US1683278A

US1683278A - Vehicle signal

Info

Publication number: US1683278A
Application number: US190402A
Authority: US
Inventors: Altman Vladislav
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1927-05-11
Filing date: 1927-05-11
Publication date: 1928-09-04
Anticipated expiration: 1945-09-04

Description

sept. 4, 192s. 1,683,278

' V. ALTMAN VEHICLE SIGNAL v Filed May 11, 1927 Patented Sept. 4, 1928.

tenais Unirse stares' 'VLADISLAV ALTMAN, OF RACINE, VIISCONSIN.

VEHICLE SIGNAL.

Application nea nay 11, 1927. seriai No. 190,402.

5 nals ofthe general type shown andv described in Letters Patent No. 1,579,853, granted to me on April 6, 1926. The ordinary danger or direction-indicating signal used on automobiles, as well'as stop and go street-crossing signals include a lamp and a colored lens through which the light rays' from the lamp are transmitted and correspondinglyV colored. Such a signal is entirely satisfactory for night work butis often misleading in the daytime. if a driver approaches such a signal with the sun behind him, the reflected sunlight rays from the colored glass will give the latter the same appearance that it has when the rays from the lamp are transmitted through the glass. Hence, under these circumstances, the signal is liable to be misread. In my former Letters Patent above identilied, I have disclosed a vehicle signal comprising a lamp and a colored translucent curtain that is movable bodily between operative and inoperative positions relatively vto the lamp, and when moved into operative position wherein it surrounds the lamp, the

vlatter may be lighted at the same time that the sleeve is moved into such position. Normally. during daylight running, the colored sleeve is out of sight, so that Jr'alse reading oi' the signal due to relected sunlight is impossible.

My present invention is based upon the same. broad principle as they device of my former Letters Patent, but is designedto provide a simpler and a more compact embodiment oi this principle, and one which will require less movement of the manual signal-operating means. ln carrying out the present invention, l employ, in connection with a lamp, a curtain-consisting of one or a group ot' translucent color-displaying members mounted in front of or around the lamp, uncolored on one side and colored on the opposite side and capable of being turned so as to present to external View either the uncolored side or sides or the colored side or sides. The operating mechanism for said curtain is so set that normally it will present to external view only its white or uncolored side, and when the signal is to be announced, it is turned so as to present to external view its colored side, the lamp colored.

being simultaneously lighted when the signal is displayed at night.

The invention, in several practical forms in which it maybe embodied, is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a vertical axialrsection of one form oi the device;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the lline 2 2 of Fig. 1; i V

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan View; 'F ig. 4 is a horizontal section, similar to Fig. 2, showing a modified form of curtain; Fig. 5 is-a sectional detail showing the curtain pieces of Fig. 4 equipped with a color-rectifying member. y i

Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, designates a `circular base plate formed with a depending peripheral flange 11, and'12 designatesa white glass dome or cover mounted on and attached to the base plate 10 by a clamp ring 13 threading onto the flange 11. @n the center of the base plate 10 is a hollow boss 14 onto which is lscrewed a socket to receive the neck of an electric lamp 17. boss 14`is a sleeve 18A within which is tightly fitted a hollow plug 19 carrying an upwardly spring-pressed terminal Contact vmember 20, to the lower end ot' which is connected an electric circuit wire 21 controlled by a switch (not shown) .for lighting and extinguishing the lamp.

Surrounding the lamp' 17 is a curtain composed ot a circular group ot' vertical cylindrical members 220i' glass or other translucent material. lThe member 22-is so con.- structed that one longitudinal half of its periphery will be colored and the kother unby making each cylinder 22 in mating halves 22fL and 22h oi colored and uncolored glass respectively. .Mounted in the lower end of eachl cylinder 22 is a spindle 23 journale'd in the base 10 and carrying on its lower ene a pinion 24; and similarly mounted in the This may be conveniently eiiectedv Screwed into the hollow' upper end of each cylinder isa spindle 25 journaled in a rino` 26 that is itself mounted on the upper ends of vertical rods 27y secured. in the base '10.

Journaled on a short depending extension 14 of the boss 14 is a gear wheel 28locked in place by the head or" the sleeve 18, said gear 28 meshing with all of the pinions 24. Attached to a post 29 on theunder side of the gear 28 vis a pull cord or wire 30 guided outwardly from the post v29 through a coil wire sleeve 3l mounted in a depending bracket 32 attached to the under side of a ring plate l0 underlying and secured to the base plate l0. The inner end of the guide sieeve 3l serves as a stop to limit the turn-V ing movement of the gear 28 to an extent which su'ilices to imparta half turn to each of the cylinders 22; and when the pull on the Wire is released, a spring 33 exerting its thrust against the post 29 automatically returns the gear E28 to initiall position, the post 29 being arrested on its return movement by a fixed stop arm 29 attached to the under side of the ring plate 10.

