GB2076036A

GB2076036A - Elevated housing for equipment

Info

Publication number: GB2076036A
Application number: GB7943683A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Telecomms Organisation & Plann
Current assignee: Telecomms Organisation & Plann
Priority date: 1979-12-19
Filing date: 1979-12-19
Publication date: 1981-11-25

Abstract

An automated telecommunications station comprises a housing (12) for accommodating both telecommunications equipment and generating apparatus; the housing being mounted on a pillar(s) (21) and having a mast (10) to provide for connection of telephone cables and/or subscribers' lines and/or for supporting antennae for radio- telecommunications linkage. In one embodiment, the pillar and mast are formed as a continuous tower (22), with the housing supported thereon at an intermediate level. The generating equipment conveniently comprises solar panels mounted in a gable- structured roof (17) to the housing. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Telecommunications installations This invention relates generally to telecommunications installations and in particular to an installation for telecommunications equipment in the form of an automated station intended to serve a relatively isolated small group of subscribers.

There exist in the villages of many countries small ground level buildings containing automated telecommunications equipment for handling the calls of local subscribers. These buildings may typically be the size of a domestic garage or larger, depending on the amount of equipment to be housed, which in turn depends on the number of local subscribers, which may vary from twenty or less to several hundreds. Power for the equipment is usually derived from the mains electricity supply system.

These automated out-stations have a number of disadvantages, for example being prone to interference by vandals and to damage and fault liability in adverse weather conditions, and occupying valuable or scarce usable land.

Especially in certain Middle Eastern and similar developing and often thinly populated countries, the disadvantages of conventional ground level out-stations are severe, owing to the hot and dusty environment, the scarcity of readily usable land in the neighbourhood of small populations, and the unavailability of a mains electricity supply.

Accordingly, with the advent of increasingly miniaturised equipment currently being adapted to telecommunications, the present invention has for its object to provide a fresh approach to the problem of local automated out-stations for serving relatively isolated small groups of subscribers.

According to the invention, there is provided an automated telecommunications station in the form of a housing sufficiently large firstly to accommodate the necessary telecommunications equipment for a small group of subscribers with access to said equipment for servicing from within the housing and secondly to carry generating apparatus for supplying electrical power to said equipment, the housing being mounted above the ground on one or more pillars or supporting uprights. The generating equipment will most preferably comprise panels of solar cells in the roof of the housing, the solar cells supplying current to storage batteries within the housing.

For maximising the efficiency of the solar panels, the housing roof may conveniently have gable surfaces on at least three sides.

Typically, the housing may be of the order of 2 metres by 3 metres in plan, 2 metres high beneath its roof, and be supported 2 to 3 metres above ground level. Such a housing can accommodate accessible miniaturised telecommunications equipment capable of serving up to say 500 local subscribers, together with storage batteries maintained by solar energy for powering the equipment. A smaller housing may be practicable when only a relatively small group of subscribers, e.g. 30, 60 or 90, is to be served, especially if the only equipment to be housed in this instance is a multiplexer unit.

The housing will usually be provided with a mast which may serve for any one of several purposes, including the connection of overhead cables between the out-station and the nearest major telephone exchange. More usually, however, it is to be expected that a remote outstation will be linked by radio to a major exchange, and in this case the mast will carry the antenna or antennae necessary for such radiotelecommunications linkage. The mast may also serve for the connection of overhead lines to the local subscribers. Alternatively, local connections may be made underground, the lines being introduced upwardly into the housing through the supporting pillar (or one of such pillars).

A significant feature of the invention concerns the system of construction of the telecommunications out-station. It is envisaged that the structure will be made of prefabricated units transportable to the site and ready for assembly and erection thereat. The supporting pillar (or one of said pillars) and the mast will be assembled as a continuous tower, the housing being assembled around said tower at an intermediate height thereon, if necessary with support of said housing assisted by one or more further pillars, depending on the size of the outstation.

The walls of the housing itself will be assembled of double-skinned hollow panels, for example an aluminium alloy or similar outer skin separated by an air gap from an inner skin of thermal insulating plastics material. Vents at the top and bottom of the outer skin of the walls may be provided, in use to create a draught of cooling air between the two skins. Ventilation within the housing can be achieved by the provision of exterior grills which admit and exit air into and from the section of the tower within the housing, with appropriate air inlets and exits providing for circulation of air through this section of the tower and the equipment space within the housing.

The roof panels incorporating solar cells will be designed for assembly in a gable structure, while access to the interior of the housing may be either through a side wall door to be reached by portable ladder or through a trap-door in the housing floor to be reached by a fixed ladder carried by the lower part of the tower (or one of the supplementary supporting pillars).

In the accompanying drawings: Figures 1 and 2 diagrammatically illustrate two examples of telecommunications out-station in accordance with the invention.

