Improvements in Advertising Devices.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Feb., 1893-Accepted, 8th Apr., 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Advertising Devices.
I, ALLAN GERALD MACDONELL, of 637 East 145th Street New York City,
State of New York one of the United States of America, Gentleman, do hereby
declare the nature of this' invention and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention has relation to that class of advertising devices covered by my
U.S. Patent No. 283,408 dated Aug. 21-'83, wherein a series of advertising
wheels having sector-shaped advertising spaces are caused to automatically rotate
intermittently beneath or behind a face plate (preferably a table-top) having
alternating transparent and opaque radial sectors whereby all the advertisements
on the different wheels are successively displayed at intervals under the transparent
sectors of the face plate, as hereinafter more fully described.
The present invention has for its objects the improvement of the construction of
the device, rendering it capable of displaying a greater number of advertise-
ments, and better adapt it for other purposes than table tops, as fully hereinafter
described.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of my invention; Fig. 2 a vertical sectional view
thereof;
Figs. 3 and 4 partial sectional views showing details hereinafter described, and
Fig. 5 a sectional view showing one form of the advertising wheels, having a less
number of advertising panels than is shown in Fig. 1.
In the drawing annexed, a designates the circular face plate of the device, whose
surface is divided off into an even number of radiating sectors, these sectors being
made alternately transparent and opaque, the transparent ones being designated
by a' and the opaque ones by a". There may be eight of these transparent sectors,
as shown in Fig. 1, or any greater or less number, as is evident.
This face plate may be made entirely of glass or the glass transparent sectors
may be made to alternate with wooden or metal opaque sectors set in between
them, as may be desired. To the rear side of this face plate secured a circular
closed casing, which is provided at its upper edge with a pair of eyes 6" to
enable it to be hung upon a wall or other support. Instead of hanging the frame
upon a wall, however, it may be set upon an easel or supported in any other way
desired. Passing through the centre of the casing is a non-rotatable rod b, upon
which is loosely journalled a hollow shaft or sleeve c, within the casing. Made
integral with (as shown) or secured on one end of this shaft is a wheel or pulley c¹,
which is driven by any suitable motor, located conveniently.
In the present
instance, this wheel is rotated by a cord o", which is driven by a small electrical or
other motor c' secured on top of the casing. Secured to the same sleeve or integral
with it, alongside said pulley, is another pulley d, from which extends a belt or
cord d' running over a small pulley on a short shaft du journaled in the casing,
near its upper edge, said shaft being provided with a series of tappets d', all of
which, except one, are of sufficient width to engage two of the pawls at once and
are equally spaced over the periphery of the shaft.
Journaled loosely upon the shaft or sleeve c are the advertising wheels e which
are provided, each with a suitable number of radiating transparent sectors e', which
contain the advertising or other matter which it is desired to display and are of the
same size and shape as the sectors of the face-plate, with which they are adapted
to register during the operation of the device. These wheels may be made of open
frame-work and have the glass sectors or panels slid in over segmental openings
therein, every alternate opening being left open as shown in Figures 3 and 4, or as
ונ

page_text: is preferable they may consist simply of radial glass sectors having their inner ends
inserted in openings in hubs or center pieces and their outer ends supported in a
ring e, as shown in Figure 5. In either case the transparent segments are made
removable so that the advertisements may be readily changed at will without
removing the wheels, the casing being provided with one or more doors or
openings for this purpose. The periphery of each wheel is provided with a
suitable number of notches, with which engage the pawls F pivoted within the
casing at its upper end, the forward ends of these pawls being extended so as to
project in to the respective paths of the tappets on the shaft d. The wheels are
journaled loosely on the sleeve except that they are each connected to the same by
a convolute spring f¹, which serves to rotate the wheels when they are released by
the pawls F.
The operation of this invention is as follows:-
:-
The motor imparts a very slow motion to the hollow shaft through the medium
of the cord and pulley, whereby the tappet-shaft d" is caused to rotate in the same
direction. As the tappet-shaft rotates, its tappets lift the pawls far enough to
become disengaged from the wheels and permit the springs of the same to rotate
them the distance of one notch. The disposition of the tappets of the shaft is such
that it disengages the pawls from the wheels successively so that the wheels have
successive intermittent motion, which will cause all the wheels to expose their
advertisements successively, all the advertisements of one wheel being exposed at
each interval.
As will be observed, during the operation of the machine but one wheel at a time
can be exposed; therefore, should the front wheel be exposed the other wheels
would be hidden by the opaque sectors of the face plate. The first movement of
the tappets would be to raise the first and second simultaneously and thereby permit
the first wheel to become hidden and the second wheel to come into view, while the
next operation of the tappets would be to simultaneously raise the second pawls and
third pawls and permit the second wheel to become hidden and the third wheel to
become exposed, and so on until all the wheels that may be employed are exposed.
When the last wheel of the series has remained long enough exposed, the tappets
raise the last and the first pawls simultaneously and permit the last wheel to
become hidden and the first wheel to come into view again. Thus it will be
seen that at no time is there more than one wheel intervening between the
transparent segments of the face-plate and the light behind or beneath the same.
The tappets are so constructed and arranged that they release the pawls about
the same instant the latter release the wheels, which enables the pawls to engage
the next succeeding notches and prevent the wheels rotating too far.
The mechanism is so timed or constructed that each set of advertisements will
remain exposed the desired length of time.
It will be observed that the springs are kept wound up by continued rotation of
the sleeve or shaft.
To clearly show the advertisements, especially in the dark, electric lamps g, or
other illuminating means, are secured to the rear side of the casing behind the
advertising wheels, as shown in Fig. 2. This illuminating arrangement will
enable a greater number of wheels to be used and show up the advertisements to
better advantage.
In order to prevent the advertising wheels from impinging against each other
during operation, a series of guides k may be secured on the iuterior of the casing
and adjusted so as to project in between the edges of the wheels as shown in Fig. 2.
Any number of these guides may be used that are found necessary.
Inasmuch as the display matter on the segments may be brought to view by
simply partially rotating the wheels back and forth a sufficient distance to display
and withdraw the segments, I do not wish to be confined to the means for causing
the continuous or complete rotary motion described.
It is evident that the location of the tappets and pawls is not an essential
feature of the invention for instance, they may be located on the exterior of the

page_text: casing and grouped in a box with the motor and the whole may be covered by
some ornamental or emblematic figure, such as an eagle, as shown in Figure 1.
This arrangement is preferable as it enables the advertising wheels to be made
nearly as large as the face-plate.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The combination of a face-plate constructed of alternating opaque and
transparent sections, a series of advertising wheels journaled behind this face-plate
and provided with transparent panels containing the display matter and an
illuminating device arranged behind said wheels, substantially as described.
2. The combination of a face-plate having alternating opaque and transparent
sections, a shaft journaled behind the said face-plate and carrying a series of
advertising wheels, springs for actuating said wheels independently of the shaft
and means for operating the shaft and intermittently releasing the wheels,
substantially as described.
3. The combination of a face-plate having alternating opaque and transparent
sections, a shaft journaled behind the face-plate and carrying a series of advertising
wheels, a spring securing each wheel to the shaft and serving to actuate it when
released, pawls engaging the wheels and normally holding them against the action
of the springs, and means for automatically disengaging the pawls at intervals,
substantially as described.
4. The combination of a casing provided with openings for the withdrawal of
the panels and having a face-plate constructed as described, a series of advertising
wheels adapted to rotate behind the face-plate and carrying a series of radially
removable transparent panels, and an illuminating device behind the panels,
substantially as described.
Dated this 16th day of February 1893.
A. G. MACDONELL,
By L. W., per F. B.