US2863240A - Balanced color illumination system - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 9, 1958 Y B. R. GLUKES 2,863,240

BALANCED coLoR ILLUMINATION SYSTEM Filed June 8, 1956 INVENTOR. /V@ 2, GLZ/ZES acz 2504/6/47 United States Patent Olce 2,863,240 Patented Dec. 9, 1958 BALAN CED COLOR ILLUMINATION SYSTEM Bernard R. Glukes, North Hollywood, Calif. Application June 8, 1956, Serial No. 590,242

4 Claims. (Cl. 40-132) This invention relates to lighting and more particularly to lighting of signs and displays.

In my United States Patent No. 2,300,447, issued November 3, 1942, I disclosed and claimed an animated sign using the principle of color occlusion. In my copending application Serial No. 461,317, tiled October 11, 1954, I disclosed an improved mechanism for obtaining colored light alternations utilizing three light sources, one of which was a white light. In my subsequent copending application Serial No. 499,045, I disclosed a further improvement utilizing two complementary light sources providing improved lighting characteristics.

This present application is a continuation-in-part of thelast mentioned application Serial No. 499,045 and is concerned with the balance between the complementary light sources and the improved visual elfects.

It is therefore, an object of this invention to provide a novel light source which functions as a highly eiicient color corrective light source.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a light source for an animated sign producing enhanced lighting effects.

Other objects and advantages will be readily apparent from the following description:

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of an animated sign.

Figure 2 is a section taken along line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an elevation of the light sources.

Figure 4 illustrates the appearance of one of the indicia when all light sources are functioning and when each source is operating.

Figure 5 is a section taken along line 5-5 of Figure l.

In this embodiment the light source comprises three lamps, 10, 11 and 12, which are colored turquoise, red and turquoise respectively. Such lamps may be painted incandescent lamps. These colors are suggested as an example and `any combination of substantially complementary colors may be used such as red and green. The lamps are housed in a cabinet 14 having in one wall thereof a plate or sign face 16 to be illuminated. This sign face may be formed of an opalescent plate, groundglass plate or any other light diiusing material. An example utilized herein is a suitable transparent light transmitting sheet 18 having the side adjacent the lamps covered with a light diffusing translucent white paint 20. White is preferred though any color may be used which will not noticeably occlude either of the light sources utilized. The front face of the sign has indicia 21 thereon, in this instance the letters A, B, C and D, which are formed of colored transparent or translucent paints. The background 22 is formed of an opaque paint preferably of contrasting color with the indicia. Although it is preferred that the background be opaque and the indicia vbe transparent the degree of opacity of each may be varied as long as there is a contrast between the two. ln the present example each indicia is formed on an outer and inner outline of blue (see Figures 1 and 4) with a middle outline of red, the outlines of the letters being separated by white areas formed by the white paint 20 through transparent sheet 18.

As seen in Figure 4, when both the red and turquoise lights are illuminated the indicia will be lighted red in the center surrounded by white and having a blue border. When only the red light is illuminated the red and white areas transmit light and appear red while the blue area by the color occlusion principle absorbs the red light rays and appears black. In this instance there is a slight contrast between the red and white areas although both are red in color. The background 22 is whatever color of opaque paint was selected.

When only the turquoise lamps are illuminated the letters appear blue through the transparent blue and white areas and black through the red area of the indicia, while the background remains unchanged in color.

Thus in operation the lights are alternately illuminated for example, rst the turquoise, then the red, then simultaneously, that is, both red and turquoise in any desired time intervals and sequence by a suitable cam system, as more particularly described in my copending application, Serial No. 461,317, or any other means well known to those skilled in the art, giving the sign an animated eifect.

lt has been determined that the proper balance to obtain the desired white areas in the indicia when both lights are illuminated requires that the turquoise or short wave length light source outbalances the red or long wave length light source between ve to one and two to one in luminative power. If the upper limit of ve to one is exceeded the desired white areas are bluish in color and if the lower limit of two to one is exceeded they are reddish in color. Also there has been noted that such a light balancing produces a glowing elect in the indicia similar to fluorescence of the indicia.

A light source thus formed of substantially complementary light sources in the ratio above set forth also produces startling elfects when used to light up a display or sign by reection, reecting back all the colors in a true fashion similar to sunlight, thus producing a far more realistic scene for example, in artists studios, store windows and interior set lighting and similar uses.

While what hereinbefore has been described is the preferred embodiment of this invention, it is readily apparent that alterations and modifications may be resorted to without departing from the scope of this invention and such alterations and modicatons are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An animated indicia device comprising a pair of substantially complementary colored incandescent light sources having different wave lengths, means for energizing said sources at predetermined intervals and simultaneously and light transmission indicia illuminated by light from said sources and having at least one color element, the same as one of said light sources, the illuminating intensity of the shorter wave length light source being more than two and less than tive times greater than the illuminating intensity of the longer wave length light source.

2. An animated indicia device comprising a pair of substantially complementary colored incandescent light sources having different wave lengths, means for energizing said sources at predetermined intervals and simultaneously, light transmission indicia illuminated by light from said sources and having at least one color element substantially the same as one of said light sources, and a white light transmitting element, the illuminating intensity of the shorter wave length light source being more than two and les's than five times greater than the illuminating intensity of the greater length light source.

3. An animated indicia device comprising a pair of substantially complementary coloredsincandescent light sources having dilerent wave lengths, means forenergz' ing said sources at predetermined intervalsl land simultaneously, and light transmission indicia i'llur'ninatedby light from said sources and having substantially Icomplementary color elements, the same assaid light sources, the illuminating intensity `of the shorter wave length light source being more than two and less than ve 'times greater than the illuminating intensity of the longer Wave length light source.A t

4. An animated indicia device Ycomprising a pair of substantially complementary Vcolored incandescent light sources having diferentwave lengths,v means for energizing said sources at predeterminedintervals, light transmission 'indicia illuminated by light from said sources 4 and having substantially complementary color elements, the lsame as said light sources, separated by a white light transmitting element, the illuminating intensity of one light source being more than two and less than five times greater than the illuminating intensity of the greater length light source.

References Cited in the file of this patent t UNITED STATES PATENTS 643,872

Hill Feb. 20, 1900 655,264 Nichol Aug. 7, 1900 1,276,494 Craig Y Y..a Aug. 20, 1918 1,342,247 Bittinger June 1, 1920 1,348,957 P'ope Aug. 10, 1920 1,357,783 Leachman Nov. 2, 1920 1,374,282 Craig Apr. 12, 1921

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