US2459694A

US2459694A - Structure for fluorescent dial panel and method of making the same

Info

Publication number: US2459694A
Application number: US552459A
Authority: US
Inventors: Joseph M Gordon
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1944-09-02
Filing date: 1944-09-02
Publication date: 1949-01-18
Anticipated expiration: 1966-01-18

Description

Jan. 18, 1949.

Patented Jan. 18, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE STRUCTURE FOR FLUORESCENT DIAL PANEL AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME 3 Claims.

This invention relates to a multi-colored fluoM rescent panel which can be used to manufacture radio dials, and to a process for making such panels. A fluorescent radio dial generally consists of a panel made of 1ltranslucent plastic, upon which is applied a fluorescent pigment which constitutes the dial markings, all of the rest of the surface of the panel being opaqued out. The uorescent pigments are generally applied to the plastic panel by a silk screening process. In the past, if the panel was to have a plurality of different colored scales thereon the silk screening process had to be repeated for the respective colors. Therefore such dials were necessarily expensive. It ls an object oi the present invention to provide a panelwhich can be used in the manufacture of multi-colored radio dials, wherein the panel itself is of a plurality of colors, one for each of the colored scales desired on the panel, so that all ofthe different .colored scales may be formed on the panel by a single operation.

The panel of the present invention, which is to form a radio dial, consists of a seamless sheet of transparent or translucent fluorescent plastic of suflicient thickness to give it the necessary rigidity and strength for the uses intended, and of different colors at dilerent areas of the sheet surface.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved method oi making a panel of the above mentioned character. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present in vention a suitable plastic forming liquid, having incorporated therein a suitable fluorescent pig ment, is placed in a rectangular container. After partial or complete hardening of the liquid another mass of plasticv forming liquid, having incorporated therein a fluorescentV pigment of another color, is placed above it. Above that second mass of plastic forming liquid I may, optionally, deposit one or more additional layers of plastic forming liquids, each having incorporated therein fluorescent pigments of the desired colors, and each being placed in the container after the pren ceding layer has hardened. This mass of liquid then forms a rectangular transparent or translucent brick of plastic material, said brick .com sisting of layers of different colors integrally united into one unitary structure. The brick thus formed may then be sliced into slices or sheets of the requisite panel thickness, say slices of approximately 1&0 of an inch, more or less, de pending upon the physical strength required of the panel to be formed. vEach one of these sheets may then be silk screened to form on the sheet 2 hence the dial markings on the different parts of the sheet will be of the characteristic colors of those parts.

The attainment of the above and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing forming a part thereof.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a perspective View of a block or brick from which radio panels of the present invention are to be made;

Figure 2 is a perspective View of a panel cut from the brick or block of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a perspective View illustrating the method of printing the dial markings on the panel of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a iront View oi a radio dial panel embodying the present invention.

In Figure l I have shown a multi-layered brick l, of material which is pervious to light, preferably a transparent or translucent plastic, having iiuorescent material incorporated therein. In this instance the brick comprises three layers, namely, a lowerrnost layer 2 colored red, an intermediate orange colored layer 3, and a top green colored layer 4. A greater or lesser number oi layers may be provided, and the colors chosen are arbitrary. The respective layers may be of mutually different colors or may be of diferent shades of the saine color.

The brick or block l may be formed by pouring into a container a body of liquid thermoplastic forrning material 2 having incorporated therein a suitable fluorescent pigment of the appropriate color. After partial or complete hardening of this `material t another body of liquid thermo-plastic forming material having other colored fluorescent pigment incorporated therein is gently poured on top of the previous layer` This is repeated for as many layers as desired, each layer being poured in after partial or complete hardening of the previous layer. There is thus formed a solid blo i of inulti-layered plastic, the layers being of dierent colors or shades. The layers 3 and t may be he saine or of different thicknesses as desired in the finished product. After the material has fully solidified it is removed from the container 5 or, more appropriately, the container, which may be made of sections, is removed iroin the brick. While this represents one method of making the multicolored laminated plastic brick the same may be made in any other desired manner. For instance, three

slabs

2, 3 and 4, oi differently colored uorescent thermplastic material, may be placed one on top of the other and suitably secured together into one unitary structure in any other desired manner, as by the use of a plastic cement or .as by the application of heat and pressure thereto. The resulting product is a laminated brick of dierent colored thermo-plastic materials united into one integral structure.

