Revo 'Hyperion B' A42.304
Lantern acquired in April 2023.
With thanks to AgentHalogen_87 for donating this lantern to the Collection. The original location of it is unknown, although it may have been used in Tamworth area. Examples of this version of the Hyperion were common in Wolverhampton, as seen here, but numbers have diminished substantially, owing to replacements with LED lanterns, as is commonplace these days. Images of the lantern, prior to its being passed to me, are viewable on Lighting Gallery.
The lantern features a relatively low profile tapered aluminium canopy, with a curved Perspex bowl.
During the course of its time on the street, the lantern was converted from time switch to NEMA photocell control by drilling a hole in the canopy that would accommodate the photocell socket. Subsequently, the NEMA was replaced with a miniature photocell, but to avoid drilling another hole, the existing alteration was modified to accommodate the narrower minicell detector using a plastic disc and insulation tape.
The aluminium is still fairly light in colour. Pop rivets pass through the canopy at various points, which secure internal fixings.
A novel method of diffusing the luminous flux emitted from below the lantern is an inverted v-shaped section moulded into the underside of the bowl. Two strips of reflective tape applied to the inside of the bowl prevent a 'hot spot' from forming on the carriageway.
This view demonstrates the depth of the channel.
From this view looking into the lantern from the spigot entry, the reflective tape is seen to redirect the beam back up the bowl towards the prismatic refractors along the sides.
The positioning of the tape on the bowl suggests that it would have been applied manually.
The inside of the canopy is wide, and reasonably flat. Unlike the later Hyperion C, where the bowl hinges along the long side of the lantern, here, it hinges forwards. Unfortunately, the sheet metal toggle used for securing the bowl at the back of the lantern is missing, and a replacement will need to be sourced.
The lantern identification label, and British Standard approval detail, are applied towards the back of the lantern. Note that there is no mention of the Hyperion name at all. With the label making reference to BS 1788: 1964, and the Revo brand being sold to English Electric in 1967 (with a vastly-reduced street lighting range then appearing under the new Relite brand), the lantern's approximate age becomes apparent.
Originally, the Hyperion was intended for running a linear sodium (SLI/H) lamp, but later, Revo made a slight modification that allowed single-ended sodium lamps, including the then-new SOX type, to be fitted instead. As this example incorporates a (seemingly) factory-fitted support for this type of lamp, it is unlikely to be an in-house conversion from SLI/H. Despite this, the front, unused front bracket for supporting the bi-pin lampholder of the linear lamp remains present.
Out of interest, and as the photocell hole will be filled as part of the lantern's restoration, I removed the makeshift plastic grommet that had been used to reduce the hole diameter, in an attempt to establish what it used to be before being made to fit here. A word depicted in gold lettering, but no longer identifiable, owing to the 20 mm minicell hole cut through it, existed in the centre.
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