Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA

Date Range From

1990

Date Range To

2000

Materials

METAL, PLASTIC, RUBBER

No. Pieces

7

Height

32.2

Length

44.5

Width

29.5

Description

THERMOGRAPH / THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA IN METAL CASE, WITH COAXIAL CABLE, EXTRA VISOR AND SCREWS, EXTRA HANDLE, AND EXTRA FUSES. .A: SILVER COLOURED TEXTURED METAL BOX. BLACK LEATHER HANDLE ON TOP OF BOX. HINGED AT BACK OF BOX. LID CLOSES WITH TWO DRAW LATCHES. STENCILED ON TOP OF THE BOX, WITH BLACK PAINT: "P4428 SER. NO.4534" A BLACK STICKER ON THE FRONT OF THE BOX, READS "P6" BETWEEN THE TWO DRAW LATCHES. INSIDE OF THE BOX IS MOSTLY LINED WITH BLACK FOAM. BOTTOM INSIDE OF BOX HAS EIGHT MOLDED COMPARTMENTS FOR THE VARIOUS COMPONENTS. SMALL PARTITION ON THE LEFT FOR THE COAXIAL CABLE. DIMENSIONS ABOVE REFERENCE THIS BOX. OVERALL VERY GOOD CONDITION. PIECE OF FOAM ON THE INSIDE LEFT HAS COME UN-UNGLUED. .B: EXTRA HANDLE. WHITE PLASTIC PISTOL-STYLE HANDLE. THREE SILVER COLOURED SCREWS IN HANDLE. DIMENSIONS: 16.0CM LONG, 7.6CM WIDE IN GOOD CONDITION. SOME WEAR MARKS/SCUFFS ALL OVER THE HANDLE. .C: EXTRA VISOR. BLACK RUBBER VISOR. HAS A TOTAL OF FOUR PRE-MADE SCREW HOLES: ON THE TOP, THEY ARE VERY CLOSE TOGETHER; ON THE BOTTOM THEY ARE SPACED FAIRLY WIDE APART. DIMENSIONS: 14.5CM LONG, 9.5CM WIDE IN FAIR TO GOOD CONDITION. RUBBER HAS BECOME MIS-SHAPENED, BUT RETAINS FLEXIBILITY. .D: COAXIAL CABLE. TAN COLOURED COAXIAL CABLE, WITH SILVER FITTINGS. IN GOOD CONDITION. SOME DISCOLOURATION ON PLASTIC CABLE CASING. DIMENSIONS: 560.5CM LONG, 2.5CM CIRCUMFERENCE. .E: BAG OF SCREWS. PLASTIC BAG WITH EXTRA VISOR SCREWS. STICKER ON BAG READS: "P4428G VISOR RETAINING SCREWS. 1 SET". CONTAINS FOUR SETS OF BOLTS, WASHERS, AND NUTS. DIMENSIONS: 13.0CM LONG, 9.0CM WIDE IN FAIR CONDITION. BAG IS VERY DISCOLOURED (BLACK SMUDGES) AND THE STICKER HAS LIFTED ON THE CORNERS. .F: BOX OF FUSES. SMALL WHITE CARDBOARD BOX, WITH BLUE WRITING IN GERMAN. CONTAINS NINE SMALL FUSES. FUSES ARE WHITE CARDBOARD IN THE MIDDLE, WITH TWO SILVER COLOURED METAL CAPS. FRONT OF BOX READS: "WICKMANN-WERKE GMBH 10 G-SICHERUNGSEINSATZE 250 VAC MINIATURE-FUSES 5X20MM". BOTTOM SIDE: "AUSSCHALTVERMOGEN H". BACK: "NACH IEC PUBL. 127-2/5". TOP SIDE: "19181". LEFT SIDE: "TRAGE". AND RIGHT SIDE: "M. I. W.