Advertising display means for parking meter and the like

An advertising display means is provided for a parking meter of the type having a removable housing component accessible internally of the meter. The display means comprises a unitary member having a first portion which is substantially identical to the removable housing component and is substituted therefor out in the field or during routine maintenance in the workshop. The unitary member further has a second planar portion, integral with the first portion, and extending vertically above the meter. A pressure-sensitive adhesive decal or label, bearing an advertising message, is secured to the planar portion.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to an advertising display means for a sign 
post or the like, and more particularly, to a miniature "billboard" for a 
municipal, public or private parking meter. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
In the prior art, of which we are aware, various advertising signs, 
billboards or displays have been patented for use with parking meters, 
sign posts and the like. These displays invariably consist of an 
attachment for an existing meter installation. In one example, the 
attachment consists of a two-part hinged structure, one part being secured 
to the meter housing, and the other part being hinged on the one part and 
pivoted away to provide access to the advertising display. Like other 
examples, the attachment is rigidly secured to the meter housing (or other 
structure of the meter) by suitable internally-accessible fastening means. 
In another example, the attachment includes elongated straps that depend 
therefrom and terminate in a semi-circular collar that cooperates with a 
suitable clamp for rigidly securing the attachment to the column or post 
of the parking meter. Moreover, in most cases, the advertising display is 
housed in a laminated structure including transparent partitions through 
which the display may be viewed. 
These prior art disclosures suffer from a number of inherent deficiencies 
and disadvantages, the most serious of which are as follows: The 
attachments invariably consist of an appendage to an existing meter and 
its installation may require some modification of the meter structure. 
This is inconvenient and time consuming, and besides, may detract from the 
future utility of the meter. The attachments are usually bulky and 
somewhat unwieldly. Not only does this detract from the aesthetic design 
qualities of the meter, but a person's clothes may catch on any clamping 
collars, hasps, protuberances and the like. A complicated attachment, 
designed to be securely mounted on the meter, may actually invite 
vandalism or theft of the entire attachment. Moreover, the means for 
changing the advertising display is often complicated, which again is time 
consuming, and the use of specially-designed laminated windows may tend to 
odscure the promotional impact of the advertising message. 
As a result of these inherent deficiencies and disadvantages, the prior art 
disclosures (to the best of our knowledge and belief) have not been widely 
accepted by municipalities and hence have not been commercially 
successful. By the same token, there still exists a critical need for a 
practical and readily-acceptable low-cost advertising display means for 
parking meters and the like. A fulfillment of this need should unleash a 
massive commercial potential to be shared by sponsors, advertisers, 
municipalities and others. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an 
advertising display means for a parking meter and the like, which 
substantially alleviates the inherent deficiencies and disadvantages of 
the prior art. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide an advertising 
display means which is relatively simple and economical, yet may be easily 
and conveniently installed on existing meters either during routine 
maintenance in the shop or on a retrofit basis out in the field. 
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an advertising 
display means which includes a unitary member having an integral portion 
which is substantially identical to an existing, removable housing 
component of the meter, whereby the unitary member may be substituted for 
the housing component. 
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a unitary member 
having an integral portion provided with a peripheral rim, whereby 
pressure-sensitive adhesive decals may be carried by the integral portion 
directly inwardly of the rim, thereby discouraging removal of the decal by 
vandalism. 
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide an 
improved method for installing a miniature "billboard" on a municipal 
parking meter. 
In accordance with the broad teachings of the present invention, an 
advertising display means is provided for use with a parking meter or the 
like, wherein the meter has a removable housing component disposed 
substantially at the top thereof. The display means comprises a unitary 
member having a first portion substantially identical to the housing 
component. As a result, the unitary member may be readily substituted for 
the housing component of existing meters on a retrofit basis out in the 
field or in the workshop during regular maintenance. The unitary member 
has a substantially planar second portion integral with the first portion 
and extending vertically above the parking meter. This second portion has 
a substantially flat face formed with a peripheral rim extending laterally 
therefrom; and a message carrier means, preferably comprising a 
pressure-sensitive adhesive decal, is secured to the flat face inwardly of 
the rim. 
In accordance with the further teachings of the present invention, the 
integral second portion of the unitary member has a pair of parallel flat 
faces, and a decal is secured to each of the faces inwardly of the rim and 
substantially adjacent thereto. The decal has a plan outline and 
dimensions corresponding substantially to the plan outline and dimensions 
of the flat face. This arrangement allows the message to be quickly 
installed out in the field, yet the decal cannot be easily removed or 
vandalized without the use of a special implement. New decals may be 
easily installed over existing decals, since each decal is substantially 
opaque and is relatively thin in comparison to the width of the 
laterally-extending rim. Eventually, an accummulation of decals may be 
scraped off, whenever convenient. 
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent from 
a reading of the following specification taken in conjunction with the 
enclosed drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
With reference to FIGS. 1-3, there is illustrated the top portion of a 
typical parking meter 10 used by municipalities, private parking lots and 
others. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the 
teachings of the present invention are not necessarily restricted to the 
particular parking meter illustrated herein, but rather, are equally 
applicable to a wide variety of parking meter designs and constructions. 
