Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Aaron Kuhn, who offers up this challenge:
Here’s a fun challenge for the SWLing Post readers. On the Fox show Prison Break Season 5 Episode 7, they show this “Marine Notification System” printing out a wanted message as the captain sits in his ship and looks on.
What is this gadget?
Thanks for the fun challenge, Aaron.
So I guess we first have to decide if this is truly a device that’s in service in the real world, or simply a prop made for the episode.
I’m willing to bet that someone in the SWLing Post community can ID this device!
Please comment!
If I had to guess, it reminds me a great deal of a numbers station voice synthesizer, i.e., the kind of machine that governments would program to speak groups of five numbers at various times, like the Atencion! station that is operating still in Cuba. Just a guess…and I have no idea what the print-out part is all about. Cool stuff!
I believe this is a Navtex receiver (518khz) from about 20 years ago from Marine Navigation Systems out of South Africa. The design is similar to the JRC NRC300A. The newer Navtex receivers have big LCD displays and alot more features than a thermal printer shown in the TV show.
I did not realize NRD made WEFAX receivers that double as hotel room safes
It’s a Dranetz BMI 646-3 Power Analyser for troubleshooting power line glitches.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DRANETZ-646-3-POWER-LINE-DISTURBANCE-ANALYZER-W-OPTION-101-2-/142373300186