File:Bell telephone magazine (1922) (14569598108).jpg

Identifier: belltelephonemag4344amerrich (find matches)
Title: Bell telephone magazine
Year: 1922 (1920s)
Authors: American Telephone and Telegraph Company American Telephone and Telegraph Company. Information Dept
Subjects: Telephone
Publisher: (New York, American Telephone and Telegraph Co., etc.)
Contributing Library: Prelinger Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

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t of storage batteries inthe Bell System amounts to approxi-mately $200,000,000, and new ones arebeing purchased by the telephone com-panies at a rate of about $14,000,000a year. Simply having on hand these physical means of coping with a power failure isnot enough. There are regular, rigorousinspection, te.st and maintenance routineswhich in-sure that, if the emergencyequipment is needed, it will work. Allcentral office batteries are checked andinspected periodically for both voltage andspecific gravity requirements. All standbygenerators are started and run weekly foran hour to insure that they will startand run properly and that maintenanceforces are familiar with their operation.Craftsmen receive mandatory training inoperating the standby equipment. In ad-dition to the tests mentioned, there is atransfer once every month from commer-cial power to emergency power and asemi-annual load test run for an ex-tended period. As a further precaution,all fuel tanks for the engine generators
Text Appearing After Image:
Big, Diesel-driven generators such as thoseshown above charge the batteries and pro-vide AC for ringing, signaling, lights, etc. Massive batteries in Bell Telephone Com-pany central offices provide the DC neededfor transmitting, switching, receiving calls. 35 BLACKOUT are rcK)uirod to be kept at least at 75 percent of capacity, which, in conjunctionwith the battery reserve, will keep centraloffices operating for from two to four days.Standing arrangements with suppliers offuel for emergency delivery insure that, ifnecessary, the central offices can operateon auxiliary power indefinitely. The Proof of The Pudding Fortunately for the millions of trappedand groping citizens in the Northeast,the electric power failure on November9th was not indefinite—although, undersuch conditions, 12 hours can seem aneternity. Shortly before 5:30 p.m. on thatday, 1,380 Bell System locations through-out the affected area switched toemergency power—and nearly 16,000,000telephones continued to work. So

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