US3755941A

US3755941A - Perpetual calendars

Info

Publication number: US3755941A
Application number: US00199864A
Authority: US
Inventors: A Zeiske
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1971-11-18
Filing date: 1971-11-18
Publication date: 1973-09-04
Anticipated expiration: 1990-09-04

Abstract

A device for determining and displaying the calendar for ANY month of ANY year of ANY century, the novelty and essence of which reside in avoiding any separation of Leap from Common YEARS (thereby eliminating the necessity for TWO Januaries and Februaries (one for leap, and one for common, years)), and, instead, segregating pre-March, from post-February MONTHS. This necessitates a DIFFERENT year pattern for each of these two separate month groups. Each of these two sections consists of a face and two positionable members. The face has three windows or the like, and, at one of them, the seven week-day names, while the positionable members have, in one type: months and centuries on one, and years and calendar on the other, and in another type: months and years on one and centuries and calendar on the other. Month names and calendar are necessarily always on different positionable members, as are centuries and years. The desired month is set at one window, thereby fixing the century (or year) numerals in position; then the desired year (or century) is aligned with the desired previously positioned century (or year), thereby revealing in the second individual window the correct calendar for that setting, the century and year both appearing in a common (third) window. The same calendar is, of course, correct for every other so linked century-year combination. A mistake, due to not knowing whether a given year is, or is not, a leap year, is impossible with this perpetual calendar.

Description

United States Patent [1 1 Zeiske Sept. 4, 1973 1 PERPETUAL CALENDARS [76] Inventor: Arnold Ernst Zeiske, 6151 Palo Pinto Ave., Dallas, Tex. 75214 22 Filed: Nov. 18, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 199,864

[52] US. Cl. 40/109 [51] Int. Cl. G09d 3/04 [58] Field of Search 40/107, 109, 110

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,789,763 4/1957 Renaudin 40/109 3,166,862 1/1965 Jaickles 40/109 3,201,884 8/1965 Aughey 40/109 3,427,740 2/1969 Heskes 40/109 3,605,307 9/1971 Dickson 40/109 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 719,946 2/1932 France 40/109 Primary ExaminerRobert W. Michell Assistant Examiner.lohn H. Wolff [57] ABSTRACT A device for determining and displaying the calendar for ANY month of ANY year of ANY century, the novelty and essence of which reside in avoiding any separation of Leap from Common YEARS [thereby eliminating the necessity for TWO Januaries and Februaries (one for leap, and one for common, years)], and, instead, segregating pre-March, from post-February MONTHS. This necessitates a DIFFERENT year pattern for each of these two separate month groups. Each of these two sections consists of a face and two positionable members. The face has three windows or the like, and, at one of them, the seven week-day names, while the positionable members have, in one type: months and centuries on one, and years and calendar on the other, and in another type: months and years on one and centuries and calendar on the other. Month names and calendar are necessarily always on different positionable members, as are centuries and years. The desired month is set at one window, thereby fixing the century (or year) numerals in position; then the desired year (or century) is aligned with the desired previously positioned century (or year), thereby revealing in the second individual window the correct calendar for that setting, the century and year both appearing in a common (third) window. The same calendar is, of course, correct for every other so linked century-year combination. A mistake, due to not knowing whether a given year is, or is not, a leap year, is impossible with this perpetual calendar.

2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures slmltlwlrlF Is luv s MITIWITIIFIS PERPETUAL CALENDARS This invention relates to calendars, and, more specifically, to perpetual or permanent calendars.

The specific objects of the present invention are to.

provide a calendar which:

1. is a month-calendar instead of either a full-year calendar, or, on the other hand, only a single-day calculator, co-ordinator or computer designed to correlate only a single specific month-date with the corresponding day of the week;

2. is truly perpetual in that it can be set instantly to reveal the correct month-date/week-day correlation for any month whatever past, present or future;

3. is direct-reading, dispensing entirely with any and all Dominical or other key, code or other symbols, letters, numbers, or the like, or any other intermediate means whatever, as well as with the necessity, in the process of using the device, of making calculations, or invoking any memory work while doing so;

4. is automatically correct for the particular month and full four-digit year designation upon which it is set, regardless of whether the year is or is not, or is or is not known or shown to be, a leap year;

5. displays such month and full 4-digit year designation in its entirety;

6. provides, at the same time, for the compact display, simultaneously with the display of such particular full four-digit year designation, of ALL the other full four-digit year designations for which the calendar for the month revealed and displayed is also the correct calendar;

7. is unequivocal, in that only one January and February setting is possible, thus making it impossible to see an incorrect calendar for the month name designation visibly displayed, user not having to know whether a given year is, or is not, a leap year, the differentiation being built into the device itself; there is only one way to set any given month.

