US3005186A

US3005186A - Time lapse indicator

Info

Publication number: US3005186A
Application number: US857078A
Authority: US
Inventors: John C Van Aken
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1959-12-03
Filing date: 1959-12-03
Publication date: 1961-10-17
Anticipated expiration: 1978-10-17

Description

Oct. 17, 1961 Filed Dec. 5, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 &\

I I 1; \4 I A9; I I I l I I -28 I I I 2" I 55 A0 I 39 z? I 65 (7 30 I 34 I 3M I 35 36 I I \7\ x 24 33 INVENTOR.

JOHN C. VAN AKEN ATTORNEY Oct. 17, 1961 J. c. VAN AKEN TIME LAPSE INDICATOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 3, 1959 INVENTOR. JOHN C. VAN AKEN ATTORNEY Oct. 17, 1961 J. c. VAN AKEN 3,00

TIME LAPSE INDICATOR Filed D60. 5, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig. 7

IN V EN TOR. JOH N G. VAN AKEN ATTORNEY United States Patent TIME LAPSE INDICATGR John C. Van Aken, 159 Main St, Ridgway, Pa. Filed Dec. 3, 1959, Ser. No. 857,078 3 Claims. (Cl. 340-43) This invention relates to automatic street traflic signals and is particularly concerned with modifying such signals in a manner to provide safety measures for pedestrian trafiic.

Street trafiic signals in general utilize a yellow or amber light between changes of the red and green signals. The purpose of the yellow or amber light is to warn or caution all trafhc that a change from red to green or from green to red will take place in a short period usually in a matter of seconds. This short warning or caution period is often of no avail to pedestrian trafiic caught midway of a cross walk since motor traiiic may proceed on an anticipated green signal before the pedestrian trafiic is clear of the intersection which, of course, results in inconvenience, confusion and possibly accidents.

It is the broad object of this invention to supplement the usual traflic light signal system with a timing device which may indicate to pedestrian traffic whether or not there is sufficient time to cross an intersection in safety.

Another object is to provide an auxiliary housing containing time lapse mechanism and which is readily attachable to street traffic signals.

Another object is to provide'an auxiliary housing containing a compact arrangementof time lapse indicating mechanism.

Still another object is to provide a time lapse device which may be relatively inexpensively produced but provides an accuratetime lapse indicator.

Other and more detailed objects of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed explaination of the invention.

Referring to the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view in elevation showing diagrammatically the device of the present invention attached to a street traihc signal.

7 FIG. 2 is a plan view of the assembly of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the device of the present invention.

4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 taken at 90 thereto.

FIG. 5 is a sectional View taken on the line 55 of FIG. 4. a

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the apparatus of H61 and showing a wiring arrangement for synchronizing the operation of the main traffic signal with the auxiliary time lapse indicator lights.

FIG. 7 is a modification of the time lapse mechanism adapting the device for other uses.

Referring to FIGURES 1 and 2, the numeral 10 indicates a conventional street traffic signal structure having signal lights therein which are represented at G and R as the respective Go and Stop" signals and containing their operating electrical equipment. The traffic signal 10 is usually supported on a tubular standard 11 and power from a source is supplied to the signals G and R through suitable connecting lines enclosed in the standard 11 to supply power from a source. The above general structure is well known and is indicated by phantom lines while the device of the present invention is shown diagrammatically in FIG. 1 in full lines as an attachment to the old structure.

The time lapse device of this invention is in the form of an elongated rectangular or oblong shaped housing 12, of metal or other material to withstand weathering, which is readily attachable to the trafiicsignal 'structure j 10 through bolt connections 13-13 and containsthe time lapse'indicating equipment which is readily visible through ice . 2 transparent front face 14 to an observer along with the street traific signals G and R. The front face 14 isgeneral arcuately shaped in transverse cross section and is removably secured to the housing 12 by bolt connections 15-.15.

