Blolite

Blocentre

Blolite (now Leviton Network Solutions) approached Tritec to design an optical feedback system, control electronics and operating software for a portable Blocentre for the installation of blown fibre.

A blown fibre system uses compressed air to blow optical fibre into a pre-installed duct, at distances of up to 1km.

The Blocentre was one of Tritec’s earliest electronics design projects, and underwent a number of product revisions and variations. Demonstrating our reputation for quality and long-term support it has proved to be extremely reliable, with no failures since development. The system has been used by companies such as Manchester Airport, IBM, Ericsson and the Ministry of Defence.

Control Electronics

Tritec was responsible for all the specification and design of the control electronics and operating software for the Blocentre. The system was based on an embedded PC linking through a backplane to the various control interface cards.

Software

Tritec worked alongside industrial designers to develop a clear and effective user interface using a plasma flat panel screen and custom designed membrane keypad.

The software also controlled the embedded PC I/O, drive motors and optical detectors, dynamically adjusting the output as required.

The software was developed in C and stored on an EEPROM within the Blocentre.

Optical Design

Working in collaboration with mechanical designers from Blolite, Tritec also developed a novel catenary method and sensor array to monitor and control the speed of fibre delivery.