With this in mind, the parking meter 10 includes a main housing 11 (shown 
in fragmentary form) a housing cap 12 carried by the main housing, a 
transparent dome 13 nested within a continuous groove 14 formed on the 
housing cap, a meter dial 15 visible through the dome, and a removable 
housing component comprising an arcuate cap strap 16 which retains the 
dome in position. This cap strap 16 is secured to the housing cap by a 
plurality of screws 17 which are only accessible internally of the meter 
housing. Thus, as shown in FIG. 3, an authorized agent may easily remove 
the cap strap out in the field (or during routine maintenance in the 
workshop) and replace it with the unitary member 18 of the present 
invention. 
This unitary member 18 thus comprises a replacement meter housing. It has a 
first portion 19, which is substantially identical to the removable cap 
strap 16, and hence is adapted to the particular configuration of the 
meter 10. The unitary member further has a second portion 20, integral 
with the first portion, and extending therefrom vertically above the 
meter. As shown in FIG. 4, the meter itself is conventional and includes 
the usual coin slots 21, turnable knob 22 and post 23. The unitary member 
could be fabricated if desired; however, preferably it is integrally cast 
from a suitable metal, such as steel. If desired, the unitary member could 
be cast from other suitable materials, such as a high-impact plastic, 
glass-fiber, or rubber composition. Since the unitary member is rigidly 
mounted to the meter and becomes an integral part thereof, it is capable 
of withstanding most forms of vandalism. Moreover, its smooth integrated 
appearance (in relation to the overall meter) will tend to discourage 
vandalism in the first instance. 
With reference to FIGS. 5-8, the second integral portion 20 of the unitary 
member is substantially planar and has a pair of parallel flat faces 24, 
25 and a peripheral rim 26 extending laterally (and preferably, at right 
angles) therefrom. Preferably, but not necessarily, each of the faces of 
the integral planar portion has a plan outline generally in the form of an 
arcuate section of a radial segment of a circle. Moreover, the planar 
portion does not extend substantially beyond the width of the parking 
meter, and its corners are rounded off (as at 27) to avoid snagging the 
motorist's clothes. 
A message carrier means is provided for use with the unitary member of the 
present invention. Preferably, this message carrier means comprises a 
pressure-sensitive adhesive decal 28. As shown in FIG. 9, this decal has a 
protective waxed paper backing 29 that may be easily peeled off for easy 
mounting of the advertisement. 
However, the scope of the present invention is not confined to the 
particular decal 28, and it will be appreciated by those skilled in the 
art that any type of suitable pressure-sensitive label or sticker may be 
employed; or, if desired, a separate card or metal plate may be glued on 
(or secured on) out in the field. Also, the message could be integrally 
molded or embossed on the integral portion of the planar member. 
Of more significance, the plan outline and dimensions of the decal 
substantially approximate the plan outline and dimensions of the flat 
faces 24, 25. As a result, the decal is mounted to one of the flat faces 
directly inwardly of the rim and closely adjacent thereto (as shown in 
FIG. 8). Thus it will be difficult for a vandal to lift off the decal 
merely by using a thumb nail or finger nail. This makes vandalism much 
more difficult or else discourages it altogether. The decal carries a 
suitable advertising message (indicated generally at 30). An identical 
decal may be placed on the opposite face of the planar portion, if 
desired, as shown in FIG. 8. Moreover, since the decals are relatively 
thin in relation to the lateral width of the rim, a plurality of decals 
may be carried by each face (as shown in FIG. 10). The decals are 
sufficiently opaque so that the prior decal and its message are totally 
obscured. Each decal may be specially coated with a plastic film to 
withstand the extremes of weather and temperature, so that the advertising 
message will be clear and continually "fresh" for its intended duration. 
Eventually, the accumulation of decals may be scraped off, whenever 
convenient, using a scraper or other suitable implement. 
The meter 10 (illustrated herein by way of example) is the Duncan Model 
"60" Parking Meter, which is widely used by municipalities. However, as 
previously noted, the scope of the present invention is not to be limited 
thereto. Another example is the meter 31 illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12. 
This meter 31, which is manufactured by P.O.M. Incorporated of 
Russellville, Arkansas, has a two-part housing including housing members 
32 and 33. Housing member 33 has a peripheral flange 34 and serves as a 
cover for housing member 32. As shown in FIG. 12, housing member 33 has 
been removed and replaced by a unitary member comprising a new housing 
member 35. This new housing member 35 is substantially identical to member 
33, but is provided with an integral planar portion 36. This planar 
portion 36 is substantially identical to the planar portion 20 of the 
preferred embodiment of FIG. 4. 
Thus it will be appreciated that an advertising display means or miniature 
"billboard" has been provided for municipal parking meters and the like, 
one which alleviates the inherent deficiencies and disadvantages of the 
prior art. Indeed, by providing the integrally-cast unitary member of the 
present invention, the following advantages are realized: The device is 
simple and economical to produce, and expensive tooling charges are 
avoided. It is easy to install on a retrofit basis out in the field. It 
has a smooth integrated appearance, is not obtrusive, and discourages 
theft or vandalism. Moreover, the advertising message will remain clearly 
visable for a desired duration. 
Obviously, many modifications may be made without departing from the basic 
spirit of the present invention. Accordingly, it will be appreciated by 
those skilled in the art that within the scope of the appended claims, the 
invention may be practiced other than has been specifically described 
herein.