With the parts as shown in Fig. 3, the Colored half sections of the cylinders are all on the inner side of the curtain, while the uncolored sections are on the outer side of the curtain. I-Ience, in this position of the curtainy only the uncolorcd side of the latter is visible from a point outside the curtain, and 'refiected light rays are uncolored. lVhen the signal is to be displayed, the driver pulls the wire 80 outwardly, which instantly 'exposes' to external view the colored side of the curtain, and this action may also close the switch through the lamp so as to light lli the latter. Thereupon the rays transmitted through the curtain are colored. If desired,

vthe circuit may includeA a manual switch which can be opened during daylight drivfing, so thatwhen the signal is manipulated Iduring t-he daytime it will act by reiiected light only. I have not herein shown circuit actuating and controlling means, since the same means fully shown and described in my former pat-,ent may be employed.

It is desirable in a device of this character that the curtain or canopy encircling the lamp and represented by the circular group of glass cylinders 22 should bar the transmission of any direct light rays between the units of the curtain; and to provide for this, I may make the glass units in such a forni that adjacent units will cooperate to occlude any rays from the lamp seeking to pass between them. For example, in Fig. 4 I show .the individual curtain units formed with longitudinal ribs 34 on rtheir peripheries, and the units set so close together that theribs of adjacent units will intermesh, although preferably without actually coming into contact, in order to reduce friction to a minimum.

It is a known fact in optical science that certain colors present different appearances under 'natural light and artificial light., respectively. For examples, blue andv green are readily distinguishable in daylight, ybut are almost or quite indistinguishable under artificial light; and the same is true of orange and amber. VThis is capable of correction by combining two colors or different lshades of a single color. For example, in IFig. 5 I show a crosssectionof one of the curtain members of Fig; 4-Wherein one secnesaars tion may be assumed to bewhite and the other section green. Between the meeting faces of t-he tivo sections is interposed a thin colorrectifying strip 85, in this case blue. The-n so constructed, the colored strip will exhibit the same color both by reflected day-- light and by transmitted artificial light. Hence, to preserve uniformity of color display in both daylight and darkness, the units of the shiftable curtain or canopy are preferably constructed as last above described.

I claiml. In a signal device ofthe character de scribed, the combination with la lamp, of a curtain comprising a group of translucent members pivoted side by side on parallel axes opposite said lamp, saidvmembers having colored and uncolored portions on corresponding opposite sides thereof respectively, and means for simultaneously rotating said members through a half turn whereby to expose either of said portions to view from a point on the opposite side of said curtain from said lamp.

2. In a signal device of the character described, the combination With a lamp, of a curtain for said lamp comprising a circular group of translucent pieces pivotekd side by side on parallel axes encircling said lamp, said pieces having colored and uncolored portions on corresponding opposite sides thereof respectively, and means for simultaneously rotating said pieces through equal angles whereby to expose either ofr said portions to view from any point outside. said curtain.

3. In a signal device of the character described, the combination with a lamp, of a curtain comprising a ygroup-of translucent cylinders pivoted side by side on parallel axes opposite said lamp, said cylinders having colored and uncolored portions on corresponding opposite sides thereof respectively and provided with interfitting ribs on their peripheries to prevent light rays from the lamp passing between them, and means lfor simultaneously rotating said cylinders through a half turn whereby to expose either of said portions to View from a point on the opposite side of said curtain from said lamp.

4. In a signal device of the character described, the combination with a lamp, of a curtaincomprising a group of translucent members pivotcd side by side on parallel axes opposite said lamp, each of said members consisting of longitudinal halves of opalescent and. colored vglass secured together, and means for simultaneously rotating said members through a half turn to expose either said' opalescent or said colored halves to view from a point on the opposite side of said curtain from said lamp.

5. In a signal device of the character described, the combination with .a lamp, of a i members pivoted side by side on parallel axes opposite said lamp, each of said members consisting of longitudinal halves of opalescent and colored glass and a thin interposed color-rectifying strip secured together, and means for simultaneously rotating said members through a half turn to expose either side of said curtain to vieW from a point en the opposite side of said curtain frein said lamp.

6. The Icombination, in a signal device, of a base member, a lamp centrally mounted on said base member, a circular group of upright translucent members pivoted side by side on parallel axes around said lamp, one longitudinal half of each of said members being colored and the other uncolored, a central gear journaled on said base, pinions on said members meshing with said gear, and means for imparting limited rotation in both directions to said gear.

7. The combination, in a signal device, of a base member, a lamp centrally mounted on said base member, a circular group of upright translucent members pivoted side by side on parallel axes around said lamp, one longitudinal half of each of said members being colored and the other unicolored, a central gear journaled on said base, pinions on right translucent members pivoted Side by side on parallel axes around said lamp, one longitudinal half o1c each of said members being colored and the other uncolored, a cen-l tral gear journaled on said base, pinions on said members meshing with said gear, a'pullv cord attached to said gear eccentrically of the latter to turn said gear in one direction, a spring urging said gear in the reverse direction, and movement limiting stops for both said pull cord and said spring.

9. ln a signal device of the ycharacter described, the combinationwvth a lamp, of a curtain comprising a. group of translucent members each having a colored and an uncolored side, and means for simultaneously shifting said members to expose either their colored sie es or their uncolored sides to view from a point on the opposite side of said curtain from said lamb.

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