdon signal cabin, the old Central line power control room and several others. At Cobourg Street I moved all the controllers desk equipment into the grey/blue metal desks when GRP desks were deemed to be hazardous. I worked on telephone panels all over the railway, shifted all the TAS panels at Earls Court, installed the shift supply engineers panels, local TAS panels all down the Met/Jub etc, over the years there were many types and varieties to be found but the functions were/are much of a muchness and generally conformed to the accepted standard of the British Post Office.
 
The night alarm is exactly that! It is an industry term for an indication that is acceptable in what are regarded by most people as unsocial hours. Thus during the day the incoming call and fault alarms will be audible noisy bells or buzzers with visual lamps but at night they are more usually lamps only. Some panels would have had a common call lamp that illuminated for any incoming call along with the individual line visual and that lamp would be known as a pilot and operated by the pilot really as incoming calls were 'steered' to it. For emergency circuits such a call pilot would usually be red, otherwise it would be yellow or white. There would also be pilots to indicate the power supply was on and that the ringing supply was working (like the gas pilot on your gas cooker, fire or boiler indicating the gas is available), these would normally be blue or red lamps.

Main pilot would be the main power supply visual and Standby pilot would be the standby power supply visual, generally the main supply was the LEB supply and the standby was the LTE supply from the early 1980s but prior to that the LTE supply was regarded as the main and the LEB the standby. Similarly there was usually a main and a standby ringing generator/converter supply although there might only be one ringing pilot, both supplies having to fail for it to be extinguished.

Pilot lamps tended to be found separate to panels on old installations but part of the panel for more modern work like the Victoria line type station agent/ops room panels that were used all over including the Earls Court District and Picc controllers desks which had not only power supply and ringing supply indications but also sump alarms, low negative shoe indication etc.

It's the older stuff that is of interest to me all this new kit don't do anything for me. Thanks for the information it just surprised me that a desk would have a night alarm but as you say it's what is out there but it's perfect for the night shift makes it a lot quieter so makes it better for concentrating on counting sheep.


Do you have any of the material relating to the panels you built? 

[railtechnician]

I probably still have copies of the circuit diagrams but I have a lousy filing system so laying my hands on them would be a chore at present.