Detailed construction of the time lapse indicator is shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 andthe various elements are selected and arranged to provide a rugged relatively inexpensive and yet an accurate indicating mechanism. The auxiliary housing 12 provides an elongate rectangular or oblong compartment formed of

side walls

20 and 21, rear wall 22 with upper and

lower ends

23 and 24 respectively and the plastic transparent front face 14. A U-shaped carriage 25 for mounting other elements is located within the compartment and is arranged to be movable longitudinally thereof between the

housing ends

23 and 24. The carriage 25 is formed conveniently of non conducting material such as a molded plastic and has a top plate 26 and a bottom plate 27 which provide a sliding and guiding fit with

side walls

20 and 21 of the auxiliary housing 12. A lead screw 28 has its upper end 29 rotatably mounted in the upper end 23 of housing 12 and its lower end 30 rotatably mounted in an L-shaped bracket 31 which is fixed to the housing rear wall 22 by screws 32 and provides a space 33 with the housing lower end 24. The lead screw 28 is of rigid construction and extends through threaded apertures in the top and

bottom plates

26 and 27 of the carriage 25 providing an arrangement, on rotation of lead screw 28, for raising or lowering the carriage 25 as is well known in the art. For the purpose of rotating the screw 28, a horizontal friction disk 34 is fixed as by a locking nut as shown in FIG. 3, to its lower end 30 and coacts with a vertical friction disk 35 which is fixedly mounted on shaft 36 of a reversible motor M for driving the. lead screw 28 in either direction of rotation. F The top and bottom plates 26 and 2'7 of carriage 25 are interconnected by a front panel 37 which has upper and lower metal inserts or

receptacles

38 and 39 disposed in apertures formed therein for receiving respectively an upper green light G anda lower red light R which correspondin position with the main trafiic lights G and R of FIG. 1. The bulb receptacle 38 is provided with a pair of terminal posts 40--40 and the bulb receptacle 39 is provided with apair of terminal posts 41-41 for receiving wires or electrical connections from elements to be described.

, .A plurality. of

fixed conductors

42, 43, 44 and 45 exand spaced transversestrips of insulation 46 are inter posed between the conductors and the rear wall 22 of theauxiliary housing 12. The conductors are fixedly secured by means of screws 47 which are countersunk in the front face of the conductors and the conductors provide

aninner pair

43 and 45 and an

outer pair

42 and 44. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, bolts 48 extend through the upper end portions of inner conductors 43 and -45 and have nuts 49--49 at their rear ends for securing connectors 50 from a switch 51 which controls current from a power source. t

Movable conductors

52, 53 and 54, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, are secured to the underface of the plate 26 of carriage 25 by means of bolts 55 and are positioned to be in constant physical contact with the

fixed conductors

42, 43 and 44 during movement of the carriage 25.

Connectors 606162 and 63 interconnect the

bulb receptacles

38 and 39 with the movable conductors 52,

receptacle 39. Thus, the

fixed conductors

42, and 44 are arranged to be in circuit with the lights G and R through the movable conductors and the lights are energized alternately and for predetermnied time durations by a mechanical arrangement to be deseribed. As shown in the lower portion of FIG. 4 the

fixed conductors

42, 43 and 44 are respectively provided with

wires

64, 65 and 66 for connection to the terminals of motor M and it is to be understood that suitable relay or switch means may be provided to reverse the motor for changing the direction of travel of the carriage 25.

The arrangement for alternately supplying power to the lights G and R in accordance with the direction of travel of the carriage 25 resides in the provision of upper and lower

transverse rocker arms

70 and 71 shown in FIG. 4, each of which is mounted for limited pivotal movement. To this end the upper arm 70 is mounted in a slot 72 formed in the conductor 45 by a nut and bolt assembly indicated at 73 which permits vertical adjustment of the arm 70 in the slot and also provides for the limited pivotal movement of the arm 70. The lower arm 71 is mounted only for limited pivotal movement by a nut and bolt assembly 74 extending through an insulation strip 46 and the back 22 of the housing 12. The rocker arms have their right end portions interconnected by a vertical rod 75 which is threaded at its upper and lower end portions for reception in apertured lugs 76-7 7 extending from the rocker arms and adjustably mounted by means of adjusting nuts 7879.

The upper end portions of

conductors

42 and 44 are slotted similarly to the conductor 45 and adjustably receive Lshaped'

elements

80 and 81 having

lower contact lugs

82 and 83 and the

elements

80 and 81 are secured in

theslotted conductors

42 and 44 by adjusting

bolts

84 and 85. The carriage 25 is provided'with upper and lower extensions or

arms

90 and 91 which are respectively secured by

screws

92 and 93 to the upper and

lower plates

26 and 27 of the carriage and physically customary automatic timing switch 100 which is set to operate the 'lights'G and R alternately and during selected abut or contact in alternation the left side of thetranstime periods. To this

end wires

101 and 102 are connected with the light R while

wires

103 and 104 are connected with the light G from switch 100. The time lapse light R has

direct connections

105 and 106 with the

wires

101 and 102 while the time lapse light G has direct connections 107 and 108 with the

wires

103 and 104 which provide for operation of the light R only while light R is operating and for the operation of light G only while light G is operating.

