Navigational Light Control Panel for Large Vessel w/ Crane 

This is a shipboard Navigation Light Control Panel engineered for installation aboard a U.S. government or military vessel, designed to serve as the centralized command point from which bridge watchstanders can manage, monitor, and troubleshoot every external navigation and signal light required under COLREGS (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea) and applicable U.S. Navy or federal maritime lighting standards.

The panel consolidates all vessel navigation lighting functions into a single, ergonomically organized enclosure. It is divided into four clearly labeled functional sections — Navigation Lights, Obstruction Lights, Anchor Lights, and N.U.C./R.A.M. Lights — each separated by engraved borders for rapid visual identification during day or night operations. The panel face is finished in a dark matte gray, with white engraved lettering for high contrast and readability under low-light bridge conditions.

A critical design feature of this panel is its primary/secondary lamp redundancy system. For each navigation light circuit, the operator can select between a primary lamp and a secondary (backup) lamp via a three-position rotary selector switch (Secondary – Off – Primary). This ensures that if a primary lamp fails, the watchstander can immediately switch to the backup lamp without leaving the bridge or dispatching a repair team, maintaining compliance with navigation lighting requirements at all times. Each light circuit is individually protected by a fuse rated at 5 amps maximum.

The panel incorporates a comprehensive alarm system consisting of both audible and visual indicators. Each individual light circuit has its own dedicated red alarm indicator lens mounted adjacent to its selector switch. When a lamp fails or a fuse blows, the corresponding red alarm lamp illuminates and an audible alarm sounds, drawing the watchstander’s immediate attention to the affected circuit. An Alarm Test push button is provided at the top of the panel, which when depressed opens all light circuits that are currently switched on, allowing the operator to verify that every alarm indicator and the audible alarm are functioning correctly — an essential pre-voyage or watch-turnover check.

Additional features along the top row of the panel include a Pilot Light with an associated Pilot Light Dimmer control, allowing the operator to adjust the brightness of the panel’s internal illumination to suit ambient bridge lighting conditions — particularly important during nighttime steaming when bridge lighting must be minimized to preserve the watchstander’s night vision. The panel is fed by two 15-amp main circuit breakers and a 15-amp power input breaker, providing overcurrent protection for the panel’s supply circuits. An Emergency Repair Plug In Use indicator is also present, which illuminates when the emergency repair plug has been inserted to bypass a failed circuit, providing a visual reminder that the panel is operating in a non-standard configuration.