US2897617A - Multiple sign arrangement for use with taximeters or the like - Google Patents

Description

W. HAUPT Aug. 4, 1959 MULTIPLE S IGN ARRANGEMENT FOR USEWITH TAXIMEITERS OR THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 14, 1956 INVENTOR /MM MW mm s. M

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR whim HM M 'M 6 3% MW Aug. 4., 1959 w. HAUPT MULTIPLE SIGN ARRANGEMENT FOR USE WITH TAXIMETERS OR THE LIKE Filed Nov. 14, 1sss mm a i l l I I l I I l l l ll QN m mm wm m? D r An Lw v fi f w 2 United States MULTIPLE SIGN ARRANGEMENT FOR USE WITH TAXllVIETERS R Tl-E LIKE Application November 14, 1956, Serial No. 622,139

Claims priority, application Great Britain November 14, 1955 6 Claims. (Cl. 40-52) The present invention relates to multiple sign arrangements.

For example, in taxicabs multiple signs are used in order to indicate whether the cab is hired, for hire, or simply stopped. At the present time signs of this type suffer from several defects. Thus, they are not clearly visible at night and also the mechanisms for rendering one sign of the plurality of signs available visible at any given time are relatively complex.

One of the objects of the present invention is to overcome the above drawbacks by providing a multiple sign with an extremely simple mechanism capable of reliably rendering one of a plurality of dilferent signs visible at any given time.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a sign of this type which can be used with a taximeter and which can be operated from a control on the taximeter which may, if desired, be combined with a conventional taximeter control.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a multiple sign arrangement of the above type where in the various signs become separately visible by the use of slides which need move only through a very short distance.

With the above objects in view the present invention mainly consists of a multiple sign arrangement capable of being used with taximeters or the like, this arrangement including a panel having thereon a plurality of diiferent inscriptions which are visible on the face of the panel. A slide means overlaps this one face of the panel and is shiftable with respect thereto between a plurality of positions at which the several inscriptions are respectively visible separately. A manually operable positioning means is operatively connected to the slide means to enable the operator to selectively position the slide means in one of its positions where a selected one of the signs is rendered visible.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a multiple sign arrangement according to the present invention, the front rim of the casing of Fig. 1 being omitted in order to clearly illustrate the structure;

Fig. 2 shows the structure of Fig. 1 with the parts thereof in a position diiferent from that of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 also shows the structure of Fig. 1 but with the parts thereof in a third position;

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevational View taken along line IV--IV of Fig. 3 in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional elevational view illustrating the structure for moving a slide of the invention and for guiding the slide for movement; and

atent "ice Fig. 6 is a wiring diagram of the electrical structure for operating the multiple sign arrangement of the invention.

Referring now to Figs. 1-3 of the drawings, it will be seen that the multiple sign structure of the invention includes a casing 1 in which is located a stationary panel 4 on whose front face are visible three inscriptions made up of three rows of indicia. The upper row of indicia forms the word For. The second row of indicia forms a pair of words. Thus, it will be seen from the drawings that the indicia which form the word Hired alternate with the indicia which forms the word Hire. Finally, the bottom third row of indicia carried by panel 4 forms the word Stopped. It will be noted from Figs. 1-3 that the indicia of the several inscriptions are spaced from each other through predetermined distances. The first of the three inscriptions is composed, in the embodiment illustrated, of the two words For Hire, whereas the second and third inscriptions are composed of single words, respectively reading Hired and Stopped.

The panel 4 is fixed in the interior of the casing 1 in any suitable way and is preferably made of an opaque material, while the indicia is made of a material through which light may pass such as a suitable translucent plastic, glass, or the like, and the indicia may be located in suitably shaped openings of the panel 4 so that when a light behind the panel is illuminated, the light will shine through the indicia in order to render the indicia clearly visible at night.

