Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-05-06

A. n. Rudd, Engineer, 10 installing
New signals That Are Visible A''ke
In Fog and sunlleht-Rea
and College Men
BY GEORGE NOx MCCAIN
II. RUDD is chief signal engineer q

lie lS tne originator OF an lQed tnat WI
revolutionize the entire signal system o.
the road ultimately of every large railroad
In the country.
lie is an iconoclast.
His purpose is to wipe out Of existence the
red, green and yellow lights that from timf
immemorial, so Tar as railroading goes, nave
dotted freight yards and main traffic lines
to indicate switches, danger points and
speed.
Novelists like Cy. warman, fctionists. Of
the iron road, have dwelt in loving descrip. .
tion OF the myriad jeweled lights that marked
the pathway Of the locomotive.
Under the Rudd system all these are to
vanish.
No longer will train crews answer curious
passengers during mysterious halts en- route
Meaning that the red signal of danger
barred their progress.
A NEWER, simpler and safer signal sys.
"A TEN is being installed on the Pennsyl.
vania.
Six divisions of the central region have
already been partially equipped with It.
The new signals are called position
lights"
The rigid arms and faring colors Of the
senaphores above the signal bridges that
lift and drop rs trains come and 60 are
being discarded.
Their day is nearly done.
In their stead there are being installed
position light" signals. Clusters Of clear
white electric bulbs.
They represent slmplifcation together
with the element of safety:
A remarkable feature of this innovation
is that the new Rudd signals are replacing
1t Is unnecessary to dismantle the old en-.
tirey before the new can be installed.
The outstanding feature of the new signal
system is that the white light penetrates
fog.
In railroad operation, as in ocean trans.
port, the overpowering dread is fog.
Some of the greatest tragedies in the his
tory OF railroading have been due to this
cause.
A MOTHER remarkable feature Is that the
as well as BY night.
The high signalS those set above the
tracks. OF the Rudd system have hooded
lights"
Hoods mask the lights from view except
straight down the. track.
They exclude the sunlight by day and
penetrate the darkness by night
To break up the suns rays coming from
low angle n glass cone projects four or
five inches in front of each light bulb
These hoods and cones combine to create
shadow in which the white electric signal
is visible even in the brightest sunlight.
-
LNEW Of the millions of railroad travellers
l. in this country are aware that the ereot.
est care must be taken TO secure a sky back.
ground against which the long maphore
signal arms will stand out in bold relief
Trees and buildings helm TO confuse the
men in the locomotive cab: a clear sky
never.
In establishing block signal svstems tbere
have been instances where prccipitous 'nIi hille
sides and deep cuts shut out the sky from
l.
Under such conditions artificial bocL.
IN" nnw 'e bto 10 DC @ Grtatea oS .e engineers:
signal. can be set up anywhere for IL is not
either upon n natural or nm arti.
fetal background. ~
WHILE the new white signal liobts .v.r
w a,.h,,. No.. .. ..ns. ~.
co,orn% Inst, "' n,,d ~ .""e tne p'aSe oL tnG
bridge. md no,es tb"ro bns ole, oh h.. s'saal In
~ ,,isot aina Ja peesi .ncfe nus also Deen de:
cIoss to tho "ro,'rI nn, ,on.l mmt.m are p1cea
s,ose ';,'s. ~ .nG grouHu nhu iocated at siding
sw1cnes ,rha .:a', ana sni,"r slow traihc points.
co,hor o,S oIraoL, r.e Nv wv IVY fshts c!ose 10.
given them nicknnmcs in tbe " variod d'uu maue
81 siatm men f A.. a III 'he Varied nomen.
'.uiufe ~, eh VI ~, tue % .raek'
,,n, n .Iu ' S,A Gen.Lai u.vlsions Where the new
yisnr y e HeaS stamtSn 'ee8 f 's.aea ,ha Dy super
SIi SusUr n,L;s, -; st"ht1n. OF the Telegraph and
S,shai train crs 'is,on they are known to every
'"rh arho e,uT ,':of, as Uu' eyes an1 ow, eyes.
von nc w,th nmU"m nr,,, st msure OF Doetor Nun.
:"rbber" 20 hano :, baa ecu ,nn mmu tne capt'oh,
aGp,, as ipr !eurs given 10 tne
eSa nn,Ua ..Isnn % n, uuore tue shihihg rails
'Ai Rmt naNI 10 ..HoctorH MunyoW W,, ., 80,
the advertisement ,tso,f nti Sos, srshais, IKE
onnaanoJ fora,,o' '''''i' WALL BOON nave dis.
have done on narts of tha .,at as aney already
simnler md safor S;onaiS ~ D; ne ne",