The installation shown in Figure 1 is intended to accommodate telecommunications equipment for handling the calls of up to about five hundred local subscribers. It comprises a tower 10, the lower part of which constitutes a pillar 11 for supporting one corner of a housing 12 which accommodates the equipment 1 8. The other corners of the housing are supported by supplementary pillars 13. The tower 10 has a section 14 extending through the housing 12, and a section above the housing which constitutes a mast 1 5 carrying antennae 1 6 for radiotelecommunications linkage.

The housing 12 has a gable roof 1 7 on at least three sides, this roof being made of panels incorporating solar cells. These cells will maintain the charge level of storage batteries for powering the telecommunications equipment, which in miniaturised form not only has a relatively low power requirement but is also sufficiently small to permit the housing to be of relatively small size.

Thus, allowing for access to service the equipment necessary for five hundred subscribers from within the housing (which may be reached for example through a trap-door above a ladder fixed to one of the pillar supports), said housing may have dimensions in plan of the order of two metres by three metres, and be about two metres high. It will preferably be supported two to three metres above the ground. In a typical Middle Eastern country or like environment where use of the outstation is contemplated, the solar cells in the gabled roof of a housing of these dimensions will be able to generate sufficient current to maintain storage batteries powering the equipment, these storage batteries also being accommodated in the housing.

As previously mentioned, the complete structure will be of prefabricated nature to be assembled and erected on site, and will incorporate the necessary means to promote adequate cooling of and ventilation within the housing, preferably by an unforced system not requiring electrical power.

The above-described out-station can be erected over a footpath or in the corner of a car park, for example, to minimise use of scarce or valuable land. It is readily rendered substantially vandalproof, which is assisted by the elevated position of the housing. In addition, the elevated housing is at a level to minimise the effects of ground heat, to be essentially above ground layer dust or flood water, and to be exposed to any available cooling wind, while the roof is also above dust level so as to receive maximum light from the sun. These advantages are especially important in hot countries, but use of the out-station in other environments is not excluded and, in some instances, the out-station may incorporate generating apparatus alternative to solar cells to enable the station to be self powered.

The installation shown in Figure 2 is of generally similar construction to that shown in Figure 1, and will not be described in detail. It is a design suitable for a smaller out-station, catering for say less than one hundred local subscribers, and has a smaller housing 20 supported on a single enclosed hollow upright or pillar 21 which encloses the lower section of a tower 22 the upper section of which forms a mast 23 above the housing. As with the example of Figure 1, cable or line linkages to the housing may be via the mast or upwardly from beneath the ground through the supporting pillar.

Claims

1. An automated telecommunications station in the form of a housing sufficiently large firstly to accommodate the necessary telecommunications equipment for a small group of subscribers with access to said equipment for servicing from within the housing and secondly to carry generating apparatus for supplying electrical power to said equipment, the housing being mounted above the ground on one or more pillars or supporting uprights.

2. An automated telecommunications station according to claim 1, wherein the generating equipment comprises panels of solar cells in the roof of the housing, the solar cells supplying current to storage batteries within the housing.

3. An automated telecommunications station according to claim 2, wherein the housing roof has gable or pitched surfaces on at least three sides.

4. An automated telecommunications station according to claim 1 or claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the housing has a mast for connection of overhead telephone trunk cables and/or overhead telephone subscribers' iines and/or for carrying an antenna or antennae for radiotelecommunications linkage.

5. An automated telecommunications station according to any of claims 1 to 4, having underground line connections effected upwardly through said supporting pillar (or one of such pillars).

6. An automated telecommunications station according to any of claims 1 to 5, having a structure consisting of prefabricated units adapted for assembly and erection on site.

7. An automated telecommunications station according to claim 4 or claim 5 or claim 6 when appendant to claim 4, wherein the pillar and mast constitute a continuous tower with the housing carried thereby at an intermediate level in the overail height of said tower.

8. An automated telecommunications station according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the walls of the housing are assembled of doubleskinned hollow panels.

9. An automated telecommunications station according to claim 8, wherein the housing panels have an inner skin of thermal insulating material.

10. An automated telecommunications station according to claim 8 or claim 9, having vents at the top and bottom of the outer skin of the housing walls to create a draught between the two skins.

11. An automated telecommunications station according to any of claims 1 to 10, having ventilation grilles in the housing for admission and exit of air circulated within the housing.

12. An automated telecommunications station according to any of claims 1 to 11, wherein the housing does not exceed 2 metres by 3 metres in plan area nor 2 metres in depth beneath its roof, and is supported on the pillar or pillars 2 to 3 metres above the ground.

1 3. An automated telecommunications station substantially as herein-before described with reference to the accompanying drawings.