-GERMANY". DIMENSIONS: 2.2CM HIGH, 5.3CM LONG, 0.6CM WIDE IN FAIR TO GOOD CONDITION. BOX IS WELL WORN, SOME WRITING HAS FADED. .G: THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA. WHITE PLASTIC, YELLOW PADDED NYLON FABRIC, BLACK RUBBER, SILVER COLOURED METAL, AND BLUE NYLON STRAPPING. THERMAL CAMERA IS CYLINDRICAL, WITH A PISTOL-STYLE HANDLE AT THE BOTTOM. CYLINDER BODY OF CAMERA IS WRAPPED IN YELLOW PADDED NYLON FABRIC. LIGHT-MEDIUM BLUE NYLON STRAPPING KEEPS THE YELLOW FABRIC ON THE CAMERA BODY. IN TWO PLACES ON THE STRAPPING IS A WHITE LABEL: "EEV CHELMSFORD ENGLAD." BLACK RUBBER VISOR / EYEPIECE / VIEW FINDER. GLASS OF CAMERA IS VISIBLE INSIDE THIS VISOR. RECTANGULAR, WHITE PLASTIC BOX HANGS FROM THE CAMERA WITH LIGHT-MEDIUM BLUE NYLON STRAPPING. TWO SILVER COLOURED CARABINERS HANG FROM THIS NYLON STRAPPING, ONE ON EACH OF THE STRAPS. ON THE FRONT OF THE RECTANGULAR BOX, IS HALF OF A CYLINDER, RUNNING HORIZONTALLY ACROSS. ON THIS CYLINDER IS A SMALL RED "OFF ON" BUTTON. ABOVE THE CYLINDER, ON THE BOX IS A GREY LABEL: "VOLTAGE STABILIZER UNIT P4428K NO. 4534" OPPOSITE THE BLACK RUBBER VISOR IS THE FRONT OF THE CAMERA: REFLECTIVE CIRCLE ALLOWS THE CAMERA TO "SEE". ABOVE THIS REFLECTIVE CIRCLE IS A SMALL BUTTON PLASTIC COVERED WITH "PAN CHOP" IN THE CENTRE. SILVER COLOURED KNOB JUST BELOW THIS "PAN CHOP" BUTTON AND TO THE RIGHT THERE IS A BLACK CORD THAT COMES OUT AND GOES UNDER THE YELLOW NYLON HOUSING. LABEL ON THE FRONT OF CAMERA READS: "THERMAL CAMERA P4428 NO. 4534. MADE IN ENGLAND." DIMENSIONS: 34.2 HIGH, 13.6 DIAMETER (ON FRONT) OVERALL IN GOOD CONDITION. YELLOW NYLON MATERIAL IS VERY DISCOLOURED, WITH GREY AND BLACK SPOTS. PLASTIC HOUSING OF CAMERA IS SCUFFED, ESPECIALLY AROUND THE FRONT AND ON THE END OF THE HANDLE. STRAPPING IS ALL IN VERY GOOD CONDITION, WITH NO VISIBLE TEARS.

