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Equipment

Page history last edited by Alan Hartley-Smith 2 years, 9 months ago

 

Introduction

This section mainly lists and describes the various types of radar equipment developed and produced by all the constituent companies that came within the Marconi organisation from the mid 1930’s to 1998. It covers sensors, display systems, automation systems (computer based) and other products for example PETA (Portable Electronic Traffic Analyser) and also the emergence of the market for space applications that eventually resulted in the formation by the company of a separate Space Division.

 

However it has inevitably grown to include references to systems originating elsewhere so has come to cover non-Marconi equipment where it is of interest including references to other general sources.

 

Military Part 1.  Part 2. Part 3. Part 4Naval   Civil   Space   Other   Display and Data Handling   Ancillary   Simulation Systems   Testing

 

Reference  Material

We have obtained copies of Marconi Catalogues for a number of years and intensive work by one of our editors has enabled full technical entries to be recorded for reference here

 

For the purposes of reference a complete list of all known British Ground Radars is given here. As a matter of interest out of the 250+ types listed 25% are attributed to Marconi, making it by far the largest single producer. Recent research shows that to a first order within the total period of trading the Company provided 145 Naval radars of 16 types, 123 fixed and mobile Air radars of 22 types and 155 Other types - Army fire control, OTH, weather and specialised measurement - together with an associated range of display and data handling systems, simulation systems and supporting civil and mechanical engineering facilities plus training services.    

 

A comprehensive list using the AMES type names

 

Another list

 

Yet another database

 

This seems to be an awesome work-in-progress

 

An interesting set of articles

 

For completeness this is a list of naval radars

 

This is a list of radar operational bands.

 

Colin Hinson of the RAF Henlow Signals Museum has produced a useful set of photographs of RAF radar heads, recently updated to include rare photos of CHL, GCI+gantry, Type 7, Type 13 and Type 15 plus a video taken at a Staxton Wold Open day showing various radars

 

 

 

 

Comments (8)

Ian Gillis said

at 5:41 pm on Feb 9, 2016

Page checked - skomer.u-net.com links were dead - with no alternative and have been removed…

Ian Gillis said

at 9:31 am on Oct 6, 2017

Colin Hinson reports skomer links still viewable on the Wayback machine at https://web.archive.org/web/20080612022202/http://www.skomer.u-net.com:80/projects/start.htm

John H Seddon C.Eng MIET said

at 5:35 pm on Nov 3, 2021

I can provide considerable technical detail contained in my Thesis, on the Marconi 511H which was badged S2055 Surveyor ATC Radar by Eng Director John Mark, as delivered to Poland and other national airports: I feel that is imporatant to capture it here and share all. I was not allowed to publish my thesis in the 1990s. Surveyor S2055 was ~ the last 1MW Coaxial Magnetron ATC Radar, and it had overall System MTI Improvement Factor ~50dB; previous 511 radars was ~37dB.

Ian Gillis said

at 11:06 pm on Nov 3, 2021

Dear John,
As in the nature of wikis, references to the 511 radar in this document are scattered and not necessarily obvious. Maybe you've found the following?:
https://marconiradarhistory.pbworks.com/w/page/53985654/ATC%20Radar%20S511%20-%20an%20AR1%20Replacement
https://marconiradarhistory.pbworks.com/w/page/106607847/S511%20-%20East%20London%2C%20South%20Africa
https://marconiradarhistory.pbworks.com/w/page/106446060/S511%20Airfield%20Surveillance%20Radar%20-%20Installations
Your treatise sounds like required reading. I take it that it's not available online? If you would like us to publish it, send it to me and I'll ask our Managing Editor to add it to the wiki.
regards,
Ian

John H Seddon C.Eng MIET said

at 4:41 am on Nov 4, 2021

Yes I believe so: my Thesis is a book really: 3 of my designs therin are unique and patentable.
please publish where you think appropriate, copy e-mailed to Alan. I also have two original hard copies.

I believe the S511H, E2V MG5403 1MW coaxial magnetron and associated 511H {Surveyor S2055} modulator sub units to be the ultimate Marconi magnetron radar transmitter design, and is over 50% Efficient. The last one designed by Marconi Radar. When I started my radar career, I was working on the Marconi 'Green Ginger' Surveillance radars, used with the ARMY Thunderbird II Missile Systems during Cold war, ~ 1969--75; 1975--1978 I was at RSRE Gt Malvern working on EMP, Marconi ICR {Infantry Company Radar} and Claribel {SECRET-Sniper Locating Radar}; the Alpha and Omega of my Marconi working life; not quite, as I carried on with THALES SIX for a further 12 years.

I pulled information from my 511H engineers log books and expanded to make it readable by any radar engineer, and for education purposes.

I designed the 511H Transmitter, built and tested the prototype, which I believe went to Southend Airport, and has provided over 30 years service.
I used Mr Simon Giles {Marconi transmitter engineer} Solid State FET modulator {2MW} design, which he designed for the multi-magnetron EMC Test Set installed at Boscombe Down; the rest of the tx sub units and overal Tx designed by myself.
Thesis also includes my additional educational papers in an Appendix;
and also an independent 511H performance measurement report by Dr David J. Heath, Systems Engineering.
I am currently writing a book: 'Engineering Innovation & Creativity', which has a Section on the Marconi S2802 Transmitter {used on ST1802 and ST1810}; I was Design Authority. rgs john.

John H Seddon C.Eng MIET said

at 5:34 am on Nov 4, 2021

Thesis not available online or published : my contribution to Marconi History.
The IEE + Engineering Council given a hard copy not published. John Mark had a copy.

John H Seddon C.Eng MIET said

at 7:07 pm on Nov 5, 2021

In the 511H Thesis, I included my Overall System MTI Improvement Factor* calculation prediction, which compares very closely to the actual measured *factor by David Heath; his report also included.

John H Seddon C.Eng MIET said

at 11:12 am on Nov 8, 2021

I have some good photos of the Marconi CCS Transmitter, if you want let me know.

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