The front face of the panel 4 is overlapped by a slide means which is shiftable between a plurality of positions for separately rendering the several inscriptions visible, respectively, and this slide means takes the form of a pair of slides 2 and 3. The uper slide 2 has a lower portion which overlaps an upper portion of the lower slide 3. The upper slide 2 has an upper portion extending beyond the upper edge of the lower slide 3 and formed with a row of apertures 13 which alternate with the indicia 5 in the rest position of the slide 2 which is indicated in Fig. 1. At its lower portion which overlaps the upper portion of the slide 3, the slide 2 is formed with a second row of apertures 13 through which the indicia 6 forming the word Hired are visible, when the parts are in the position of Fig. 1.

The lower slide 3 is formed with a lower row of apertures 19 which in the rest position of the slide 3 alternate with the indicia forming the word Stopped, and this slide 3 'has in its portion which is located behind the slide 2 a row of apertures 21 through which the letters 5 of the word Hire are visible when the parts have the position shown in Fig. 3.

The upper slide 2 has at its opposite upper end portions a pair of lugs 8 and 9 which extend rearwardly from the front face of the slide 2. The lower slide 3 has at its lower right and left ends a .pair of rearwardly extending lugs 14 and 15. A pair of pins 11 and 12 are fixed to the right wall of the casing 1, as viewed in Fig. 1, and extend through a pair of openings in the lug 9 so as to guide the slide'2 for movement to the right and left, as viewed in Fig. 1, the pair of pins 11 and 12 serving not only to guide the slide for movement to the right and left but also to prevent turning of the slide. In the same way a pair of pins 17 and 18 fixed to the right wall of the casing 1, as viewed in Fig. 1, extend through a pair of openings of the lug 15 to guide the slide 3 for movement to the right and left.

As may be seen most clearly from Figs. 4 and 5, a pair of electromagnets 28 and 29 are located in the casing 1, the electromagnet 28 having a magnetic return yoke 26 fixed to the rear wall of the casing 1, while the electromagnet 29 has a magnetic return yoke 27 fixed to the rear wall of the casing 1. The electromagnet 28 has an armature which extends through thelug 8 of the slide 2 and which carries at the left face of the lug 8, as viewed in Fig. 5, a washer which prevents the lug 8 from moving to ,the left with respect to the armature 10, as viewedin Fig. 5. A coil spring 22 surrounds the armature It and bears against the lug 8 and the yoke 26 so as to urge the armature 10 together with the slide 2 to the left, as viewed in Fig. 5. The yoke 26 furthermore carries a screw 34 which may be turned in order to adjust the stroke of the armature 10.

In the sameway, the electromagnet 29 carries an arinature'16 which is connected to the lug 14 of the slide 3 in the same way thatthe armature 10 is connected to the lug 8 of theyslide 2, and a coil spring 23 is coiled about the armature 16 and urges the latter together with the slide 3 to the left, as viewed in Figs. 1-3.

.When. the . electromagnets 28 and 29 are not energized the springs 22and 23 locate the slides 2 and 3 in their rest position which is illustrated in Fig. 1.

A pair of light bulbs 30 and '31 are mounted in suitable sockets located within the casing 1 behind the panel 4 so that when the light bulbs are illuminated they will light up the inscriptions so that they will be easily visible at night. The inscriptions formed by the indicia 5, 6, and 7 are preferably made of a light color such as white and the panel 4 is itself made of a dark color, and the slides themselves have thesame color as the panel 4 so that the edges of the apertures of the slides are not visible.

The current is transmitted to the light bulbs 30 and 31 through the medium of springy electrical contact members 32 and 33 shown in Fig. 4.

A wiring diagram of the structure of the invention is shown in Fig. 6. This electrical structure includes a manually operable switch 35 which is located in and forms part of a taximeter. This switch has three angularly spaced contacts 37, 40 and 39. The switch also includes a rotary switch contact member 36 which may be turned to engage either of the contacts 37, 40 or 39 at the will of the operator. The contact 37 is connected through a lead 38 with the electromagnet 28, while the contact 39 is connected through alead 38 with the electromagnet 29. The rotatable contact member 36 is electrically connected with a suitable source of current such as the battery of a taxicab, and the light bulbs 30 and 31 are also connected to this battery, as indicated in Fig. 6. A separate switch which is used to illuminate the dial of the taximeter in the interior of the cab is connected in the circuit of the bulbs 30 and 31 so that the latter are illuminated whenever the taxi-meter itself is illuminated. Thelcontact 40 is simply an intermediate contact where the circuit to the solenoids 28 and 29 is broken so that both solenoids 28 and 29 are unenergized when the movable contact member 36 engages the contact 49. On the other hand, when the movable contact, member 36 engages the contact 37 the solenoid 28 is energized while when the contact 36 engages the contact 39 the solenoid 29 is energized.

