US1717742A - Advertising device - Google Patents

Description

June 18, 1929.

W. D. SMITH 'ADVERT I S ING DEVI CE Filed July '20, 1927 lik In 5 sheets-sheet l J 33/ "9^" i //9 57 f7 43 '5" H s Il, /l Il j 39 wr D. SMITH ADVERTISING DEVICE June 18, 1.929.

Filed July 2o, 1927 3 sheets-sheet 2 June 18, 1929. w. D. sMlrH 1,717,742

ADVERTISING DEVICE Filed July 2o, 1927 :s sheets-sheet 5 Patented June 18, 1929.

UNITED STATES WILLARD D. SMITH, OF MAPLEWOOD, MISSOURI.

ADVERTISING DEVICE.

Application led July 20,

rIhis invention relates to animated advertising devices, and more especially, to collapsible advertising devices adapted to bring into prominence a changing display of goods.

Among the several objects of the invention is the provision of an article of the type set forth, said article being easily constructed of readily obtainable materials, having a display that edectively attracts the eye of a prospective customer, being easily operable without expensive outlay for power or equipment, and constructed in a manner that permits folding of the completed article so that it may be readily packed or shipped. Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises the elements and combination of elements, features of construction, and arrangements of 2o parts which will be exemplified in the strucl ture hereinafter described, and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawings, in which is illustrated one of various possible embodiments of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a front view of the assembled disp 2 is a side view of the assembled display partly in section, showing the method of operating it;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a rotor showing a panel thereof broken away;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary detail view, partly in section showing the supports of the rotor;

Fig. is a plan view showing the parts of the display dismounted, folded and placed in position for packing; and

Fig. 6 is an end elevation of the dismounted `display shown in Fig. 5.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2 there is illustrated at numeral 1 the background board or panel of the display upon which is designated the name, advantages, price, and such features of the article being advertised. It is made from strong,

thin stock, preferably wall board. More or less centrally located in this board is an archshaped opening 3. Removably mounted with- 1927. serial No. 267,077.

in this opening or hole is a rotor 5, supported on a shaft 7 which in turn is supported by bearings 9 and 11 located on the front and back, top and bottom respectively of the opening 3 (see also Fig. 4). The reason for this type of mounting will be disclosed herein-` after.

The background board or panel 1 is held erect by two supports 13 at opposite ends of said board 1. These supports 13 comprise preferably triangular shaped pieces of wall board or other stock with predetermined angles of support, and are affixed to the board 1 so that they may be folded back against it, into the shipping position shown in Figs. 5 and 6. In order to insure the stability of the display, these supports 13 are cut so that the entire display leans backward. In order in insure free movement of the rotor 5, the shaft 7 is positioned somewhere nearly upright. To accomplish this, the bearings 9 and 11 are set on the front and the back of board 1 respectively, as above described (see Fig. 4). Bearing 9 is made of thin spring steel, and bearing 11 is made of a like but heavier piece of metal. Both bearings are aHiXed to board 1 by bolts 15. Bearing 9 has in it a hole 17 adapted to receive the upper end of shaft 7, and bearing 11 is provided with hole 1'9 adapted to receive thepointed lower end of shaft 7 and permit it to rotate therein. The size and shape of these bearings is regulated by the slope for which the display is fixed and the holes 17 and 19 are placed so that shaft 7 will be substantially upright when the board 1 rests on the supports 13.

The rotor 5 comprises two circular discs or tables 21 and 23 (see also Fig. 3). These `discs are made of suitable light stock such as wall board, and have in their centers holes 25 and 27 respectively, through which pass shaft 7. The upper surface of disc 23 has affixed thereto by means of cardboard hinges 29 display panels 31, 33, 35, 37. These display panels are maintained in an upright position by means of tracks, or slots 38, on the under side of disc 21. The tracks 38 individually comprise two .shaped pieces of cardboard arranged to leave a space between them suHiciently wide to accommodate the tops of said display panels 31, 33, 35 and 37 and are firmly afixed to said disc 21.

In Fig. 3, panel 33 has been removed to prise (separately) frames 42, built of saidv wall board, with .pieces of transparent col# ored glass, isinglass or similar material 40 mounted therein. The quadrants of disc or table 23 are coloredwith colors complementary to the panels 31, 33, 35 and 37; so that in revolving the entire rotor, striking color effects are obtained.