The brick I is then sliced crosswise, as by a line of cut 6, to form sheets such as the sheet 'I (Fig. 2) of the appropriate thickness, say 1%-,0 of an inch to 1/8 of an inch or more. The sheet is suiiciently rigid to be self supporting in a radio set. This sheet, therefore, consists of a lowermost red strip 2', :an intermediate orange strip 3', and an uppermost green strip 4'. The different colors are inthe form of strips extending across the sheet with the longitudinal edges of adjacent strips in edge to edge abutment and united together to form seamless joints, all three strips constituting one unitary integral sheet of different colors at different places on the sheet. The sheet 'I is fluorescent, that is, when activated by ultra violet or near ultra violet light it will glow in the respective characteristic colors.

Different radio scales are then formed on the

respective strips

2', 3 and 4 by any process which opaques out the entire surface of the strip except where the markings are to appear. The resulting product is an intaglio print. It may be made, for instance, by the silk screen process, as illustrated in Figure 3. In this gure there is shown a silk screen IIJ which has different scales II, I2 'and I3 formed thereon by opaque markings on the screen, each of the scales extending lengthwise of the screen. The screen is laid over the sheet 'I and an opaque pigment is applied to the surface of the sheet 'I through the screen I0. The pigment penetrates the screen and covers the entire sheet 'I except at the places where there are the opaque scale markings II, I2 and I3 on the screen. At those places no pigment reaches the surface of the sheet 1, fand therefore the sheet 'l remains exposed only at those places where the opaque scale markings appear on the screen I0. Upon removal of the screen from the sheet 'I the entire surface of the sheet 1 has been opaqued out except where the markings occur. The exposed parts constituting the scale markings are therefore green along the strip 4' where the scale II is formed, orange on the strip 3 where the scale I2 is formed and red on the strip 2 where the scale I3 is formed. There is thus formed in a single operation an intaglio print of three scales on the sheet 1, the scales being each of different colors. The sheet 'I is then ready for mounting as a radio or instrument panel.

While I have here spoken of the sheet l as constituting a radio panel, it is, of course, apparent that the sheet 'I can constitute a panel on any instrument board where it is desired to have two or more adjacent scales of diierent colors. This may be true in an automobile, on the control board of an aircraft, or wherever 'a multi-dial instrument panel is provided. When the panel is illuminated by a source of ultra violet or near ultra violet light the fluorescent plastic which is exposed at the dial markings glows with a visible light so that the respective scales or dials are sharply apparent. The source of ultra violet or near ultra violet light for illuminating the panel may be mounted behind the panel, as part of the structure or board whereon the panel is mounted or, if desired, the panel may be illuminated by a source of ultra violet or near ultra violet light located outside of the instrument, that is, located within the room but outside of the instru- 4. ment. In either event the dial markings on the sheet '1, and only the dial markings, will be Visible, and they willbe visible in the respective colors of Vthe strips 2', 3' and 4. It is thus apparent that by using a multi-colored fluorescent sheet 'l' it is possible to make a multi-colored plurality of Idials by a single operation, thus reducing the cost of making multi-colored instrument dials. The reference, in thisdescription, to different colors is intended to include dilerent shades of the same color.

In compliance with the requirements of the patent statutes I have here shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention. It is, however, to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise embodiment here shown, the same being merely illustrative 0f the principles of the invention. What is considerednew and desired to be secured by Letters Patent'is:

1. A fluorescent sheet of light pervious material comprising strips united together edge to edge into an integral seamless sheet, the strips having incorporated therein colored fluorescent pigments, the pigments in successive strips being of dierent colors, and a scale formed on each strip b-y an opaque lm which covers one surface of the sheet and has dial mark openings thereinv whereby the colors of the respective scales are the different colors of the respective strips.

2. A multiple scale dial for an instrument wherein different scales are of different colors, comprising a sheet of light pervious material different portions of which are of different fluorescent colors, and an opaque covering for -onesurface of the sheet, said covering having dial mark openings therethrough over the dilerent colored portions of the sheet.

3. The method of making a multi-scale dial whereon the different scales are of different colors which comprises providing a foundation sheet having fluorescent pigment arranged across Vthe sheet in strips and with diierent strips of viiuorescence of different colors, then forming scales on all of the strips by applying an opaque nlm over an entire surface of the foundation sheet except where the dial markings are to appear, whereby the dial markings appear in the different colors of fluorescence of .the respective strips.

JOSEPH M. GORDON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS The ABC of Luminescence, The New Jersey Zinc Co., Front St., New York, N. Y.