US1274907A - Illuminated sign. - Google Patents

Description

W. REED-LETHBRIDGE.

ILLUMINATED SIGN.

APPLICATION FILED IuNE23, |915.

ILLUMINATED SIGN.

invasor.

Application filed June 23, 1915. serial N6. 35,914.

To all whom z't may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM REED-LETH- BRIDGE, subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Number Hawker street, in the city of Wellington, in the Dominion of New Zealand, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Illuminatedv Signs; and I do hereby declarethe follow- Y ing to be a full,.clear, and exact description of the same.

This invention relates to illuminated signs:

of the class whereinI an intermittent illumination is employed to display the matter.

The invention has for its object the obtaining .in an effective manner a change of matter upon one or more stationary plates or' sheets by means of intermittent illumination.

According hereto a plate or sheet of material which when illuminated by a light of greater magnitude from the rear than from like transparent substance will lill up the interstices.

Asuitable material is wire gauze or finely perforated metal. Throughout the specification and claims where an interstitial or perforated material is mentioned a material that will give the above result will be understood.

1 The intermittent illumination of the different sheets may be brought about by an ordinary electric asher or modification thereof.

Whereii-both lights are intermittent the asher will switch one set of lights olf synchronously with switching the other set on.

In theaccompanying drawings Figure 1 is a front elevation of the sign. Fig. 2 is a cross sectional elevation on line A-A Fig. 1.

Fi t is a front view of the sheet of interstitia material'. K

Fig. 4 is a cross section ofthe said sheet.

Specification of Letters Eatent.

Patented Aug. 6, 1918.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion of the material.

Referring to the drawings the sheet of interstitial material 1 is provided in a casing 2 having an open front. The saidsheet 1 is stretchedupon a frame 3- which is guided and retained in position by means of a recess Llin the bottom and sides of the casing 2. The top of the casing 2 has a slot 5l opposite the recess 4 through which the frame 3 is passed.

By this means sheetshaving diHerent display matter upon them may be easily substituted for the sheet that is being employed.

The sheet of interstitial matter consists of a substance of which the material itself is opaque or may be rendered opaque and the interstices of which are of the same or greater varea than the material itself. So far I have found wire gauze of fine mesh the most suitable for this purpose.

Upon the face of the sheet the display matter is depicted by a suitable paint, care being taken that the interstices are not filled up by the paint. 'Ihe rear side of the sheet is then given a required coat of varnish until the interstices 7 (see Fig. 5) are entirelyfilled. The display matter for the rear of the sheet is then painted upon-the rear of the said sheet. y

. When the sheet is illuminated from the front, only the matter depicted upon the face thereof will be visible from the front of the sign, but when the rear of the sheet is illuminated, only the mat-ter depicted upon the rear thereof will be visible from the front of the sign.

f Electric bulbs 8 ofthe elongated type illuminate the front of the sheet.

Electric bulbs 10 within the casing are adapted to illuminate the sheet 1 from the rear. The wires 11 from an electric circuit are led into the casing through a hole 13 and are connected to an electric iasher 14 which may be of ordinary construction.

The flasher alternately switches thel current from the bulbs 8 to the bulbs 10'a'nd y from the bulbs 10 to the bulbs 8.

Instead of the lights from the bulbs 8 being intermittent they may be constant; in that case thelbulbs 10 would alone be intermittent, but the light from them would be of reater magnitude so as to overpower the lights from'the bulbs 8. Similarly the bulbs 8 may be intermittent and the bulbs 10 constant.

What f claim is 1. An intermittently illuminated sign having an interstitial screen at the front thereof and bearing a design on the face thereof, transparent filling material applied to the interstitial screen and bearing a design whichwill appear' through the interstices when the screen is illuminated from the rear, substantially as set forth.

2. An intermittently illuminated sign having an interstitial screen at the front thereof and bearing a design on the face thereof, varnish applied to the interstitial screen and bearing a design thereon which Will appear through the interstices when the screen is illuminated from the rear, substantially as set forth.

3. ln an illuminated sign, the combination with a casing and electrical intermittent illumination of an interstitial screen, a design on the face thereof and transparent filling material applied to the interstitial screen and bearing a design which will appear through the interstices when the screen is illuminated from the rear substantially as set forth.

4. ln an intermittently illuminated sign, an interstitial screen at the front thereof, a design on the face thereof. the interstices of said screen being filled with varnish from the rear side thereof. a design painted oh the varnish filling the interstices Which design will appear through the interstices When the Largeur screen is illuminated from the rear, substantially as set forth.

5. fn an intermittently illuminated sign, an interstitial screen of Wire gauze at the front thereof. a design on the face of said screen, the interstices of said wire gauze screen being filled with varnish from the rear side thereof. a desion painted on the varnish fillingthe interstices which design will appear through the interstices when the screen is illuminated from the rear, substantially as set forth.

6. Au illuminated sign comprising a casing, an open front to said casing,a recess Within said casing, a slot in the top of said casing leading to said recess, a frame retained in position in the recess and adapted to be inserted through said slot, a sheet of interstitial material stretched upon said frame, a design depicted on the'face of said sheet, transparent filling material applied to the interstices of said sheet, 4display matter depicted upon the rear side of said sheet,

said sheet being alternately illuminatedl from the front and rear, substantially as set forth.

lin testimony whereof lf have signed my name to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing Witnesses:

WlflLlLlfAM REED-LETHBRIBGE.

Witnesses SYDNEY H. Hroes, EDMOND P. ODONNELL.

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