Subjects

THERMAL T&E

Historical Association

SAFETY SERVICES

History

THIS THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA OR THERMOGRAPH WAS USED BY THE LETHBRIDGE FIRE DEPARTMENT. IN THE SUMMER OF 2015, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN, CONDUCTED A SERIES OF INTERVIEWS WITH CURRENT AND FORMER MEMBERS OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, INCLUDING: CLIFF “CHARLIE” BROWN (HIRED IN 1966, RETIRED 2004) AND TREVOR LAZENBY (HIRED IN 1994). BROWN EXPLAINED THAT THIS WAS A “THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA … THE IDEA OF THAT WAS, IN A FIRE, IT COULD SEE THROUGH SMOKE, BUT BACK THEN WE DIDN’T HAVE THE MAN-POWER TO USE IT, BECAUSE WHEN YOU WENT TO A FIRE, THERE WAS MAYBE SOMETIMES THREE GUYS. THERE WAS THE OFFICER, THE PUMP DRIVER … AND THE FIREFIGHTER. WHEN YOU GOT TO A FIRE, THERE WAS ONE GUY, EVEN THOUGH THE RULE WAS THAT YOU DIDN’T GO INTO A FIRE UNTIL THERE WAS SOMEBODY ELSE. IF THE TRUCK WAS ANOTHER 2-3 MINUTES AWAY, THERE WASN’T A FIREFIGHTER ON THE JOB WHO WOULD STAND AROUND AND SAY, ‘I’M NOT GOING TO GO INTO THE FIRE BECAUSE THE RULE SAYS TWO GUYS.’ YOU’VE GOT THE PUBLIC STANDING AROUND, YOU’VE GOT THE PEOPLE STANDING AROUND WHO OWN THE HOUSE OR BUILDING, SO THE GUY ALWAYS WENT IN. THERE WAS VERY SELDOM ANYBODY TO TAKE THAT THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA IN THERE AND I DON’T KNOW IF I’VE EVER USED IT.” LAZENBY FURTHER EXPLAINED: “THIS IS A THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA AND A LOT OF PEOPLE NOW CALL IT FLIR OR FORWARD LOOKING INFRARED, BUT IT’S A THERMAL IMAGER … SO THIS WAS YOUR BATTERY PACK. THIS SECTION DOWN HERE WITH THE ON/OFF BUTTON, THAT’S WHERE THE BATTERY WAS HOUSED. AND YOU CAN SEE IT HAS A PISTOL GRIP FOR EASE OF USE AND ERGONOMICS AND SO THIS BLACK, SORT OF SHROUD HERE WAS ALMOST LIKE A SET OF GOGGLES … YOU HAD TO PUT THAT RIGHT UP TO YOUR MASK OR IF YOU WEREN’T WEARING A MASK, AFTER THE FACT, AND YOU WERE CHECKING FOR HOTSPOTS, YOU WOULD HAVE TO BRING IT RIGHT UP SO IT COVERED YOUR EYES AND BLOCKED OUT ALL THE AMBIENT LIGHT. THIS WAS REVOLUTIONARY. THIS WAS CUTTING EDGE FOR ITS TIME, BUT LOOKING BACK AND LOOKING AT THE THERMAL IMAGING SYSTEMS THAT WE HAVE NOW COMPARED TO WHAT WAS IN SERVICE THEN, THE CHANGE IN CAMERA SENSITIVITY AND IN RESOLUTION – IT’S MIND-BOGGLING. THIS WAS A VERY WASHED-OUT, UNCLEAR – I’M STRUGGLING FOR WORDS TO DESCRIBE IT AND NOT MAKE IT SOUND LIKE IT WAS THE BIGGEST PIECE OF JUNK IN THE WORLD, BECAUSE IT WASN’T AND THE REASON I’M HAVING TROUBLE IS BECAUSE I’M COMPARING IT TO WHAT WE HAVE NOW. IT WAS CRUDE. IT WAS A LITTLE BIT RAW, TECHNOLOGY-WISE. IT WAS NEW, EXPENSIVE, LIKE THIS WAS THE LATEST AND GREATEST AT THE TIME … YOU COULD USE IT FOR RESCUE … SO YOU COULD SEE KIND OF THROUGH THE SMOKE TO SEE IF THERE WAS A PERSON LYING ON THE FLOOR OR ON THE BED OR ON THE COUCH. AND WHERE YOU WOULD HAVE TO GO BLINDLY AND JUST USE YOUR HANDS, NOW THIS CUT THROUGH AND IT GAVE YOU FASTER CAPABILITY TO FIND THE VICTIM. THIS WAS ALSO USED A LOT IN THE OVERHAUL AND SALVAGE OF BUILDINGS WHEN WE TALK ABOUT WHERE ARE THE HOTSPOTS, WHAT DO WE HAVE TO OPEN UP, WHERE HAS THE FIRE EXTENDED … SO THIS HAS BEEN A SOLID, SOLID EVERYDAY TOOL FOR US SINCE THIS CAME IN SERVICE … I BELIEVE THIS WAS ON THE JOB WHEN I SHOWED UP IN 1994 … WE ONLY HAD ONE FOR THE WHOLE DEPARTMENT … I THINK IT WAS KEPT IN A BOX ON THE RESCUE VEHICLE BECAUSE THE RESCUE VEHICLE WENT TO ALL STRUCTURE FIRES AND ALL RESCUES … WHEN WE SECURED THE FUNDING TO HAVE ONE OF THE NEWER GENERATION PUT ON EVERY ENGINE, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN ABOUT THE TIME THAT THIS WAS MOVED TO A BACKUP ROLE AND … TAKEN OFF THE TRUCKS BY ABOUT … 2000 AT THE VERY LATEST. I WANT TO SAY 1998-2000 … AND THEN IT WAS USED IN A BACKUP ROLE AND NOW IF WE NEED A BACKUP WE CAN GET A BACKUP FROM THE COMPANY, LIKE A SPARE, SO THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN DECOMMISSIONED PROBABLY BY 2000 … THIS WOULD HELP US CLEAR A STRUCTURE FASTER AND CONFIRM THAT THERE WASN’T SOMEBODY INSIDE, IN MY EXPERIENCE.” SEE PERMANENT FILE FOR FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTS AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE LETHBRIDGE FIRE DEPARTMENT.

Catalogue Number

P20150010016

Acquisition Date

2015-02

Collection

Museum

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