14

Northern Electric sold phone components to other manufacturers, such as Deco-Tel, who would make specialty housings.

15

SP-1 Central Office Stored Program Switch
Circa 1971
Throughout Canada and USA

Credits:
Northern Electric now ... and the future

16

Northern produced the SP-1, (Stored Program), the worlds first electronic switching system of this type. It was first produced in 1971. It was able to process a higher volume of calls than the no. 5 Crossbar it replaced, it also took less space and power to operate.

17

At Bell's request Northern Electric designed and produced the LD-4 a high capacity digital coaxial cable carrier system. It could carry over 4,000 voice circuits on coaxial cable also designed by Northern. As with any signal, this high rate one also suffered from cable loss. It had to be repeated at set intervals, the repeaters needed power to operate. Since it was desirable to power as many repeaters as possible without having to provide intermediate powering points 1800 volts was placed on the line. Because of the very large number of circuits carried it had to have very high reliability. It was built at Northern's Lucerne (Aylmer, QC) plant using space technology standards since Lucerne was building satellite platforms.

18

DE-3 Channel Bank
Circa 1976
North America, Carribean and South Korea

Credits:
Telecommunications Museum

19

Digital channel banks ushered the digital age in the mid-1960s. Digital technology had been foreseen by a Briton in the late 1930s, however, vacuum tube technology did not permit it. With the transistor, Digital channel banks ushered the digital age in the mid-1960s. Digital technology had been foreseen by a Briton in the late 1930s, however, vacuum tube technology did not permit it. With the transistor, invented by Bell Labs in 1948, this became feasible. Since telephone equipment must be extremely reliable it wasn't till the late 1950s did the first transistorized equipment appear.

The DE-3 Channel Bank multiplexed 24 voice channels into one digital stream suitable to be transmitted on a digital transmission system known as a T-1 or DS-1 (Digital Stream). Different rates of transmission can be achieved, the next most common one is DS-3. A DS-3 can carry 672 voice channels or one video signal.

20

SL-1 Telephone Set
Circa 1976
Globally

Credits:
Ken Lyons

21

The SL-1 introduced in 1976 is one of the first all electronic digital business communications systems. It is found all over the world. In the past to obtain similar features customers had to rent a large number of telephone lines from telcos who provided the service from their telephone offices. As most digital systems each fully featured multi-line phone only needs a single pair of wires to connect to the system, gone are the bulky 25 pair cables. The SL-1 is now known as the Meridian 1.

22

1978 saw the beginning of the end for the cord toll switchboard with the introduction of Northern's TOPS, (Traffic Operator Position System), a computerized and automatic system for operators.

23

Diplomat Phone
Circa 1979
Throughout Canada

Credits:
Peter James

24

The Diplomat was designed to bring prestige to a businessman's office.

25

Athena Phone
Circa 1981
Throughout Canada

Credits:
Peter James

26

Dawn Phone
Circa 1981
Throughout Canada

Credits:
Peter James

27

The Imagination line of telephones was introduced in the early 1980s for the residential market. The Athena, Dawn and Doodle are some examples of this line. When the Doodle was in a pouch such as this one it was known as a Kangaroo.