US1637622A - Means for relieving the glare from projector lights - Google Patents

Description

v 1,637,622 g- 2, 1927- H, A. RADFORD MEANS FOR RELIEVING THE GLARE FROM PROJECTOR LIGHTS Filed March 6. 1926 unnuxauQQ wine w; Y v I I I yflz c wag:

Patented Aug. 2, 1927.

uni TED STATES; P EN OFFICE.

HERBERT A. nAnronn, or nnitvnn; GOLORADO ASSIGlIlOR 'ron. s. SHUTTER LENS COMPANY, ornnnvnn, corona-no, ACORPORATiOIf or DELAWARE;

' mnAns non RELIEVING. THE Gram FROM PROJECTOR LIGHTS.

Applicationffild March 6, 1926'. seria Nb. 92,817;

' This ii'i'vent ion relates to improvements in means for relieving the glare from projector lights and more particularly the headlights of vehicles, which such means are generally known asdiinlne rs or anti-glare devices and, the aims of wl'nch are weir understood 1n" the art.

The primary object of my invention' has been to devise substantially in'ip'roved nonglare means which will at all tunes maintain maximum road illumination, whiclimay'be economically manufactured and marketed, which are. simple, durable, and etlective in operation and which may berigidly and facilely installed as an as'se 'nhled unit to the I general types of lamp casings or parabolas,

- I practical adaptation of the improvements as without engaging or mar-ring the reflecting I surface of the latter the ini proven'ient's as a whole embodying a lens structure that pose tively carries a shutter-slat element In a (hfrectly proximate manner, preferably infa cilely attachable and detachable relation therewith,and which device as a combined unit may be appropriately termed as a shirtter-lens or a shutter-equipped-lens.

and advantages of my improvements, however, will h e more clearly apparent as incl dentalto'the following disclosure, andwith accompanying drawings, illustrating an embodiment-of the invention, in which draw:

ings r a lligur 1 is a front elevational view of a appliedtothe headlight of an automobile, or

an analogous projector lamp; vFigure 2 is a.

substantially vertical sectional view, taken along the ,veriical central line of Figure 1,

the rear portion of the parabola or lamp cas-, ii'ig being pariially shown in elevation and being part Y broken away; and Figure, 3 is a central vertical sectional view through a lens pro ierfwith the slutitter-slat element omitted;

The numeral 5 indicates a lamp casing,

which, in the illustration the ref I ng parabola, although in some instances the,

parabola is separately encased in au outer lamp casing, and it will be obvious that'my improvements may be employedwith either arrangemtuit.v The numeral 6 designates any form of the usual channeledriin disposed around the open front of the lamp casing, the closure lens being-seated therein and suitably heldin place in the usual manner, as for instance by a split springy ring 7, and

the numeral 8 designates; the usual incanlustratedjby the drawings, however, the lens 9 is shown as being provided with a plurality of lugs or shoulders projected from its rear face; a single upper and lower such lug 1'0,' and 11, respectively, being only illus-V 'trated, but it isobvious that three such lugs could be employed in triangular disposition,

v or for that matter two upper and two lower The foregoing and other ob ects, features lugs could be employed, dependent upon the actual shape of the supporting frame of the shiitter-slat 7 element. In actual practice, therefore, it may be more desirable to employ a greater number ofsuch lugs than the pair actually shown, to provide for more effective rigidity against displacement and rattling, audl'i'nay prefer the employment of three of such lugs in triangular disposition, to provide for the more facile attachment and detachment of the shu'ttenslat element, while at the same time preserving said rigidity. It will accordingly be understood .thatfah though in the following description I shall only refer to'thepaired upper and lower supporting lugs which embodied my original conception, I do not wish to'unnecessarily limit myself in: this connection.