The fundamental principles upon which the invention is based, are:

a. Complete separation of the pre-March from the post-February months;

b. The provision, for the pre-March months, of a year-pattern different from that which applies to the post-February months, based upon the concept of the discovery that, by regarding the year XYOO" as the year following the year (XY U99," instead of as the year preceding the year XYOl a different pattern is necessitated from that which is applicable to the post- February months, and that by the introduction of this pattern for those two months, the correct calendar for a January or a February can be determined without resorting to the indefiniteness arising out of having to have TWO .lanuaries and TWO F ebruaries (depending upon whether it is or is not a leap year which is involved) between which a choice must be made on the basis of pre-lrnowledge of whether the year is, or is not, a leap year, in order to set it correctly, a feature with respect to which even the most erudite scholar can make a mistake, even while SEEING the correct year number and the correct month name exposed.

The structure of one embodiment of the device of which the invention consists, and its operation, are described and explained concurrently with the references to the Drawing.

In The drawing,

FIG. I represents the body structure of one embodi' ment having two faces side-by-side;

FlGS. II and IV represent the two positionable elements, each, in this embodiment, having one face, for determining, at one of the faces of the body structure of FIG. I, the calendar for any post-February month, while FIGS. III and V represent two more single-faced positionable elements which, in co-operation with the other face of the body structure, determine the calendar for any pre-March month.

The protruding tabs or tongues, 17, of the positionable elements, 6, and 7, are threaded, from the back, thru the respective appropriate supporting and guiding slots, 10, of FIG. I, to expose portions of such positionable elements at the viewing areas, 3, 4 and 5, of FIG. I. In operation, positionable element, 6, is slid, by means of the appropriate supporting, constraining and guiding slots, 10, so as to expose, in viewing area, 3, of face, 2, of the body structure, 1, the particular one of the group of month names, 11 (12,), for which the calendar is desired; this places indicia group of century numerals, 13, on the same face, 8, of element 6, in a fixed position in third viewing area, 5; positionable element, 7, is then slid, by means of other supporting slots, 10, so as to align desired year numerals, l4 (15), on its face, 9, in same vertical column with desired, already positioned, century numerals, 113, thus fixedly positioning day numerals, 16, constituting the desired calendar, in second viewing area, 4, below the week-day specifying means, 10, for positioning mo nth dates in correct correlation with such days of the week.

The drawing depicts one type in which the month names and century numerals are the two indicia groups on one positionable element, and year numerals and day numerals the two indicia groups on the other, in each of the two (post-February and pre-March) sections. In another type the paired indicia groups are: month names and year numerals on one, and century numerals and day numerals on the other positionable element in each of the two sections named, represented by (in this embodiment) the left and right faces and corresponding positionable elements; in other embodiments, instead of left and right faces, the body structure can obviously have front and back faces, and in still other embodiments one face can be designed to serve for both such sections. The essential principle, as can be seen, is, of course, that month names and calendar numerals must always be on different positionable elements, and similarly, century numerals and year numerals must always be on different positionable elements, thus giving rise to two possible combinations of indicia groups which can be on the same positionable element. Moreover, month names and year numerals appertaining to the post-February section must both be operably segregated from the pre-March section with its applicable month-name and year-numeral indicia groups.

Since the indicia group representative of centuries, and that representative of day numerals can be, and in this embodiment are, respectively identical in the two (pre-March and post-February) sections, it is obvious that, in the type which incorporates these two indicia groups on one and the same face of the same positionable element, there can be ari embodiment wherein one of the positionable elements has only one face, such face cooperating with both faces of another positionable element, or of other positionable elements, and with the face, or one of the faces, of the body structure. In other embodiments, the faces do not even have to be planar, and the positioning does not have to be translational; the body structure and positionable elements can be curved, nested, cylindrical, conical, coaxial, disk-like, or of any other physical shape, and the positioning can be rotational circular, foldable, or accomplished in any other manner which conforms with the principles upon which patentable novelty is predicated, as stated earlier herein.

