Wheatstone's electrolytic telegraph relay
date: label: date made
content: 1837
name: label: associated person
content: Wheatstone, Charles
label: maker
content: Wheatstone, Charles
notes: label: Description
content: Telegraph relays amplified electrical signals in a telegraph line. Telegraph messages traveled as a series of electrical pulses through a wire from a transmitter to a receiver. Short pulses made a dot, slightly longer pulses a dash. The pulses faded in strength as they traveled through the wire, to the point where the incoming signal was too weak to directly operate a receiving sounder or register. A relay detected a weak signal and used a battery to strengthen the signal so that the receiver would operate.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Electricity
label: See more items in
content: Communications
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: from University of London King's College, Department of Physics
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1990.0539.51
label: accession number
content: 1990.0539
label: catalog number
content: 1990.0539.51
objectType: label: Object Name
content: relay
label: Object Name
content: electrolytic telegraph relay
label: Object Name
content: telegraph relay
label: Other Terms
content: telegraph relay; Magnetic Devices
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: 5 in x 3 in x 4 1/2 in; 12.7 cm x 7.62 cm x 11.43 cm