In order to reverse the direction of movement of the carriage 25, a switch 110 is mounted on the carriage and lines 111 and 112 interconnect the switch with the power lines X and Y while pairs of leads 113114 and 115116 are connected between the switch 110 and motor M. Cooperating stops 117 and 118 are mounted on the rear wall 22 of the auxiliary housing 14 and operate to reverse the operation of motor M and to transfer power from one of lights G or R to the other. The

stops

117 and 118 will be adjustable, for example, as shown and explained in connection with FIG. 3 in order to be synchronized with the timed operation of the lights GR. The switch 110 is provided with a pivoted arm 119 which is actuated upon contact with the

stops

117 or 118 at the upper or lower limit of movement of the carriage 25 to reverse motor M and to change power between lights G and R By this arrangement it is apparent that in case of a burn out of either of the lights G or R, the auxiliary lights G or R could function to control traflic.

The modification of FIG. 7 is adapted for uses other than for traflic signals and is generally like FIG. 3, differing therefrom in details of construction. This modification provides a unit which is arranged to be plugged into an electrical outlet and many be used for timing machine operations or could be inexpensively constructed and used as a toy. The carriage 25 is provided with a vertical partition 120 providing inner and outer compartments 121 and 122. A switch as 110 in FIG. 6 having a pivoted switch arm 119 is supported on the vertical partition and disposed in the outer compartment 122 and pairs electrical connections 123-124 and 125-126 extend across the inner through the spring contactor 53 and

connectors

61 and 62 and to one or the other of the outer conductors 42or 44 through the transverse arm 70. One or the other of

movable conductors

52 or 53 will be energized in accordance with the direction of travel of the carriage 25,

through contact of the transverse arm 70 with one of

contacts

82 or 83, and the other side of lights G or R will be energized. The conductor 42 will be energized through the contact 82 during one direction of movement of the carriage 25 and light G 'will be on while the conductor 44 will be energized during the other direction of movement of the carriage 25 and light R will be on.

The time of travel of the carriage 25 in either direc tion will be synchronized with the operation of the lights G and R of the trafiic signal 10. The travel time of carriage 25 is made variable through adjustment of the

lugs

80 and 81, the transverse arm 70 and the connecting rod 75 for the purpose of synchronizing lights G and R with lights G and R.

By provision of the auxiliary housing and time lapse indicating mechanism of the invention a pedestrian will be apprised of the approximate time he has to cross an intersection by merely observing the relative position of the light G or R in the housing whereas with the usual street traflic signal there is no positive way to estimate the length of time before a light change. p

In FIG. 6, power from a source is supplied by lines X and Y to the traflic signal lights G and R through the compartment '121 between the switch and the'G and R lights respectively. Other pairs of electrical connections 113114 and 116 extend from the switch 110 to the motor M, as shown in FIG. 6. The top and bottom.

plates

26 and 27 of the carriage 25 form slots or

spaces

127 and 128 with the rear wall 22 of. housing 14 and permit passage of the upper and lower stops 117 andl118 into the outer compartment 122 of the carriage 25 to contact the pivoted switch arm '119 for reversing operation of the motor M and the alternate operation of the lights G and R The L-shaped bracket 31 is reversed from its position shown in FIG. 3 in order to provide for uninterrupted movement of the carriage to its lowermost position to provide contact between the lower stop 118 and switch arm 119. A seocnd switch 130 is mounted on the outer wall 22 of housing 14 and is provided with a cord and plug assembly 131 for insertion in an electrical outlet.

Connections

132 and 133 extend between switch 130 and switch 110 and are contained within the outer compartment. It will be understood, of course, that the wire connections will be coiled or compactly arranged or be of the extensible type in order to permit movement of the carriage 25 and associated elements.

It willbe obvious to one skilled in the art that various changes may be made to the present disclosure without departing from the invention which is limited only by the appended claims.

