A.T.E. PROTEA | |||||||
It was fitted with a Electromagnetic microphone. Introduced in 1968. Colours: Black, ivory, two-tone grey, red, yellow, green. Users: South
African Post Office. An article
from the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers South Africa
produces a radically new telephone The South African Post Office introduced during December an entirely new telephone, known as the Protea. Both in circuitry and appearance it represents a radical departure. It is undoubtedly the most advanced telephone in the world today, and the first to be brought into general use by any administration in which the carbon microphone is replaced by an electromagnetic microphone. The basic principles of the telephone were formulated by the Post Office laboratory, where a strong team of engineers and technicians developed the original circuits and, in close collaboration with the manufacturer, produced a prototype instrument for field trials. After careful study of the results the final instrument was made. The Protea telephone is made only in South Africa and its advantages may be summarized as follows:-
Tone calling was not introduced as a novelty. The electrical-to-acoustic power conversion efficiency is higher than for a magneto bell and its carrying power is greater. Since the necessary components for tone signalling were already present in the amplifier, their use in an oscillatory circuit represents a further economy by eliminating the bell coils and gongs. Another saving arises from the use of the microphone as the tone transducer to signal incoming calls. Tone calling also influenced the shape of the case, which acts as an acoustic resonator to increase the sound output from the transducer. The output is sufficiently high to justify the provision of a rear-mounted switch which may be set to soft, medium or loud. Other innovations include a vulcanized rubber mat on the base which holds the telephone firmly in position in spite of its smallness, a coiled handset cord and facilities for a built-in dialling lock. The Protea telephone, a
completely South African advance, is available in ivory, red, black, green,
two-tone grey and two-tone brown
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Last revised: April 11, 2022FM2 |