Theatre Design & Technology - May 1968 - 39

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - GARY W. GAISER

Lighting Handbook 1968, the second edition of this Sylvania publication, is edited by T.M. Lemons and R. E. Levin
and prepared with the assistance of Charles Neenan. It is
available from Sylvania at Danvers, Mass. Like last year's
edition, the handbook provides technical information for stage
lighting in addition to the latest tungsten-halogen lamp data
issued by Sylvania.
A development in the fields of television and cinematography
front projection needs an enterprising theatre innovator or
designer to provide the necessary transfer of high efficiency
projection and reflection of images. For further information
on this device (which uses the principle involved in reflex
reflection as on roadside signs, and is patented), see Will
F. Jenkins-Murray Leinster's article entitled "Applied Science Fiction," in the journal Analog, Nov. 1967, pp. 109124. A look in the N.Y.C. telephone directory {under Front
Projection Corporationl will give added information.
The field of completely packaged solid-state packaged dimming
systems has for some time been largely dominated by the
Edkotron system manufactured by Century Lighting. Now there
are numerous sources, many of them filtered as part of their
basic design and available in two-scene and sometimes fivescene preset systems. The buyer should also get information
on available master control provisions, dipless fading (by
scene or single control), and switching facilities: these vary
considerably. The most compact two-scene unit is that offered by Electronics Diversified; the most range in choice
by Skirpan Electronics: both of these also have offered the
more convenient wattage capacities, ranging from 2kw to
6 kw. Since needs are so variable, the following table summarizes many of the comparable features:
Manufacturer

Century Lighting
1.8
Clifton, N.J.
Electronics Div.
3.0
Portland, Ore. 97219
Hunt Electronics
1.8
Dallas, Tex. 75220
Skirpan Electronics
2,6
Long Island City, N. Y. 11101
Superior Electric
118
Bristol, Conn. 06010

No. of
Dimmers
per pack

No. of
presets

Filter

1,2

Optional

yes

Included

yes

3,4,6,8

Included

1,2,6

Included

yes

1,2,5

Included

yes

Consul tants who want professional information on forms
and publications should write to the Consulting Engineers
Council, 1155 15th St., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20005,
for its listing of "CEC Forms and Publications." Also of
interest to the serious consultant is Consulting Engineer,
published by R.W. Roe and Partners at 217 Wayne Street,
St. Joseph, Michigan 49085, $10.00.
The wide range of control equipment Century Lighting, Inc.,
has in the field is clearly delineated in three patent applications. All three of these contain circuits, illustrations, complete descriptions and references to patents basic to the invention described. The first of these, the grid-controlled
tube, patented by George C. Izenour, represents a major,
though largely outmoded, post-war development in the control of stagelighting. (U.S. Patent number, 2,954,509,
Sept. 27, 1960).
The second patent represents the basic design of the
punch card system installed in the Vivian Beaumont Theatre.
The head designer at Century, Fred M. Wolff; George C.
Izenour; and David H. Locklin contributed to this hallmark
in the field of automatic control (U. S. Patent number
3,221,214, Nov. 30,1965).
A very recent SCR circuit, designed by David H. Locklin,
offers the alert engineer a complete description and specification of parts (U. S. Patent Number 3,243,653, March
29, 1966).

Master, or
Fader
or both

RECENT PACKAGED CONTROL STATIONS

Skirpan Electronics, Inc.

105m

May l!1il1

Superior Electric Co.

Electronics Diversified, Inc.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - May 1968