The above-described structure'operatesas follows:

The operation of the lights for illuminating the multiple sign has already been described above. Assuming that a cab is stopped, then the operator of the cab moves the movable. contact 36 into engagement with the contact 39 so as to. energize the electromagnet 29, and this will cause the slide 3 to shift from the rest position thereof shown in Fig. 1 to the operating position thereof shown in Fig. 2, the slide 2 remaining in its rest position. As a result, the apertures 19 become aligned with the indicia 7, and therefore the inscription Stopped becomes visible, as is evident from Fig. 2. Moreover, it will be seen from Fig. 1 that in the rest position of the slides 2 and 3 theinscription Hired is visible both through the apertures 21 and through the lower row of apertures 13. The shifting of the slide 3 from the rest position thereof shown in Fig. l to the operating position thereof'shown in Fig. 2 causes the slide 3 to cover the indicia 6, and as a result only the lowermost inscription is visible through through the apertures 19 when the solenoid 29 is energized. Also, it will be noted that in order to accomplish this result it was only necessary for the slide 3 to shift to a distance approximately equal to the width of one of the openings 19.

Assuming now that the cab is hired out, then the operator simply moves the contact 36 into engagement with the contact 49, and both of the solenoids 28 and 29 are unenergized, so that the parts have the posit-ion shown in Fig. 1. Inthis position of the parts only the inscription Hired is visible, as is pointed out above. The indicia 6 which forms this inscription are located in the left portions of the openings 21, and the right portions of the openings 21 are covered by the slide 2 when the latter is in its rest position, as is evident from Fig. 1, so that the letters which form the inscription Hire are not visible at this time. It will be noted that in its rest position the slide 2 leaves the left portion of the openings 21 uncovered in order to render the inscription Hired visible.

When the operator of the cab wishes to hire out the cab, then he moves the contact 36 into engagement with the contact 37 so as to energize the solenoid 28, and this causes the slide 2 to be shifted from the position of Fig. l to that of Fig. rest position at this time. This shifting of the slide 2 causes the indicia 5 to become aligned with the aperture 13, so that the inscription For Hire becomes visible. Furthermore, it will be noted that the shifting of the slide 2 to the right from the position of Fig. l to that of Fig. 3 causes the slide 2 tocover the left portions of the apertures 21 so that the inscription Hired is covered. The last letter of this latter inscription is located in a separate narrower opening of the slide 3, as is evident particularly from Fig. 1.

Thus, with the structure of the invention an arrangement is provided where the slides need only move through a distance aproximately equal to the width of an openmg thereof in order to produce the desired result. With a pair of these slides it is possible to render any one of three difierent inscriptions visible at any given time.

Fig. 4 shows a front rim 24 fixed to the casing 1 and supporting thereon a front transparent glass plate 25.

The invention is not limited to the above described form represented in the drawings. It is also possible to make the arrangement such that the. inscription For Hire will be visible when both coils are demagnetised, the inscription Hired then appearing when one of the 0011s is energized. Which of the two solutions will eventually be chosen will largely depend on the local demand for taxis, that is to say whether on an average the taxis are for a longer time in the For Hire than in the Hired state or vice versa.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of multiple signs differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in multiple signs for taximeters or the like, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

3, the slide 3 remaining in its What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A multiple sign arrangement for use with taximeters or the like, comprising, in combination, a panel carrying three inscriptions which are visible on one face of said panel; a pair of slides overlapping said one face of said panel; means supporting said slides for shifting movement between a reset position and an operating position, said slides each being separately shiftable between its reset and operating position, and said slides rendering only one of two of said inscriptions visible when one of said slides is in its operating position while the other slide is in its rest position and rendering only the other of said two inscriptions visible when said one slide is in its rest position while the other slide is in its operating position while the third of said inscriptions remains invisible, and said slides rendering only the third inscription visible when both slides are in their rest position; and manually operable means operatively connected to said slides for selectively shifting the same to said positions thereof.