Hingedly affixed to the under side of the disc 23 are a plurality of cardboard vanes 39,

- adapted to fold back against said disc. These vanes 39 occupy radial positions with respect to disc 23 and shaft 7, and are held in an upright position by tabs 45.

To the under side of disc 21 a wooden block 41 is affixechand through the center of said block runs a hole adapted to fit shaft 7 tightly. This arrangement is made to aiiix the rotor 5 as a whole to shaft 7 so that it may not revolve thereon. Cotter pins 43 through shaft 7 prevent the lower disc 23 from sliding upwardly or downward upon said shaft. y y

In Figs. 5 and 6 is shown the display in a dismounted form. It is readily seen how shipment is facilitated by the flat nature of the dismounted parts. The supports 13 fold back flat against the back of background panel 1. The rotor is removed from its bearings by springing said bearings and the display panels 31, 33, 35 and 37 fold down on their hinges after the disc 21 is slipped from the shaft 7. Disc 23 is removed from shaft 7 and the vanes 39 are folded back against disc 23. The parts are all, therefore, substantially flat, and they may be laid on one another in any arrangement (Fig. 5 is typical) rendering packing and shipping extremely simple. The small hardware (including wooden and metal parts) may be wrapped separately and included in the one hat parcel. To assemble the display from the folded parts as shipped, one proceeds as follows:

First, stand the background board 1 upon its supports 13. Second, place the cotter pins 43 in the shaft 7 after placing the disc 23 on said shaft, panels upward. Hinge the display panels to their open positions. Next, force the wooden block 41 with disc 21 attached, on said shaft, sothat the side of disc 21 with the tracks thereon is downward. The block 41 is forced down until the tracks or slots on the top edge of display panels 31, 33, 35 andk 37 under side of disc 21 engage the,

and hold them firmly. Bend the vanes 39 to an upright position and secure them in this upright position by means of tabs 45. To complete the assembly, place the shaft 7 with the now completely assembled rotor affixed thereto in its bearings 9 and 11.

To operate the device, the preferred form of motive power used to drive the rotor is air in motion, while an electric light with a reflector 47 provides the light necessary. In the figure shown,an electric fan 49, by means of its driving force on vanes 39, serves to turn the rotor at a speed regulated' by the speed of the fan.

The fan may also be directed as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2; so as to act with a tangential component on the rotor 5 and prevent the greater part of theI air current from traveling through the opening 3. A thermal flasher device 55 may be inserted in the line feeding the fan, so that the fan circuit is turned on and off intermittently. Any similar automatic current controlling means may be used. In this case it is desirable to use a stopping arrangement to cause the rotor to stop at a predetermined position when its motive power is cut-off. To this end, a pair of leather flaps 57 (Fig. 1) and a series of pairs of pins 59 are provided on the background board 1 and the table 23 respectively. This combination of elements acts to stop the rotor at predetermined positions when the air from the fan is turned off intermittently.

It is understood that other forms of drivers may be used such as an electric motor coupled directly to shaft 7 to rotate said shaft.

With the rotor moving at a suitable speed, the light being focused properly, a novel and animated color effect is obtained byviewing the display from the front.`

In view of the above, it is believed that the various features of this invention willV be clear without further elaboration, and it will be seen that with the apparatus, method and results herein described, the several objects of the invention are achieved and Vother ad-Y vantageous results attained.

As manychanges could be made in carrying out the above invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. l

I claim: y

1. The display device comprising a sloping background panel, at least one opening therein, a opening, said rotor being mounted on'bearings located forwardly and rearwardly of said background panel.

2. The display device comprising a background panel sloping rearwardly and upwardly, at least one opening therein, a rotatable member mounted in said opening on on upwardly located bearing ahead of said panel rotor adapted to rotate in said and on a downwardly located bearing behind tersectng said shaft at an angle between the said panel. bearings.

3. The collapsible display comprising a In testimony whereof, I have signed my 10 background panel, at least one opening therename to this speoication this 18th day of 5 in a shaft passing through said opening and July, 1927.

supporting a rotor and supported by bearings, the plane of the background panel in- WILLARD D. SMITH.

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