I claim:

A traffic signal having standard Go and Stop lights, mam power supply lines and a set of switch controlled conductors for each of the lights, in combinationfa time lapse indicator comprising a housing having side walls including a transparent face and upper and lower end walls, a rotatable lead screw mounted longitudinally of the housing between its end walls, a carriage having top and bottom plates providing a space therebetween, said plates being interconnected by a front panel and supported by said lead screw, a pair of longitudinally spaced light receptacles on the front panel of the carriage, one receptacle having an auxiliary Go light therein and the other having an auxiliary Stop light therein, connections between the one receptacle and the set of conductors of one standard light, other connections between the other receptacle and the set of conductors of the other standard light, a switch supported by the carriage and having conncctions to the power supply lines, a pivoted control arm for said switch having a free end disposed adjacent one wall of the housing, a reversible motor in the housing operatively connected to the lead screw for reciprocating the carriage within the housing, said top and bottom plates having edge portions positoined to cooperate with a wall of the housing to maintain the carriage panel aligned with the transparent face of the housing during the carriage reciprocation, a first set of electrical condoctors between said switch and motor, a second set of electrical conductors being the switch and motor, a first stop on said one wall of the housing spaced from one of its end walls, a second stop on said one wall of the housing spaced from its other end wall, said free end of the pivoted control arm during movement of the carriage in one direction contacting said first stop to deenergize one set of electrical conductors and energize the other set and during movement of the carriage in its other direcn'on contacting the second stop to energize the one set of electrical conductors and denergize the other set.

2. A time elapse indicator for use with a trailic signal having standard Go and Stop lights, main power supply lines and a set of switch controlled conductors for each of the lights, said indicator comprising a housing having side walls including a transparent face and upper and lower end walls, a rotatable lead screw mounted longitudinally of the housing between its end walls, a carriage having top and bottom plates interconnected by a front panel and supported by said lead screw, a pair of longitudinally spaced light receptacles on the front panel of the carriage, one receptacle for receiving an auxiliary Go light and the other for receiving an auxiliary Stop light, connections from the one receptacle for attachment to the set of conductors of one standard light, other connections from the other receptacle for attachment to the set of conductors of the other standard light, a switch supported between the carriage plates and having connections for attachment to the power supply lines, a pivoted control arm for said switch disposed between the carriage plates and having a free end adjacent the rear wall of the housing, a reversible motor in the housing operatively connected to the lead screw for reciprocating the carriage within the housing, said top and bottom plates having rear edge portions positioned adjacent the rear wall of the housing to maintain the carriage panel aligned with the transparent face of the housing during the carriage reciprocation, a first set of electrical conductors between said switch and motor, a second set of electrical conductors between the switch and motor, a first stop on the rear wall of the housing spaced from one of its end walls, a second stop on the rear wall of the housing spaced from its other end wall, said free end of the pivoted control arm during movement of the carriage in one direction contacting said first stop and during movement of the carriage in its other direction contacting the second stop.

3. A time lapse indicator for a street trafi'ic signal which comprises a housing having end walls and side walls including a transparent face, a lead screw mounted longitudinally of the housing between its end walls, a carriage having top and bottom plates interconnected by a front panel and supported by said lead screw, a reversible motor in the housing, connections between said lead screw and motor for moving the carriage longitudinally of the housing, said carriage panel having a pair of longitudinally spaced light receptacles therein, one receptacle for receiving a lamp of one color and the other for receiving a lamp of another color, said top and bottom plates providing a space therebetween and having rear edge portions positioned adjacent the rear wall of the housing to maintain the carriage panel aligned with the transparent face of the housing, a pair of fixed inner power conductors and a pair of fixed outer power conductors extending longitudinally of the housing adjacent its rear wall, one of said inner conductors pivotally mounting a transverse conductor arm, said outer conductors each having a contactor lug extending therefrom, an inner movable conductor means and a pair of outer movable conductor means mounted in said space between the carriage plates, said inner movable conductor means providing an electrical connection between the other of said fixed inner conductors and each of said receptacles, one of said pair of outer movable conductor means providing an electrical connection between one of said outer fixed conductors and one of said pair of receptacles and the other of said outer movable conductor means providing an electrical connection between the other outer fixed conductor and the other of said pair of receptacles, said reversible motor being connected to said other inner fixed conductor and to each of said outer fixed conductors and means on the carriage operative to pivot said transverse arm in contact alternately with the contactor lugs carried by the outer fixed conductors.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,227,613 Wells Jan. 7, 1941