SYSTEM OVERVIEW

IE Telephone Exchange Renewal Scheme

The telephone exchange (PABX) upgrade programme was undertaken, by Irish Rail, to replace existing CTC Hubs at Heuston, Connolly and various autonomous locations. As part of that modernisation programme it was important that line-side telephones were provided with attributes that fulfilled the requirements of the renewal specification. GAI-Tronics were chosen to supply the '1st phase' in September 2000.

SYSTEM FUNCTIONALITY

The requirement from Irish Rail was to procure replacement trackside emergency telephones for installation across their network and utilise the existing copper transmission system.

The new telephones provide Self Monitoring and Reporting features coupled with resistance to weather and vandalism. All telephones are line powered and operate on a single copper pair. Each telephone provides a CB 'hotline' connection to the appropriate signal-box and, when required, can be contacted remotely from the Telephone Management System (TMS) connected via a modem to an individual extension number.

When contacted, each telephone can distinguish between an incoming voice call and a management call from the central office. In addition, the management call does not ring the telephone locally and therefore provides a 'silent' interrogation facility. Fault monitoring is provided to highlight any critical and non-critical failures and report automatically should they occur i.e. handset integrity loop broken as a result of vandalism or handset left off-hook.

The high impact GRP Commander telephone, as chosen by Irish Rail is mounted inside a purpose built, lockable, steel cabinet and is accessed using a standard issue key.

S.M.A.R.T. SYSTEM DIAGRAM



Illustration shows typical SMART System Schematic