2. A multiple sign arrangement for use in taximeters or the like, comprising, in combination, a first slide formed with first and second rows of apertures; means supporting said first slide for shifting movement between a rest position and an operating position; a second slide overlapping only the portion of said first slide formed with said first row of apertures, said second slide being formed with a third row of apertures overlapping said first row of apertures, respectively, and said second slide being shiftable between a rest position, where, while said first slide is in its rest position, said second slide respectively covers first parts of said first row of apertures and where second parts of said first row of apertures are visible through said third row of apertures, and an operating position, where, while said first slide is in its rest position, said second slide covers said second parts of said first row of apertures and where said first parts of said first row of apertures are visible through said third row of apertures; means supporting said second slide for shifting movement between said positions thereof; a panel carrying a first row of indicia visible through said second row of apertures of said first slide only when the latter is in said operating position thereof, a second row of indicia visible through said second parts of said first row of apertures and said third row of apertures of said second slide when the latter and said first slide are in their rest positions, and a third row of indicia alternating with said second row of indicia and visible through said first parts of said first row of apertures and said third apertures of said second slide when the latter is in said operating position thereof while said first slide is in its rest position, said first slide covering said second row of indicia when said first slide is in its operating position; and means operatively connected to said slides for selectively placing only one of said slides in its operating position at any given time, so that when both slides are in their rest positions only said second row of indicia is visible, when said first slide is in said operating position thereof only said first row of indicia is visible, and when said second slide is in said operating position thereof only said third row of indicia is visible.

3. A multiple sign arrangement as recited in claim 2 and wherein said second slide has a portion extending beyond said first slide and formed with a row of apertures and wherein said panel has an additional row of indicia visible through the latter row of apertures only when said second slide is in its operating position.

4. A multiple sign arrangement as recited in claim 2 and wherein said first row of indicia reads Stopped," and wherein said first slide has a portion located beyond said second slide and formed with an additional aperture located in said first row of apertures and covered by said second slide when the latter is in said operating position, said first row of indicia reading Hired.

5. A multiple sign arrangement as recited in claim 4 and wherein said third row of indicia reads Hire and wherein said second slide has a portion extending beyond said first slide and formed with a row of three apertures and wherein said panel carries a row of indicia reading For visible through said three apertures only when said second slide is in its operating position, so that said second slide when it is in its operating position while said first slide is in its rest position will render the inscription For Hire visible.

6. A multiple sign arrangement for use with taximeters or the like comprising, in combination, a stationary panel carrying indicia which form at least three inscriptions visible on one face of said panel, at least two of said inscriptions being formed at least in part by a single row of indicia with the indicia of each inscriptions in said row alternating with the indicia of the other in scriptions in said row; a first slide having a longitudinal edge portion overlapping said single row of indicia and being formed at least in said edge portion with a row of aperture; a second slide having a longitudinal edge portion overlapping the longitudinal edge portion of said first slide and being formed at least with a row of apertures overlapping the row of apertures formed in said edge portion of said first slide, at least the apertures in one of said slides having a width at least equal to the width of at least two of adjacent indicia in said single row; means supporting said slides for shifting movement in longitudinal direction between a plurality of positions where said inscriptions are separately visible, respectively; and manually operable means operatively connected to said slides for selectively shifting the same to one of said positions thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 803,348 Lebeis Oct. 31, 1905 903,719 Herrmann Nov. 10, 1908 926,393 Dirking June 29, 1909 1,138,834 Bell May 11, 1915 1,308,658 Carr July 1, 1919 FOREIGN PATENTS 441,846 Great Britain Jan. 29, 1936 745,358 France May 10, 1933

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