ELECTRIC LIGHTHOUSES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20330, 11 February 1928, Page 7

ELECTRIC LIGHTHOUSES.

A wonderful new invention which, even at the moment, is revolutionising all systems of lighthouse signalling, has been tried out with great success by Trinity House, the governing body of Britain’s lighthouses and lightships. Th e invention was brought out by the General Electric Company, Ltd., and consists of an electric “ robot ” showing almost human intelligence in the way in which it automatically controls the working of the flashing lights, and in the manner in which it meets a sudden emergency. Not the least marvellous part of the invention are the huge electric lamps, the largest ever made, which are approximately 100 times more powerful than the ordinary house electric lamp. How great an achievement was the discovery of this method of making lamps of this size may b e realised by the fact that it took over a year’s research work at the Osram lamp works at Hammersmith to evolve the perfect lamp, the final production of which represents the highest peak of design and skill yet attained in electric illumination. During the last year several of Britain’s most important lighthouses have been converted from the old to the new system, and it is only a matter of a few years now, or even less, before the old-fashioned lighthouse with its lonely keeper will have entirely disappeared. Among those already converted are the Pendeen, Lizard. South Foreland, Hartland, Burnham, and Skerries lighthouses, all of which are working without human supervision, and are giving that high degree of efficiency of which electrical apparatus only is capable. For the purpose of eliminating any possible failure the marvellous ingenious electric mechanism was designed to ensure that, should any accident occur, the fault is immediately remedied with a speed and precision that enable the lighthouse to send out uninterrupted its warning signals. It is, in fact, practically impossible for the lighthouse to cease functioning, ther e being less danger of this happening than if tlw lighthouse were attended by a human keeper.