These lugs may preferably be made of glass and formed or. molded integrally with the lens body. although they rould be of other substance and could be otherwise fixedly applied to the lens body, and it is possihlerthat they might be projected from the forward face of thelens body, for applying the shutter-slat element to the front face of the lensbody, hutthese latter arrangementswould hardly be so practicable or desirable, and are only mentioned as remote expedients. Also, the drawings show a concave lens body, but obviously it might be of other curvature and it might be a flat or planetary lens. and when a concave lens the rim portion may be flattened out as actually 7 shown, for a better fit within the channeled rim 6, or it may be beveled off on its inside face as is quite customary. V

The top face of the upper lug-1O may provide for a suspending seat for the encompassing rim 12, oranalogous open frame support, of the shutter-slat masking element,

' hereinafter described, and the bottom face of tion, as will be fully understood.

the lower lug 11 may provide for a base bearing seat for the same. To this end the top face of the upper lug 10 may have a seating recess 13, formed by a forward vertically disposed shoulder 14; and a rearward vertically disposed shoulder 15, the inner face of which latter may be slightly beveled if desired, for a wedging action on said member 12, and the forwardbottom face of the lower lug 11 may be provided with a pocket or snap-in socket 16 for the entry of latching projection on the free end of a clasp spring 17 extending forwardly from the bottom portion of the shutter-slat memhorizontal series of light reflecting vanes,

slats or louvers 18 that are so spacedapart vertically with a forward declination cor downwardslope, whether the slats are plane of arcuate, as to deflect the rays of light forwardly and downwardly in undimmed and concentrated association with'the roadway ahead, for conserving maximum illumination, while at the same time obscuring the lamp 8, and reflecting surface therefor, from 'a position substantially in advance of the same, and thereby eliminating all blinding glare therefrom within the Zone extending between the lamp and such advanced posi- From Figure 2 it will be obvious that'in assembling the lens and shutter-slat element, as they are actually illustrated in the drawings,.an d which will be marketed in such combinedrelation for application to existing types and sizes of lamp casings although the units may be separately supplied forreplacer ment purposes, the central upper portion of the run 12 is inserted over and suspended from the upper lug 10, as snugly seated within the recess 13, and with the central lower portion of the rim swung forwardly underneath the lower lug 11, whereupon the forward projection of the clasp spring 17 will engage within the socket 16, thus providing for a snap-in latching means to hold the rim-supported slats firmly in position. With a triangularly disposed arrangement of the supporting lugs, 'it is doubtful that any latching means would be required, and the apex lugof the triangle could be disposed upwardly, downwardly or otherwise.

While I have thus fully described my invention, it, will nevertheless be-understood that I do not wish to unnecessarily restrict myself to all of the details exactly as disclosed, excepting as they may come within the terms of the claims, or their equivalent, or as fairly interpreted in the light of the specification if necessary. a

What I do claim, asnew and patentable,

1. In means forrelieving the glare from projector lights, the combination of a closure lens thereforthat is provided with supporting means projecting from a face thereof, as positioned inwardly of the peripheral edge of said lens and disposed in a direction around the axis thereof, and a non-glare masking device directly and wholly supported 2. In means for relieving the glarefrom projector lights, the combination of a closure lens therefor that is provided with a plurality of appropriately spaced lugs extending from the rear face thereof, and a non-glare masking device directly supported by said lugs in proximate association with the aforesaid rear face of said lens, which masking device embodies an open frame support for engagement with said lugs and containing a vertical series of appropriately spaced and forwardly declining laterally disposed reflecting vanes.

3. In means for relieving the glare from projector lights, the combination of a closure lens therefor that is provided with a plurality of lugs extending from the rear face thereof, one of said lugs being formed with a seating recess and another with asnap-in socket, and a non-glare masking device directly supported by said lugs in proximate association-with the aforesaid rear face of said lens, which masking device embodies an open frame support containing a vertical declining laterally disposed reflecting vanes, and one portion of said open frame support being adapted for seating within said seating recess, while another portion thereof is provided with a snap-inspring element for projection within said snap-in socket.

series of appropriately spaced and forwardly c 1,637,622 3 c I a c 4. As an element of means for relieving lens, as positioned inwardly of the periphthe glare from projector lightsyof the chareraledge of the lens, and being adapted to acter disclosed, a closure lens thereforemdirectly and Wholly support a non-glare 10 bodying a plurality of lugs formed integrally shutter-slat masking device in proximate as- 5 with and projected from a face of said lens, sociation Withthe aforesaid face of the lens. the said lugs being disposed in spaced rela- In testimony whereof, I affix my signature. tion in a direction around the axis of said I HERBERT A. RADFORD.

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