Having thus disclosed and described my invention in complete detail, both as to the structure and as to the operation, as supported in both the specification and in the drawing, I claim:

1. A perpetual calendar comprising a body structure having at least one face, each such face embracing three viewing areas; a plurality of positionable elements, each having at least one face; means on said body structure for adjustably supporting and positioning said positionable elements so that portions of said faces of said positionable elements can be selectively exposed at said viewing areas; each positionable element having two separate groups of indicia on each of its faces, said indicia groups being arranged so that a first group of indicia on a face of one of said positionable elements is selectively. exposed at a first viewing area of a face of the body structure, a first group of indicia on a face of another one of said positionable elements is selectively exposed at a second viewing area of said face of the body structure, and a second group of indicia on each of said faces of said two above mentioned positionable elements is exposed jointly at a third viewing area of said face of the body structure;

the first and second groups of indicia on a face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designating: (1) the names of all post-February months and (2) numerals representative of centuries, respectively,

and the first and second groups of indicia on a face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designating numerals representative of: (l)

days of a month and (2) all the one hundred years 00 through 99 inclusive, so that the independent positioning of each of said two positionable elements selectively reveals a perpetual calendar comprising century and year numerals, at least one post-February month name, and day numerals; the first and second groups of indicia on a further face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designating: (l) the names of the two pre-March months and (2) numerals representative of centuries, respectively, and the first and second groups of indicia on a further face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designating numerals representative of: (1) days of a month and (2) all the one hundred years 01 through 100 inclusive, so that the independent positioning of each of said two positionable elements selectively reveals a perpetual calendar comprising century and year numerals, at least one pre-March month name, and day numerals. 2. The perpetual calendar set forth in claim 1 wherein the first and second groups of indicia on a face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designates: (l) the names of all 10 post-February months and (2) numerals representative of the one hundred years 00 through 99, inclusive,

and the first and second groups of indicia on a face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designates numerals representative of: (l) centuries and (2) days of a month, respectively; and wherein the first and second groups of indicia on a further face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designates: (l the names of the two pre- March months and 2) numerals representative of all the one hundred years 01 through 100, inclusive, and the first and second groups of indicia on a face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designates numerals representative of: l)

centuries and (2) days of a month, respectively.

Claims

1. A perpetual calendar comprising a body structure having at least one face, each such face embracing three viewing areas; a plurality of positionable elements, each having at least one face; means on said body structure for adjustably supporting and positioning said positionable elements so that portions of said faces of said positionable elements can be selectively exposed at said viewing areas; each positionable element having two separate groups of indicia on each of its faces, said indicia groups being arranged so that a first group of indicia on a face of one of said positionable elements is selectively exposed at a first viewing area of a face of the body structure, a first group of indicia on a face of another one of said positionable elements is selectively exposed at a second viewing area of said face of the body structure, and a second group of indicia on each of said faces of said two above mentioned positionable elements is exposed jointly at a third viewing area of said face of the body structure; the first and second groups of indicia on a face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designating: (1) the names of all 10 post-February months and (2) numerals representative of centuries, respectively, and the first and second groups of indicia on a face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designating numerals representative of: (1) days of a month and (2) all the one hundred years 00 through 99 inclusive, so that the independent positioning of each of said two positionable elements selectively reveals a perpetual calendar comprising century and year numerals, at least one postFebruary month name, and day numerals; the first and second groups of indicia on a further face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designating: (1) the names of the two pre-March months and (2) numerals representative of centuries, respectively, and the first and second groups of indicia on a further face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designating numerals representative of: (1) days of a month and (2) all the one hundred years 01 through 100 inclusive, so that the independent positioning of each of said two positionable elements selectively reveals a perpetual calendar comprising century and year numerals, at least one pre-March month name, and day numerals.

2. The peRpetual calendar set forth in claim 1 wherein the first and second groups of indicia on a face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designates: (1) the names of all 10 post-February months and (2) numerals representative of the one hundred years 00 through 99, inclusive, and the first and second groups of indicia on a face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designates numerals representative of: (1) centuries and (2) days of a month, respectively; and wherein the first and second groups of indicia on a further face of one of the plurality of positionable elements designates: (1) the names of the two pre-March months and (2) numerals representative of all the one hundred years 01 through 100, inclusive, and the first and second groups of indicia on a face of another one of the plurality of positionable elements designates numerals representative of: (1) centuries and (2) days of a month, respectively.