Electronic solid state Automatic Route Setting Machine

Electronic solid state Automatic Route Setting Machine, known as "George", made in 1983 at the Railway Test Centre at Derby. Installed at Three Bridges signal box to control 13km of track in a world's first system using programmed information on timetables and routes to set the signalling for a train using computer intelligence.

The system was the beginning of computerised train control across the world. Starting from this trial of a busy junction in Sussex in 1983, through an Integrated Electronic Control Centre in Leamington Spa in 1985 to a full Solid State Interlocking, Automatic Route Setting installation at Liverpool Street station by 1987, this was the beginning of automation of train and track control using information downloaded onto the system for routes and timetables.

The origin of the name George is complex. If there was an incident to report in the train register, the signaller would ordinarily write their name next to the entry. As there was no actual person in charge of the decisions made by the ARS machine, it was referred to as "George". The origin of the name George had previously been ascribed by railway staff to the 1980 comedy film Airplane! which features an inflatable autopilot that occupies one of the pilot's seats when activated. However, whilst airline pilots do colloquially call their autopilots "George" and had done so for decades, the autopilot character in the film is actually named "Otto" (a pun on automatic), although another off-screen character in the script is named George. Another possible origin is the 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only. The plot revolves around the sinking of the "St Georges" and subsequent theft of the "Automatic Targeting Attack Communicator" which controls Britain's polaris submarine launched nuclear armed missiles. The erroneous Airplane! origin could be a corruption of the James Bond film origin story, or they may share a common root in the colloquial name of autopilots in the airline industry.